1886

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1886 - Lincoln School for "coloreds" opens on 6th and St. Louis. It is named after Abe Lincoln who issued the Emancipation Proclamation. For years it was called Lincoln Polytech and education centered on practical skills advocated by Booker T. Washington. These included electricity, plastering, masonry, piano tuning, orchestra, band, cooking, sewing, carpentry, and plumbing. The board of education will move into the building in 1905 when the new Lincoln School is built on Broadway.

East St. Louis and Interurban Water Co. turns on city's first water mains. The company was ran by eastern capitalist William Thaw (encouraged to come to East St. Louis by John Bowman) who later also ran the city's first gas company. About one hundred families availed themselves of this service when it was first offered. William Thaw later returned home in the east and Frank Homer managed the company. Charles Homer succeeded his father in 1907.

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Deputy sheriffs kill six in a riot on Cahokia bridge due to a bitter railroad strike. A crowd of railroad strikers had been using the bridge to bombard trams below with huge stones and brick bats.

Charles Cannady becomes County Superintendent of Schools. He and his wife, Ella Wise, lived for a while in East St. Louis. His daughter, Arah, taught at East St. Louis High until her death in 1936. Cannady School was named for him in honor of his improvements in the educational system. He is buried at Mt. Hope in Belleville.

There is an attempted assassination of James W. Kirk who protested Bowman's murder in his newspaper.

Knights of Labor makes its voice heard in local politics for the first time. Campaigning against what was perceived to be a corrupt city government, Labor ran a full slate of candidates and won all but two of the offices at stake. One of the Labor-backed constables was an African-American.

There is widespread corruption on the police force. Chief Halloran is indicted for conspiring to defraud the city. A month later, the militia is brought in to handle policing .responsibilities until matters can be straightened out.

Fourth oldest Protestant church is started - St. Paul's Episcopal Church. It grew out of a meeting in 1885 at the home of Dr. Henry Fairbrother. At the time, it was known as St. Mary's Episcopal Church, and was located at Sixth and Ohio. The church was sold in 1898 and for a while the congregation met at Abt's Music Hall. They built the new stone structure on 9th and Summit in 1903.

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