History
De La Salle Institute was founded by Brother Adjutor, a former director of St. Patrick High School, in 1889, after being chartered by the State of Illinois the previous year. The laying of the cornerstone on May 19, 1889 was a major event which began with an hour long parade through the streets of Chicago. The ceremony was presided over by Archbishop Patrick Feehan, the first archbishop of the Archdiocese of Chicago. Classes and graduation ceremonies were held elsewhere until the building was complete, opening for students on 7 September 1891.
The school started as a two-year commercial school. The area which the school catered to was a poor area of the city, and many of the students were children of recent immigrants. As Br. Adjutor was quoted to have said: I made up my mind to leave nothing undone in the direction of fitting the boys of the masses for the battle of life, morally as well as educationally. As times changed, the school grew to emphasize a college preparatory curriculum.
On 11 April 1925, the school was severely damaged by an early morning fire causing US$35,000 in damage (unadjusted 1925 dollars). Two of the four floors were lost.
1926 saw plans for the addition of a new gymnasium behind the school at a cost of US$100,000 (unadjusted). These plans were later adjusted with a larger gym built on Michigan Avenue for US$175,000 (unadjusted).
The 1953–54 school year saw the school purchase the remainder of the block on which the school is situated. In March, ground breaking occurred for an addition to the school. In October, 1955, ground was broken on an addition to the brothers' residence attached to the school.
By 1960, more room was needed to handle the increase in student population. A new addition was built north of the extant building, adding a gymnasium and more classrooms. Groundbreaking occurred in late September, 1960, with the cornerstone being laid in June, 1961. The US$850,000 (unadjusted) addition was dedicated in May, 1962.
After decades of not having an outdoor sports stadium of its own, plans were made in 1967 to construct a stadium and sports complex. In a rare move, the fundraising for the stadium, estimated at US$250,000 (unadjusted) was not headed by an alum, with the honorary chair of the development committee being given to George Halas, owner of the Chicago Bears.
In June, 1984, with no more room for expansion, and the need for new facilities, the original four story school building was demolished.
The school has a history of diversity, dating back to its first class of nine students which included two Jewish students. Today roughly 28% of the school is African–American, 32% is Latino, and nearly 25% are non–Catholic.
In 2002, the school opened the Lourdes Hall Campus, a collaboration with the Sisters of St. Joseph of the Third Order of St. Francis. The school claims to be unique in the United States in that it is a co-educational institution, while still offering single-gender campuses.
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—Malcolm Bradbury (b. 1932)
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—Charlie Dunbar Broad (1887–1971)
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—Ralph Waldo Emerson (1803–1882)