James Elmer left Notre Dame University to join the Navy before his twentieth birthday. World War I was under way and the six- foot former football player felt the call to serve his country. He soon found himself at the Great Lakes Naval Training Station near Chicago, preparing to enter ...

In the song “I Will go West,” put to music by J.P. Barrett in 1875, city living was a heartache what with high-priced goods, the worry of one’s sons taking to city ways while their daughters cared only for the latest fashions, and cruelty all around.  Taking to the open ...

It has been said that a rule to the wise need only be a guide, directing their steps, not something forced upon them. The truth is that rules have always been in place, beginning in the written word of God. For those entering the teaching profession in 1915, rules were ...

My great-grandmother was beautiful. Her given name was Margaret Mary, but she was known as  “Pretty Marie” from the time she was a girl. Her curly hair was raven-colored, piled high on her head, her eyes large and deep brown in color. She had very defined lips, curved in a ...

In a Midwestern city there stands an old brick building set on a large, tree-filled property. In the 1920’s and 30’s, this now empty building was home for many Tuberculosis victims. All that remains today is that empty building, windows black, rooms empty except for broken pieces of furniture left ...