From President Abraham Lincoln’s impact on the University to decades of campus Valentine’s Day celebrations, Tom Emery explores this month in Illinois State University history.

February 10

February is Black History Month, the origins of which date to 1926, when scholar Carter G. Woodson, who dedicated much of his life to the promotion and preservation of the subject, initiated Negro History Week. Woodson set the date as February 7-13, or the second week of February, to include the birthdays of Abraham Lincoln and Frederick Douglass.

Twenty-nine years earlier, teacher and activist Mary Church Terrell had persuaded the Washington, D.C., school board to set aside the afternoon of February 14, 1897, to learn about and celebrate Frederick Douglass’ life.

On this date in 1976, President Gerald Ford officially recognized Black History Month. However, the observance of African American history had been previously celebrated in some locales across the United States for decades, including at Illinois State.

The first reference to Negro History Week in the Vidette was a detailed article on February 9, 1931, which discussed such luminaries as poet Paul Dunbar, writer Charles W. Chestnut, and scholar W.E.B. DuBois. The article was titled “’Negro Renaissance’ Resulting in Valuable Contributions in Numerous Cultural Fields.”

Commemorations of Black History at Illinois State grew with the years and, by 1975, it was a major event on campus. That year, activities included an African American film festival, an appearance by a senior editor of Ebony magazine, and salutes to Marcus Garvey, Frederick Douglass, and others.

A thought-provoking editorial in the Vidette on February 8, 1980, declared that “Black History Week Not Just for Blacks,” noting “it’s for all students, faculty, and staff.” The editorial opened with a statement that summarized the reason for the celebration; “Black Americans enjoy and have suffered a much different history than other groups of Americans.”

The crowning event of Black History Month in 1989 was the official opening of the Rosa Parks Room in Watterson Towers. The event featured a stirring address from Dr. Sharon Whittaker, Ph.D. ’83, the dean of student services at Paine College, a private historically Black Methodist college in Augusta, Georgia, and a former assistant director of the Office of Residential Life at Illinois State.

Among her many highlights, Whittaker stated that “I am one of the many who felt one month is not enough. Every day should be Black History day” because “an uninformed and misinformed mind is an ignorant (mind.) To err is human but to remain in error…is stupid.”

Whittaker also urged for everyone to “strive for human oneness. We need each other.” It was a poignant moment that has come to define the meaning of Black History Month at Illinois State and elsewhere.

This Black History Month, Illinois State is hosting a Black History Month Film Series. The University is also welcoming Emmy-nominated, multiplatform storyteller, and producer Baratunde Thurston as the featured speaker for the 2025 Martin Luther King Jr. Cultural Dinner on Saturday, February 15, 2025.

February 12

On this date in 1809, Abraham Lincoln, the 16th president of the United States, was born. As counsel to the State Board of Education, Lincoln played a pivotal role in the founding of Illinois State University.

Illinois State is the only institution of higher learning in the nation that was so heavily influenced by Lincoln’s contributions. His imprint on Illinois State is indelible and is still felt today.

In his role as counsel, Lincoln wrote the guaranty to secure funding for the University. In doing so, Lincoln ensured that the University would be located in Bloomington-Normal. He also wrote some of the bonds that helped secure funding for the fledgling school.

Many of the early financial backers of Illinois State were Lincoln’s closest allies and friends in Bloomington-Normal. Among them were David Davis, who managed Lincoln’s 1860 Presidential campaign, as well as Jesse Fell, Asahel Gridley, Leonard Swett, and others.

University historians believe Fell may have influenced the hiring of Lincoln as counsel to the board. There is no record that Lincoln ever charged a fee for his work at Illinois State.

Lincoln was also close to several members of the early boards of education, including Ninian Edwards, Jr., the chair of the board that founded ISU, who was his brother-in-law. In addition, Lincoln delivered his legendary “Lost Speech,” a fiery rebuttal against slavery, at the first Republican State Convention in 1856 at Major’s Hall, the site of the first classes at Illinois State after the University’s founding a year later.

The beautiful Illinois State Quad was designed by William Saunders, a foremost landscape architect who is also credited with Oak Ridge Cemetery, where Lincoln rests, and Gettysburg National Cemetery, the site of Lincoln’s Gettysburg Address.

Lincoln also had relationships with several early faculty members at Illinois State, as well as some of the donors to the initial university library.

Though Lincoln’s role in the creation of Illinois State was often ignored, the student body were reverent during “Lincoln Day Exercises” on February 12, 1909, the centennial of Lincoln’s birth. The Index declared that “we of the ISNU should have a deeper interest in this anniversary than the whole nation or the state as a whole … The early founders of our school were men who were personal friends of the great president, and last of all, he, in a sense, was himself one of the founders.”

Indeed, the spirit of Lincoln lingered over the University on that special occasion, as it does today. The sweeping impact of Lincoln in the heritage of Illinois State was captured in an acclaimed, full-length study in 2021.

In 1956, longtime ISU history faculty member Lucy Lucile Tasher summarized the impact of Lincoln in writing that “for the university, Abraham Lincoln’s life became a message and a challenge to greatness. Even as Lincoln belongs to the ages so does Illinois State University belong to the future.”

February 14

Today is Valentine’s Day, a date that has been important on the social calendar of Illinois State students since the late 19th century.

Not surprisingly, celebrations of the special day on campus have been a mix of private and public gatherings. A popular annual tradition in decades past was the Sweetheart Ball, when the “crowning of the Sweetheart” of ISU was “chosen by the campus men,” in the words of the Vidette.

