Minnie Mars Jamieson Elementary School was first built in 1937 to ease the overcrowding of Budlong Elementary. At that time Jamieson Elementary was surrounded by a few homes and an adjoining pickle farm.
As to who Minnie Mars Jamieson was, there is some debate. We have informally researched the topic and we have had various suggestions from numerous oral sources:
-Daughter of the pickle farmer who donated the land
-Advocate for Chicago's poor, much like Jane Adams
-Famous female innovator in education
But in reality Minnie Mars Jamieson, was the former principal of Budlong Elementary School, who retired while the new school was being built. If you have any more information about Mrs. Jamieson, our school, former students, and the surrounding neighborhood, please email us. We are especially interested in getting pictures from the 1930's-1970's. As the site grows, we will be posting pictures on the Alumni Section of our website.
There is one thing we know for SURE, Minnie Mars Jamieson WAS NOT an astronaut. The astronaut Dr. Mae Jemison, the first female African-American in space did not make her voyage on the space shuttle Endeavor until 1992 (roughly 50 years after Jamieson School was built).
If there any moments you would like to add or inquire about in Jamieson's History, please email us and let us know.
