Students on Horses with Coach Roskie, 1937

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Title

Students on Horses with Coach Roskie, 1937

Description

The Todd School curriculum included horseback riding. The stable in the background was built by Todd students in 1930, under the direction of instructor A.E. Johnson. Coach Roskie is the fourth person from the left in this photograph. A Todd promotional brochure describes the experience as “Horsemanship at Todd is of the wild and wooly variety. Blue jeans rather than jodhpurs are in.“

The Todd School for Boys (1848–1954) was an independent school located in Woodstock, Illinois founded by Reverend Richard Kimball Todd, a Presbyterian pastor. Under the guidance of Headmaster Noble Hill in the 1920s and Hill’s son Roger in the 1930s, it became known as a progressive school that provided students with a creative educational environment that emphasized practical experience over traditional academics. The main Todd School Campus was located on the northeast corner of the Rt. 47 (Seminary Ave) and Rt. 120 (McHenry Ave.) junction.

Anthony C. Roskie grew up in Rockford, Illinois and attended Rockford High School. After graduating from Lake Forest College outside of Chicago in 1929, he took a position as a coach and teacher at Todd School for Boys, eventually serving as its athletic director. Following his years at Todd and Woodstock Community High School, Roskie became a founder of McHenry County College. Roskie was voted Woodstock Citizen of the Year in 1971. Eleven years later, a pavilion at Woodstock City Park was named in his honor. He died in 1995 at the age of 89.

Date

1937

Collection

Citation

“Students on Horses with Coach Roskie, 1937,” Woodstock Public Library Archives, accessed October 11, 2024, https://woodstockpubliclibraryarchives.omeka.net/items/show/548.

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