In 1960, the “Sweetheart … reigned over a dance in a ballroom decorated with a carousel theme,” highlighted by a background “the traditional red and white colors of St. Valentine’s Day.”

Four decades before, the women of Fell Hall hosted a Valentine’s Dance that was attended by 63 couples. The Vidette praised the decorations as “beautifully arranged” with an orchestra that “rendered excellent music.” Refreshments included “brick ice cream, nuts and cherries, (and) heart-shaped cakes and mints.”

In 1925, the Women’s Athletic Association held its own Valentine’s Day event, in which “each girl brought a valentine.” Apparently, the gestures were for one another, as “late in the afternoon those were exchanged.”

Later that evening at Fell Hall, the residents exchanged their own valentine’s amid “tables decorated with red and white.” In a later era, the annual Future Teachers of America banquet in 1954 was presented in a Valentine’s theme. The holiday on campus in 1958 featured a Valentine’s Day jazz show in Capen Auditorium.

Those festivities were more regal than a string of jokes about the holiday that ran in the Vidette on February 16, 1934. The humor included a poem: “Roses are red / Books are too / I don’t care and  / What’s it to you / Will you be / My valentine?”

Even in those days, Valentine’s Day could be a time for some major spending. In 1916, the Vidette carried an advertisement for the Normal Five and Ten Cent Store, which offered a “complete line of souvenirs, booklets, and postcards” not only for Valentine’s Day, but also for Washington’s Birthday and St. Patrick’s Day.

Obviously, that business had all of the special days covered. In 1925, a Vidette ad for McKnight and McKnight, a bookseller and stationery store at the corner of North and Broadway, kept the focus on February 14, promoting “Valentines, Valentine Score Cards, Valentine Greetings, Valentine Dance Programs, and Valentine Novelties.”

For sweethearts with a sweet tooth, a Vidette ad in 1928 from Pease’s touted candy as “the universal gift; it speaks all languages.” In 1950, the Co-op Book Store in Normal emphasized brand awareness, urging shoppers to “aim for the heart … You never miss when you send Hallmark cards.”

In some cases, the red and white of the holiday was influenced by the green of money. On January 12, 1967—a month before the holiday, apparently to ensure early planning—an ad in the Vidette promoted Sorg Jewelers, who encouraged campus men to “plan on giving her a diamond for Valentine’s Day.” It was certainly a pricey proposition for college students on Cupid’s big day.

February 18

Today is the official birthday of Illinois State, as the University was signed into law on this date in 1857 by Illinois Gov. William Bissell. The move created the first public institution of higher learning in the state of Illinois.

Earlier that day, the bill to establish the University had passed the state legislature. The bill also created the 15-member Board of Education, which oversaw the University in its infant days.

Samuel Moulton of Shelbyville, who became a member of the Board, had introduced the so-called “Normal School Bill” in the Illinois House, while Joel Seth Post of Decatur introduced a corresponding bill in the state Senate. Passage of the bills, particularly in the House, was surprisingly close.

Support in the legislature for the bills was mainly from northern Illinois, as many lawmakers from southern Illinois opposed the measure. Thirty-eight votes were needed for passage in the House, and the bill squeaked by with just a vote to spare, 39-25. By contrast, the Senate passed the bill 16-4.

The passage created a whirlwind of activity to get the fledgling school up and running. The Board of Education met for the first time on March 26, 1857, and by May, Bloomington had been chosen as the site for the new university. A president, Charles Hovey, was selected on June 23 by a close 6-5 vote.

It was determined to start classes in the fall, and Hovey was faced with a mammoth task. Among the many needs were development of a curriculum, the hiring of faculty, the securing of acceptable physical facilities, and basic needs like chairs and desks.

With great effort, Hovey and his trusty assistant, Ira Moore, managed to pull it off. Classes opened in Major’s Hall on Oct. 5, 1857—just three and a half months after Hovey was appointed to the position.

Today on the campus, February 18 is celebrated as Founders Day, a tribute to the birth and earliest days of the University, as well as the sweeping legacy it has created throughout the 168 years of its history.

February 27

On this date in 1863, Frances Peterson Gastman, a member of the original graduating class at ISU in 1860, died at the age of 23.

Frances was the first wife of Enoch Gastman, who is considered the original student in Illinois State University history.

Born on April 23, 1839, in Lee County, Frances was the daughter of a New York-born father and a mother who was a Connecticut native. She and Enoch were among the 10 graduates at the University’s first commencement on June 29, 1860. Enoch started work that September 10 as a third-grade teacher in Decatur, where Frances also taught.

On July 12, 1862, Gastman was named to the concurrent positions of Decatur school superintendent and high school principal. He was the first to hold both positions, and remained until the end of the school year immediately preceding his death—a total of 45 years. His first teaching job in Decatur paid $45 per month for a six-month term, and his superintendent’s position was hired at a monthly salary of $80.

Eleven days after his appointment as Decatur superintendent, Enoch married Frances. Sadly, she passed away in February 1863, after only eight months of marriage.

The Gastman union was one of two marriages among the 10 classmates of the class of 1860. John Hull, an 1860 graduate who later served as president of both Southern Illinois University and the University of Wisconsin-River Falls, married Mary Frances Washburn, another 1860 classmate, on April 3, 1862. She died in 1882.

Tom Emery is a freelance writer and historical researcher who, in collaboration with Carl Kasten ’66, co-authored the 2020 book Abraham Lincoln and the Heritage of Illinois State University.