Connersville: Indiana’s Little Detroit
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“The Cornfield That Grew An Industrial Idea”
The increase in spending and jobs in Connersville during the war continued to shape the city for the next few decades. Pay increased and the number of jobs was on the increase in the post-war economy. Charlie Hughes recalled the 1950s and 1960s in Connersville as the “boom.” From large industries like Stant Manufacturing Company, […]Read Post ›
Welcome to the New CHS
Similar to many other cities in the nation, Connersville followed the general trends of progressive education in the twentieth century. Its education system changed much like the urban system — from a small, one room schoolhouse to an expanded system with leveled grades and separate buildings. By the middle of the twentieth century, the American […]Read Post ›
“A Unique Educational Approach”
Vocational education goes back much further in the history of Fayette County than the opening of the vocational school; Connersville had vocational classes and a vocational education director to oversee the program even before the 1950s. At that time, Connersville High School had an extensive program of vocational-related programs such as auto mechanics, machine shop, […]Read Post ›
Gendered Expectations
Since the development of public education in America, there has been a division between what boys and girls learn in school. In the one-room schoolhouses, boys and girls were taught together – reading, writing, mathematics; the basics for everyone. Classical education was the focus of male students at higher levels of education, particularly secondary school […]Read Post ›
Joining the Workforce
Graduating from high school is a life-changing event. Whether going on to college, finding a job, or joining the military – among many things – high school graduation is a moment of transition. Attending a vocational program provides graduates with the skills to find a job within their desired career upon graduation. From its first graduating […]Read Post ›
“Competent Men, Diversified Industry”
The opening of the new high school complex on Western Hill in the fall of 1969 confirmed deep connections between education and the community in Connersville. If not for the connections between businesses and education, the new curriculum would not have been shaped in the way that it was — in favor of business courses […]Read Post ›
“Boom, Bust, Exodus”
Like many cities throughout the Midwest, deindustrialization hit the community hard. By some indicators, Connersville appears to have done well in comparison to other industrialized cities at the time because deindustrialization came later to its community. But if you ask Connersville residents themselves, they would argue differently, saying that their community suffered just like other […]Read Post ›
Resistance & Rebuilding
Since deindustrialization strongly hit Connersville in the 1980s and 1990s, the community has been on a slow but steady decline. The population has continued to shrink, the average age is growing progressively older, and businesses have been slow in returning to the community. Once a thriving population of over 17,500, Connersville is now home to […]Read Post ›
