The History of Shobonier High School Shobonier (population approximately 400) is located in southwestern Illinois in the southwestern portion of Fayette County. U.S. Route 51 serves as the eastern border of Shobonier. County Road 23 passes by the south side of town. Shobonier is located about 7 miles due south of Vandalia. Shobonier was platted in 1855 along the Illinois Central Railroad. A nice historical newspaper article about Shobonier was submitted by Mary Jo Freeman. The article is titled “Many Changes in Shobonier Since 1844.” It was published on June 03, 2008 by Better Newspapers. In summary the article states the area in which the village of Shobonier is located was first settled in 1844. The village is said to be named after Francois Sho-bon-ier, a member of a Chicago Potawatomie Indian family. Shobonier had a population of 275. By 1911 this population had grown to 400. The first school was established in approximately 1870. The first brick school building was constructed in 1893 and housed grades 1-8. In 1926 the school district purchased a building that once housed the post office and utilized it for a 2-year high school. In 1929 a 3-year high school course was established. In 1942 the decision was made to discontinue the 3-year high school in favor of busing children to nearby Vandalia for a 4-year high school course of study. To read the article in full please click on the following link: https://www.leaderunion.com/2008/06/03/many-changes-in-shobonier-since-1844/ The fact that Shobonier once hosted a school that offered high school classes was discovered by Roberta VanBriesen. Roberta found a PodCast in which a gentleman spoke of the former high school Districts of Fayette County. Among were the following: Bingham, Brownstown, Farina, La Clede, Ramsey, Shobonier, St. Elmo, St. James, and Vandalia. The underlined schools are now closed and have a page on this site. Shobonier High School Quick Facts Year 2-Year HS opened: 1926 Year 3-Year HS started: 1929 Year HS courses closed: 1942 Consolidated to: Vandalia High School Shobonier HS team nickname: ?? Shobonier HS team colors: ?? Shobonier HS Fight Song: ?? |
|||
![]() |
|||
|

