St. Clare School is 90 years old and counting

Monday marks the 90th anniversary of the dedication of St. Clare Catholic School at 214 W. Third in O’Fallon.

The school replaced an earlier one which once stood directly south of the church building at Third and Oak.

The $82,000 structure was designed primarily by St. Clare’s pastor at the time, Fr. Anthony W. Powell, a native of Holland. The general contractor was Cardini Construction Co. of Herrin, Ill.

The 60 by 108 foot building boasted a 650 capacity auditorium on the second floor with a balcony that could seat 150 more.

There was even room in the basement for a bowling alley though that feature, apparently, never materialized. A new west wing was added on to the school in 2013 which nicely complements the architecture of the original school which still stands today.

75 years ago, Jun. 26, 1941

A grand Fourth of July picnic, barbecue and dance will be given by the O’Fallon Fireside Club at Bechtlofft’s Grove, on U.S. Highway No. 50, 1½ miles east of this city, Friday, July 4th, all day and evening.

All kinds of amusements and concessions will be provided with efforts centered on a monster barbecue.

In the evening, there will be an open-air dance with music by Elmer Schuette and his orchestra. There will be no paid admission charge to the grounds.

50 years ago, Jun. 23, 1966

The City of O’Fallon took the unprecedented step of cutting its work force by two men in an effort to keep expenditures of its general and Water Department funds within expected income.

The decision to dismiss two of the 13 persons in the outside work force came after a lengthy discussion in which council members concluded that such a step was necessary to prevent ending next fiscal year with a deficit.

This story was originally published June 27, 2016 at 2:36 PM with the headline "St. Clare School is 90 years old and counting."