Today is Jane Addams Day

Today is the first annual observance of Jane Addams Day in her native Illinois. It was 76 years ago today that Addams, the famed social reformer, became the first woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize.

Addams, who has long been one of The Rascal's favorite historical personages, was born in 1860 in Cedarville, a few miles north of my own native Freeport. She attended what later became Rockford College (and earned the school's first academic degree), founded Hull House, the famed social settlement in Chicago, and forged a career in social reform that is unparalleled in our nation's history.

She is widely recognized as the godmother of modern social work, was instrumental in the establishment of juvenile courts, child-labor laws, public health reforms, the 8-hour workday and countless other advances. She also was a founding member of both the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, among other organizations.

In 1998, Life magazine empaneled a group of historians to rank the 100 most influential people in the world over the past 1,000 years. Addams was ranked 66th, higher than any other American woman.

Jane Addams died in 1935 at the age of 74 and is buried in a family plot in Cedarville.

Stretch of I-90 named for Jane Addams

As a long-time admirer of social reformer Jane Addams, I'm pleased to see that a 79-mile stretch of Interstate 90 between Chicago and the Rockford area has been named for her.

Addams, who was born 147 years ago this past Thursday in Cedarville, a few miles north of Freeport, is generally recognized by historians as one of the most influential women in American history. She's seen as the godmother of modern social work and was instrumental in the establishment of juvenile courts, child-labor laws, public health reforms, the 8-hour workday and countless other advances.

She was the founder of Hull House, the famed social settlement in Chicago, and was a founding member of both the American Civil Liberties Union and the National Association for the Advancement of Colored People, among other organizations.

She also was the first person to win an academic degree from what later became Rockford College.

In 1931, Addams became the first American woman to win the Nobel Peace Prize. Four years later, she died at the age of 74 and was buried in a family plot in Cedarville.