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SR0128 - 104th General Assembly
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| 1 | SENATE RESOLUTION | ||||||
| 2 | WHEREAS, The Lincoln Colored Home (LCH) of Springfield, | ||||||
| 3 | the first Black orphanage in the State of Illinois and the | ||||||
| 4 | second Black orphanage in the United States, was founded by | ||||||
| 5 | former probation office and community servant Eva Carroll | ||||||
| 6 | Monroe in 1898; and | ||||||
| 7 | WHEREAS, The LCH, which operated until 1933, was | ||||||
| 8 | originally established in response to racial discrimination | ||||||
| 9 | towards Black children who were denied access to shelter and | ||||||
| 10 | other resources by local orphanages, and as time passed, it | ||||||
| 11 | extended its services to also providing shelter for widows; | ||||||
| 12 | and | ||||||
| 13 | WHEREAS, Prior to opening the LCH, Eva Carroll Monroe | ||||||
| 14 | worked tirelessly on behalf of orphaned Black children and | ||||||
| 15 | made many sacrifices, including taking children into her own | ||||||
| 16 | home and providing for them without the aid of government | ||||||
| 17 | assistance, and as a Black woman, she continued to heroically | ||||||
| 18 | protect and serve Black children during the harsh times of the | ||||||
| 19 | Jim Crow era; and | ||||||
| 20 | WHEREAS, Eva Carroll Monroe was a dedicated child advocate | ||||||
| 21 | and provider, a fearless protector, and a national trailblazer | ||||||
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| 1 | who selfishly dedicated her life to the protection, welfare, | ||||||
| 2 | education, and service of Black children and her community, | ||||||
| 3 | and her courageous efforts in Illinois were instrumental in | ||||||
| 4 | raising standards of child welfare and protection nationwide; | ||||||
| 5 | and | ||||||
| 6 | WHEREAS, The structure that once housed Eva Carroll | ||||||
| 7 | Monroe's LCH, which was placed on the National Register of | ||||||
| 8 | Historic Places in 1988 and recently purchased by Route | ||||||
| 9 | History Museum, remains the only brick-and-mortar building of | ||||||
| 10 | the first two Black orphanages to still exist in the United | ||||||
| 11 | States today; therefore, be it | ||||||
| 12 | RESOLVED, BY THE SENATE OF THE ONE HUNDRED FOURTH GENERAL | ||||||
| 13 | ASSEMBLY OF THE STATE OF ILLINOIS, that we declare August 4, | ||||||
| 14 | 2025 and August 4, 2026 as Eva Carroll Monroe Day in the State | ||||||
| 15 | of Illinois to celebrate and honor her achievements and | ||||||
| 16 | legacy; and be it further | ||||||
| 17 | RESOLVED, That a suitable copy of this resolution be | ||||||
| 18 | presented to Dr. Gina Lathan, president of Route History | ||||||
| 19 | Museum, as a symbol of our respect and esteem. | ||||||