The History of Mt. Sterling High School
Mt. Sterling (population 2,070) is located in western Illinois about 30 miles east of Quincy. It is
the county seat of Brown County and is situated in the center of the county as well. U.S. Route 24 is the main
roadway through town. Illinois Route 99 and Route 107 also travel through Mt. Sterling. The West Creek
flows by the north side of Mt. Sterling. Though railroads had a lot to do with the town's early growth, it does
not appear (www.mapquest.com) that Mt. Sterling has a railroad traveling through it today.
"In 1824 Cornelius Vandeventer, a native of Ohio, became the first permanent settler in
this area. Additional pioneers came over the next few years from Kentucky, Tennessee, Virginia, and North Carolina. In 1829
Alexander Curry purchased a claim on the site of the future Mt. Sterling. Curry and his family laid out the
town in 1834. At that time, this area formed the southern part of Schuyler County. Two years later, attempts were made to
move the county seat from Rushville to a location nearer to the center of the county. When these failed Brown County, named
after General Jacob Brown, a veteran of the War of 1812, was created on February 1, 1839. Mt. Sterling was named the county
seat the same year. It was on a major route of the western migration beginning in 1849 with the discovery of gold in California."
We are certain that schools began popping up all over Brown County shortly after its establishment.
Mt. Sterling probably had a public high school in place by the late 1800s. The Mt. Sterling High School served
the town on a solo basis for well over five decades. It was in the late 1940s that a consolidation effort began between
Mt. Sterling and several other Brown County School Districts of the day. This effort was realized in 1948 with the creation
of the Brown County School District.
The high school was, and still is, located in Mt. Sterling. We are not sure if it is held in the original
high school building or not. We are not even sure at this time if the original high school building is still standing.
Mt. Sterling High School Quick Facts
Year opened:
late 1800s
Year closed:
1948
Consolidated to:
Brown County School District (Mt. Sterling)
Mt. Sterling HS team nickname: "Raiders"
School team colors: Orange
& Black
School Fight Song:
unavailable
