Mary Keough: Extraordinary Everett Educator

Making It Home Timeline
Mary Keough: Extraordinary Everett Educator
Mary Keough on a school field trip to Springfield in the 1940s. Left to right: Mary Keough (teacher), Barbra Seyl, Liz Dornbush. Young boy in front unidentified.

Mary Keough on a school field trip to Springfield in the 1940s. Left to right: Mary Keough (teacher), Barbra Seyl, Liz Dornbush. Young boy in front unidentified.

Mary Keough (fourth from left, back row) with the students of Everett School, c. 1920.

Mary Keough (fourth from left, back row) with the students of Everett School, c. 1920.

Mary Keough with her Everett School upper grades, 1945.

Mary Keough with her Everett School upper grades, 1945.

Chicago Daily Tribune, May 11, 1947.

Chicago Daily Tribune, May 11, 1947.

“I credit Mary Keough for giving me a solid basis in life. My life has been enriched for having been taught by her.” – Reminiscence of Bess McClure, former student.
Everett School teacher Mary Keough’s long roots in the west Lake Forest community helped her leave a lasting mark on her students. Both her parents’ families, the Keoughs and the Courtneys, came with the early waves of Irish immigrants to the area, settling in Vernon Township in the 1840s. They farmed land located between Everett and Half Day for nearly 100 years.
Mary Keough and her sister Nellie, who had attended the old one-room Lyons School, were among the first teachers hired by the new school board after Everett School was built in 1914. Above you see her teaching contract with Everett District 112 (which would shortly become a part of the Lake Forest district), dated September 1926. She earned $170 each month.
Mary Keough stayed on for over 30 years, retiring from Everett in 1947. She was a staunch advocate for her pupils, insisting on adding a week to the school year in 1920 so her 8th graders had enough time to study for examinations.
She took pride in introducing her students to the state capitol. When Bess McClure placed first in the Lake County interscholastic spelling meet in 1925, Miss Keough chaperoned her at the state meet in Springfield, an eye-opening experience for Bess, a self-described “country bumpkin.”
In 1946 and 1947, Mary Keough implemented an innovative curriculum at Everett School centered on a country fair theme. The faculty wrote their own material, which was uniquely suited to Everett children. The year culminated in a school-wide Country Fair in May, run by the students, with a horse show, dog show, pet exhibits, a flower show, a bird exhibit, two band concerts, tumbling, folk dancing, and community singing.