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This week, I’m diving into the touching story of Lane Technical High School students who tragically lost their lives in the Eastland disaster of 1915. These weren’t just names on a list—they were vibrant young men with big futures ahead of them. From a baseball captain to a Moody Church Sunday School member, I’ll take you through their personal histories and the incredible ways their school honored them after the tragedy.

Here’s what I’ll cover in this episode:

• Lane Tech’s incredible legacy as Chicago’s first technical high school and its impact during the city’s booming industrial age.
• How Lane Tech students created a memorial edition of their school newspaper to raise funds for Eastland relief efforts—just days after the disaster.
• The importance of digging deep into archives to uncover untold stories, and why it’s so important to bring them to light.
• Follow-up on Frank Fuka, the amateur boxer I talked about last week, and how his story brought new listeners to the podcast.
• As always, this episode is about more than just names and dates. It’s about honoring lives, connecting the past to the present, and keeping these stories alive. Whether you’re into genealogy, Chicago history, or just love hearing about the incredible lives of everyday people, this episode has something for you.

Links and Source:

• Chicago Tribune. (1915, July 31). Lane Tech Boys Pay Tribute to Their Dead.
• Lane Tech History
• Go Lane Go (Lane Tech song), Written by Jack T. Nelson, class of 1915
• The Moody Church
• Wesley, C. (1738). And Can It Be. Retrieved from Wikimedia Commons

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