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Contents
Foreword & Acknowledgement
Before the White Man/Coming of the
First Settlers
DeMotte Grows into a Town
Early Transportation & Farming
The First Schools
Dredging of the Grand Kankakee Marsh
Leonard Swart (Interview)
Casper Belstra (Interview)
Northern Indiana Land Company
The Halleck Telephone Company
DeMotte Mercantile Company
DeMotte Library Grows
Cheever's Garage
Eighty Years of Community Banking
Fairchild & Tanner History
Earl Schwanke Article
Keener Township Fire Department
(Art) Lageveen Looks Back
Fire Almost Destroys DeMotte in 1936
Kankakee Valley Post-News
Asparagus & Truck Farming
Businessmen's Association
Lageveen Remembers Incorporation
Belstra Remembers When...
Kankakee Valley Schools
DeMotte Elementary School
(DeMotte) Christian School
Mark L. DeMotte
Charlie Halleck
Walter Roorda, State Representative
C-SELM
Van Keppel Construction Company
Fire Destroys Main Building at Kaper's
The Hamstra Group
DeMotte Historical Society
Tysen's Family Food Center
Belstra Milling
The Fire of 1992
United Methodist Church
DeMotte Christian Church
Community Bible Church
Calvary Assembly of God
Bethel Christian Reformed Church
First Christian Reformed Church
Faith
Lutheran Church
St. Cecilia Catholic Church
United Pentecostal
First Reformed Church
American Reformed Church
DeMotte Town Court
Incorporation of DeMotte
August 10 Incorporation Hearing
September 1965 Incorporation
First Town Board Election
The First Town Board
DeMotte Town Council 1969-1997
DeMotte Town Hall
DeMotte Park Board
Wastewater Treatment Begins
DeMotte Chamber of Commerce
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Kankakee Valley Schools
On January 1, 1965, the Kankakee Valley
School Corporation became a reality. An interim Board of School Trustees
was appointed and served until June 30, 1966. They were as follows:
Vincent Stalbaum, president; Otto DeYoung, Jr., vice president; Darrell
Tompkins, secretary; James Longstreth, treasurer; Lowell Woolever, member;
Fred Boissy, Jr., member; Wilbur Hoffman, member.
Prior to the formation of the Kankakee Valley School Corporation (KVSC)
the district was governed by the Jasper County School Corporation. The
split into KVSC and Rensselaer School Corporation was put to a vote. It
was passed and the people of the community also voted on the members of
the board. On July 1,1966 the newly elected board took the oath of office.
They were as follows: Ralph Myers, president; Wesley Meyer, vice
president; Robert Cheever, secretary; Clarence Duttlinger, member; Donald
Korth, member; Harry Miller, member; Wilbur Hoffman, member.
Robert Cheever, the original secretary for the board, held that office for
16 years until his retirement from the board on June 30, 1982. Cheever
said that the school board met in the office on Halleck Street across from
Ace Hardware, on the North side of Sixth Avenue. Next, they moved to the
site of Hamstra Builders office on State Road 10. They stayed there for a
few years, then, they moved to their present location on route 10.
 The
census of the KVSC was 6,276 in 1960. It was projected to be approximately
7,000 in 1970. Because of this growth in the area, the KVSC commissioned a
study to look at the needs of the school corporation in the future. Dr.
Lindley of Purdue University did this study in 1965. Some noteworthy
findings include the statement, "...Pride in the school corporation and
its total educational program must be developed." A combination of the
high schools (DeMotte, Wheatfield, Tefft and Fair Oaks) into one high
school was recommended and Dr. Lindley felt that this action would make
possible several improvements; i.e. advanced courses in science and
mathematics, remedial reading programs and a modern library.
There were some members of the board who recommended
that an additional elementary school be built to accommodate the stated
growth in population. The pupil enrollment in 1965-66 was 1,715. The
enrollment for the 1996-97 school year is 2,322. A study is being
performed at the time of this writing to seek recommendations to
accommodate the present surge in growth.
 The
educational philosophy of the KVSC states, "the KVSC, while maintaining
flexibility in adapting to an ever changing society, will be dedicated to
the total personal development of each student to the limits of his or her
abilities and interests in a sequentially coordinated curriculum which
allows for individual differences".
KVSC has a graduation rate of approximately 98 percent which it maintains
currently. The corporation and all of the schools within excel in large
part to the dedicated and caring staff of each school. Some notable events
in the history of the school corporation include the formation of a
joint-service cooperative to further develop programs and services for
children who need special education. The remodeling and addition to
DeMotte Elementary was a high point said one past board member. Another
said the building of the Kankakee Valley High School was an important part
of his tenure with the school board.
Former superintendent Iran Floyd (now principal at Wheatfield Elementary)
was mentioned by several board members for his acute understanding of the
corporation's needs and his leadership. The present board members are now
striving to meet the needs of this community. The dedication that it takes
to serve on the school board is evident by the hours spent outside of
board meetings to research, discuss and solve complex issues before them.
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