What in the History of Pana?
Do you know the truth about the history of Pana? Here are some of the greatest and worst facts about Pana’s history you probably have never heard of before.
If you’ve ever been to Pana, IL, you probably know about the bridge in Kitchell park. The area became a park on July 15, 1908. Kitchell Park was actually named after a man named J. W. Kitchell. The bridge in the park was made in 1910 and was donated by H. N. Schuyler.
The auditorium in the park was donated by the citizenry of Pana. The auditorium was at the time deemed the most modern in the entire country. Six months after it was built, it was renovated by the donations from the Pana’s Lions Club. Years later more people were hired just to watch and clean the auditorium. The capacity of the auditorium at the time was 3,500 people.
The first two marriages happened 175-176 years ago. The first couples to get married were William Pryce to Mary Jane Edwards on Feb. 15, 1844. Then William Buzan got married to Jane Gordon on Sept. 1, 1845.
In 1897 Pana had a YMCA, and the high school and pool were inside of it! They were both in the current-day Moose building. Now our high school is near our junior high and not downtown. In 1924 Lincoln school opened. Then in 1925 high school classes in Sacred Heart school were canceled. In 1999 the high school we know today was just being constructed at that time. The old junior high was burned down in October 1997; they say that no one knows who did it for sure. That Jr. high was up on a hill where a new church is currently. Today there are alot of students at Pana junior high certainly more now than when it was just Pana’s kids coming to Pana schools. Today there are 2,093 students at this school as of April 2019. There are four different towns that go to pana. The other towns that go to our schools here in Pana include Tower Hill, Dollville, Rosamond, Millersville, and Oconee.
Without question, though, the two most significant chapters in Pana history are the Coal Mine Wars of the late 1800s and the roses. The coal mines had a strike a long time ago. When the strike was going on the owners of the company decided to higher black people instead of complying and paying more. This of course started a war. Meanwhile, the new workers had no idea that this was going on. After a while, and I mean a long while, they gave in and then eventually the coal company closed down.
Do you know why we are called the “City of Roses”? It’s because we had lots of greenhouses that were filled with roses, and they were exported all around the world. Even famous people from back then, like the Queen of England, who bought them for a royal wedding, bought flowers from here. Every year people around the world bought the flowers. The greenhouses were eventually closed because of the coal mines being the only power source and other factors played a role, too, such as the cost of shipping. One of the greenhouses used to be in the woods between Twice The Ice and the apartments. A few months ago people were spotted cleaning up the area.
Well, those are some of the most important events in the history of Pana. A lot of neat things have come and gone in this town (like Walmart), and we are hoping to rebuild into a strong city again, with more exciting history to come!