Unidentified voices, shadow figures in the basement. What spirits linger this former elementary school? The Hamilton Primary School, located in the small village of Otterville, in south-central Jersey County, Illinois, was originally constructed in 1835. It had two classrooms on the first floor—one for the primary grades, the other for the upper grades. One large room on the second floor was used for Sunday worship and community gatherings. It was funded by an endowment left by Dr. Silas Hamilton, a former Mississippi plantation owner who opposed slavery and hoped to influence his neighboring plantation owners by treating his slaves humanely. After the death of his son, Dr. Hamilton migrated north, freeing his 28 slaves in Cincinnati. Three of his former slaves, including George Washington, whom he had raised from a small child, chose to stay with him when he moved to Illinois in 1830. Dr. Hamilton died in 1834. Built by Bequest In his Last Will and Testament, Dr. Hamilton specifically bequeathed “four thousand dollars for the establishment of a primary school, viz: two thousand dollars to be appropriated to the erection of a building suitable for a school and for a place of public worship, and two thousand dollars to constitute a fund for the support of a teacher.” It was the first free school in Illinois and the first integrated school in the United States. A plaque in front of the Jersey County Courthouse commemorates the school. Known as the ‘Old Stone School”, it was demolished in 1873 and the current limestone building was built using the original stones from the razed building for the foundation. The school closed for good in 1971. The 'New' School Originally, the upstairs of the current school consisted of two cloakrooms and one big classroom with a stage at the east end of the room. The stage was elevated the same height as the bottom of the windows and had two steps on the south side of the stage. The stage had a red velvet curtain and when completely closed covered the east end of the room. The stage was removed and the room divided into two rooms with a connecting door in the early 1950s A Monument to Dr. Hamilton George Washington became a farmer in Otterville and, following his death in 1864, bequeathed $1500 to build a monument to Hamilton. The marble monument, erected in front of the school the same year, is currently maintained by the Illinois Department of Natural Resources. It is the only identified monument from a slave to a master known to exist. Education was Important The rest of his $8,000 estate was set aside as a fund for the education of black children. Due to the restriction placed on the funds by Mr. Washington - that it be used for the education of black children living in the township - the fund was seldom used and has continued to grow. The George Washington Educational fund still exists today and the board of trustees were recently successful in getting the State of Illinois to broaden the residency restrictions so that black students living anywhere in Illinois are eligible for the funding. Paranormal Claims As the school has just recently been opened to paranormal investigators, claims of paranormal activity are vague. Several visitors have claimed that there is a presence in the basement and unidentified voices can be heard throughout the building. The most active area is claimed to be the basement. The Investigation We investigated the Hamilton Primary School March 19, 2022. The school is small, consisting of only four classrooms, several coat closets and a full basement which housed the cafeteria. In later years another building was constructed next to the main building to house the growing student population. After the school closed in 1971, that addition was sold and is currently used as a daycare. After placing six static night vision cameras – two on the first floor, two on the second floor, one capturing the stairway and one in the basement – we began holding EVP sessions throughout the building. Almost immediately, we captured an unidentified voice in the basement. What We Found Throughout the evening we caught several more unidentified voices, heard footsteps and the sound of a door slamming. While most of the EVPs were captured in the basement, we also captured some on the second floor. Several light anomalies were also captured throughout the building. Is the Hamilton Primary School Haunted? We captured enough unexplained activity to make us want to take another look. Sources:
A Sketch of the Life of George Washington, Colored Author(s): Oscar B. Hamilton Source: Journal of the Illinois State Historical Society (1908-1984) , Oct., 1910, Vol. 3, No. 3 (Oct., 1910), pp. 45-58 Published by: University of Illinois Press on behalf of the Illinois State Historical Society Stable URL: https://www.jstor.org/stable/40193771 Jersey County, IL Historical Society Noble Master Noble Slave: Their gifts and legacies. Author: Lila Flautt-Melcher. 1992 Campbell Publishing Company
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