For around 130 years, St. Mary’s School was an icon of downtown Dubuque. The lives of thousands of young Dubuquers were influenced by the Catholic Sisters, priests, and lay teachers who served the school over many decades.

The school had humble beginnings in the basement of St. Mary’s Church in 1851. By the late 1860s, some classes were even held in a nearby store. In 1872, a three-story brick school building was constructed at 15th and Jackson Streets, adjacent to St. Mary’s Church. The new building paved the way for significant growth in the 20th century.

This is one of several Indian clubs in the DCHS collection. Indian clubs are a type of exercise equipment that has been around for centuries. They originated on the Indian subcontinent and are used for resistance training to develop strength and mobility. The clubs were swung around in particular patterns and came in various weights.

Did you know that Dr. John E. Finley, the namesake of Dubuque’s Finley Hospital, was also a musician and Civil War veteran?  

Dr. Finley came to Dubuque in 1840.  He practiced medicine and traveled miles on horseback to see his patients. He was also devoted to the Union cause and served as a Civil War surgeon. Although we don’t know if he had formal musical training, we do know that he took this violin with him when he left for his war service. Perhaps he played for the soldiers around camp or for his patients in a field hospital.

As students of all ages in Dubuque head back to school, the 2020-2021 school year promises to be unlike any other. Many students from preschool to college will do much of their learning outside the walls of an actual school building. So what better time to look back at one of Dubuque’s most storied schools.

Do you recognize this intersection in the heart of downtown Dubuque? Captured in this image from 1897 stands Main Street, viewed looking northward toward 4th Street.

Of particular interest in this photo is the theater on the left. This corner is now home to Five Flags Theater, but the site has hosted entertainment venues as far back as 1847. In this photo, the theater marquee reads Bartels Theater, but the large sign on the 4th Street side advertises Bartells (with two L’s) Dramatic and Vaudeville Theater.

Decades before the famous California Gold Rush of 1849, miners rushed to the Driftless Region to mine lead and seek their fortunes. John Burton and his brother Thomas were among them. They established a claim to many acres near Durango, Iowa, (then known as Burtonsville) and had their own lead smelter near Maquoketa Creek. Eventually, they amassed 2,000 acres across Dubuque County.

Abraham Lincoln used this chair on October 16, 1854, during the Lincoln-Douglas debates in Peoria, Illinois. Six years before he would run for President (1860), Lincoln was the Republican candidate running for the U. S. Senate. His platform included strong opposition to the growth of slavery, contending it should not be allowed in the territories and new states. Stephen Douglas, the Democratic candidate opposing him, felt that each new U.S. territory should decide for itself if slavery would be allowed. Douglas won the senate seat.

This steel-clad mess kit was recently donated to the Dubuque County Historical Society, complete with 15 plates, 2 bowls, 1 larger platter, and a few smaller pieces. The term “mess kit” simply refers to a set of cooking ware, dishes, and silverware. Mess kits are used by the military as well as campers and backpackers.

Do it yourself, or DIY, might be considered cute and quaint today, but years ago it was the only option. This doll is one example. She dates to around 1900-1902 and her face and other features were lithographed on to old feed sacks. Her name, Miss Korn Krisp, tells us that her real purpose was advertising for an early boxed cereal, called Korn Krisp, of course. The doll came as a piece of printed cloth, which one would then cut out and sew together. She was stuffed with whatever was around, such as scraps of unused cloth.