Tampico (population 790) sits in the southern end of Whiteside County in northwestern Illinois. It is located on State Highway 172, four miles north of the Whiteside-Bureau County line. Tampico is most noted for the birthplace of the 40th President of the United States, the late Ronald Reagan. Tampico was plotted in 1871 and incorporated in 1875.

 

Family History Coordinator for the Tampico Area Historical Society Denise McLoughlin provided us with this bit of Tampico School information:

 

"Ronald Reagan attended school in Tampico through at least fourth grade.  His fourth grade photo at Tampico Grade School can be viewed at: http://www.tampicohistoricalsociety.citymax.com/albums/album_image/359307/89014.htm

This school is where the Tampico Elementary school now stands on W. 2nd Street. We also have the classroom ledger, donated to us from the old Tampico High School. The school in the photo (commonly refered to as "The Reagan School") no longer exists, but was the original "high school" - lower grades downstairs, upper grades upstairs.  Second, The old Tampico High School is now the Tampico Middle School, grades 6, 7, 8."

 

You can view the Tampico Historical Society website at http://www.tampicohistoricalsociety.citymax.com .  Great work by Denise McLoughlin and the folks of Tampico in preserving their storied history!!

 

Tampico's most famous high school graduate was J. Mason Reeves, who was at one time the Commander in Chief of the United States Navy. He graduated in 1890 and played football for the Navy. Tampico Township High School did not have a football team at the time. It is noted that Reeves invented a unique football helmet ("the first football helmet worn in a game") that protected him from injury.  Read more about J. Mason Reeves at:

 

The history of Tampico Schools date back to 1874. Until 1912, the high school only had three grades. The brick building that housed TTHS for 75 years was built in 1921 and had 14 classrooms and a gymnasium. It was located near a railroad junction of the Hooppole, Yorktown & Tampico Railroad and the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy Railroad. The first mentioned was abandoned in 1953. In 1967, there were 153 students enrolled at TTHS. In the 1980's, Tampico lost it's main railroad, the Chicago, Burlington & Quincy route, that was the reason Tampico became a settlement like most other small towns. 

 

Declining enrollment and financial concerns led to the closing of Tampico High School in 1996.  The 1921 brick building located on Kimball Street (Hanaman Road) housed the Tampico Junior High School (6 - 8) through the 2011-12 school year. A new grade school building was erected on that same site in 2012 and the original Tampico High School building was razed in 2012.

High School students from Tampico now attend Prophetstown High School, eight miles to the northwest.

 

An nice article regarding the Tampico Alumni attempts to save the old football scoreboard can be viewed at http://www.saukvalley.com/articles/2009/08/29/16262380/index.xml .  Thank you to Mike Gray for this information.

Tampico High School "Quick Facts":

 

Year High School opened: 1921

Year High School closed:  1996

Nickname:                       Trojans

School Colors:                 Scarlet, Gray, & White

School Fight Song:          "Tampico High School Loyalty Song"

                                              (Sung to Illinois Loyalty - click play button and sing along!)

  

                                             We're loyal to you Tampico High,
                                             We're scarlet and grey Tampico High,
                                             We'll ask you to stand,
                                             We're the best in the land,
                                             For we know you can stand Tampico High!

 

                                             Hoo Rah

 

                                             So shoot in that ball Tampico High,
                                             We're backing you on Tampico High,
                                             Our team is the fame protector,
                                             On boys for we expect a
                                             Victory from you, Tampico High

 

                                             Hoo Rah!

Athletics

 

The Trojans were members of the Two Rivers Conference in the 1940s and 1950s.  Other teams in the conference included Mineral, Annawan, Atkinson, Prophetstown, Erie, Hillsdale, Cordova, Port Byron, and Lyndon.  The athletic program joined the Little 8 Conference in the 1961 where it remained until the Indian Valley Conference was formed in 1976. 

 

Tampico offered a variety of sports during it's 75 year tenure. The most noticable was the Boys Track and Field team. Don Wallace coached Boys Track for 30 years (1966-1996) and during his tenure, there were eight years that the Trojans went undefeated.

 

In 1988 Tampico High School's football team co-oped with Manlius while the volleyball, track and basketball were still seperate. Tampico was a member of the Indian Valley Conference in it's latter years and their sports were covered by the local newspaper (Tampico Tornado) until 1966 and the Sterling Daily Gazette until school's closure.

 

    

 

 

1975 - - 100-yard dash - Mike Brady (8th)
1975 - - Shotput - Pat Dorathy (6th)
1979 - - High Jump - Jim Moore (2nd)
1982 - - Shotput - Doug Koehler (4th)
1984 - - Triple Jump - Scott Tornow (7th)

 

 

 

1984-85    5-0   
1985-86    5-1 
1986-87    7-0   
1987-88    6-0 
1988-89    7-0 
1989-90    8-0  
1990-91    7-1 
1991-92    7-1-1
1992-93    9-1  
1993-94    6-0  
1994-95    7-0  
1995-96    1-3  

 

:

 

 

 

1955-56  17 - 11    Postseason scores needed                Coach Lovett 

 

              
1964-65  17 - 9     District Champions!!                        Coach: Clint Evans

 

 

 

            

 

 

1946-47     (record needed)                                    Coach Leland Rudiger

1947-48     (record needed)                                    Coach Leland Rudiger

1948-49     2 - 6                                                    Coach Leland Rudiger

1949-50     5 - 2                                                    Coach Leland Rudiger

 

 

                              Annawan went to Final 4 Rd.