Cossitt Elementary School, one of the first schools to create the District 102 school district, turned 135 this year. The Village of La Grange’s founder, Franklin D. Cossitt, opened the school after settling in La Grange in the late 1870s. The school itself was built in 1922 and represents the beauty of the architecture during the turn-of-the-century.

“There really wasn’t many [buildings] built like it after 1920,” former Cossitt School principal Mary Tavegia said. “Donors really wanted to make [the school] something special.”

Nancy Kenney, Cossitt’s great-great-granddaughter, Nancy Kenney, works hard to preserve the reputation of her descendants and wants people to know how integral to the town and the school they were, member of the Parent Teacher Council Kirstin Dunlop said.

“The school had an auditorium that was built into classrooms in the 1950s. It looked very different then, but still has the same significant gothic architecture, arched windows and some original light fixtures,” Dunlop said. “The school was stunning with such attention to detail.”

Painted ceilings are now covered by the standard ceiling of a classroom, but when removed, the original paintings are visible.

Early on in the Great Depression, Cossitt Elementary had an in ground pool for use by students and the community on the weekend. While the rumor that a student drowning caused the pool to close, Tavegia has more reasonable theories why the pool was shutdown.

“It was during the Depression and I think the pool might’ve started to leak,” Tavegia said. “When in such tight financial situations, I bet they had to put money towards more important things than a pool for elementary students.”

Closed in the early 1930s, the empty space where the pool remained wasn’t covered up until years later. Once the area was covered up, the space became the multipurpose room where students eat lunch and do other activities.

Where the multipurpose room now exists, there is a room branching off where the bleachers for the school gym used to exist. When Tavegia began as principal in 1996, the scoreboard was not functional and still has not been functional.

Cossitt Elementary has been a gem in La Grange for 135 years and has had an influence on the community with its existence. The La Grange Historical Society and Cossitt Elementary have teamed up to dig further into the school’s history. Later this year, Cossitt will be holding an exhibit throughout the school to provide more knowledge on the school and history of La Grange itself.