Owe back taxes? In 1909 it meant a visit from the 'Tax Van'

"I can't believe that the "tax van" is taking things from people's homes again." "Do you think that Elgin Township official really took some public records?" "Elgin High School is only 25 years old, and now we're tearing it down because it doesn't look like the addition that is attached to it?"

These are some of the comments people might have made after reading the newspapers of one hundred years ago. Here's a look at those stories and others that made Elgin area news in February 1909.

• Tributes to Lincoln took center stage as schools, churches, lodges, and other organizations scheduled a variety of programs to honor the 16th president. Special agreements were also made to display a chair at a downtown Elgin store used by Lincoln in Springfield. Probably the most unusual tribute during the various programs came from William Creighton, a former Confederate captain and now resident of Elgin. Creighton lauded the Union effort under Lincoln saying he was glad the war turned out as it did so that he later had the chance to fight for the Stars and Stripes in the Spanish-American War.

• Behind in your taxes? Being in such a position a century ago would likely get you a visit from the local assessor and his "tax van" - a vehicle he rented once a year just for this purpose. After a knock on the door, those who didn't make good on their delinquent payments saw the local official load property onto his vehicle equal to the amount of the taxes in arrears. People wishing to reclaim their belongings were required to pay an additional fee.

• With over 100 cars on the streets of Elgin, the police department decided that it was time for them to have a vehicle of their own. "The need for such a conveyance has long been felt and recently much fault has been found with the present service," said one department official. "The combination ambulance-patrol vehicle will prove much cheaper in the long run." The response time would also be quicker, he added, since officers would no longer need to travel the extra distance to the livery stable before leaving on a call.

• Cries of inconsistency and unfairness were leveled at city council after they voted to ban Sunday moving picture performances but allowed a boxing match to go on. The pugilistic affair drew some 250 spectators to the Eagles Club in the downtown who saw two bouts - both of which ended in knockouts. Residents did have alternative entertainment as an evening concert by the Elgin Symphony Orchestra was arranged at the theater instead.

• At least there weren't so many divorces in the good old days - or were there? Recently complied statistics showed that almost one in 10 marriages in Illinois ended in divorce - a fairly consistent figure for the previous two decades. Kane County ranked sixth in divorces in the state with Cook County and Peoria County coming in first and second. The data was compiled for a U.S. census publication.

• Sometimes a man's romantic overtures just aren't understood. A young streetcar employee from Elgin who met a woman along the Waukegan lakefront decided to accompany the young lady for a walk when a fog rolled in. When the suitor attempted to be "gallant" to her, the woman was rather displeased with his advances and had the man arrested. The court labeled him a "professional flirt" and handed the offender a fine of $75 and 15 days in jail.

• The warm weather of spring can sometimes put ideas in young minds other than of school and life and a century ago it was no different. Citing what he called an "unusually busy" time, the Elgin truant officer was busy rounding up three to four young men a day, some of whom led him on a "merry chase." Toothaches and stomachaches were the most frequent reasons given by the young men to explain their absences. "In many instances" the parents had kept their children home to do chores, prompting the school official to refresh their memory about the state compulsory attendance law.

• Did an Elgin Township official destroy a number of official records before leaving office? That's what some charged after rumors of such misconduct surfaced in the community. The man had developed a separate system of maintaining property tax information in addition to his official records and those should pass to his successor, they added. "No personal property books have vanished," responded the accused. One newspaper labeled the charge as "backyard gossip" and an "unjustified attack."

• Finally, what should be done with the 25-year-old Elgin High School building now that a new, rather different looking addition was attached to it? "Tear it down," said one school board member. "Move it to another site and make it a manual training building," explained another. The trustees finally settled on plans for a $100,000 referendum for a new building to be designed by David Postle, the architect of the newly opened city museum in Lords Park.