"J" is for John de la Howe School. Located in McCormick County, the John de law Howe School originated on land bequeathed by John de la Howe, a wealthy physician who died in 1797. He left $6,000 and 3,000 acres to create a school for the practical education of rural boys and girls. The school opened in 1832 as the Lethe Agricultural Seminary where students divided their time between the classroom and farm chores. After the Civil War the school struggled to stay open. In 1918 the legislature renamed it the "John de la Howe Industrial School." It moved to McCormick and in 1969 it began accepting disturbed and disabled children. The John de la Howe School continues today as a state-funded group child-care facility that houses both residential and wilderness programs for some 150 school-age children per year.
"J" is for John de la Howe School
