Photo of the Week, 45: Christmas in Bloomington, 1941

Eighteen days after the December 7, 1941 attack on Pearl Harbor, the
United States held a rather somber Christmas, given the coming two-front
war with Imperial Japan and Nazi Germany. Although the pages of the
Bloomington Pantagraph were chock full of overseas war coverage and
harried homefront preparations, Christmas remained a magical time for
area children.
The photograph on the left shows Walter Isch of the of the Young
Men's Club presenting gifts to the 18 children of the McLean County
Home for Colored Children, located on the 1200 block of West Moulton
Street (now MacArthur Avenue) in Bloomington. The following year the
home would be renamed for Booker T. Washington.
The photograph
on the right shows a group of six Cub Scouts from Den 1, Pack 10 of
Franklin School, Bloomington, who made six doll beds to serve as
Christmas presents for the Day Nursery. Seated are Bob Davison and Bob
Harpster. The others, left to right, are Jerry Wack, Howard Montgomery,
Jack Teele and Bill Vincent.
Happy Holidays from the staff of the McLean County Museum of History!