LT architect Joseph Llewellyn created the once ornate and decorative Reber Center in 1928. Built similarly to extravagant Chicago theatres, the Reber Center once stood as a prominent community landmark, attracting politicians and cultural figures alike. Now a piece of the original theatre has been restored for the library.

In 2012, Photography Teacher Patrick Page discovered the ornamental column from the historic Reber Center on the fourth floor of LT. Sharing these artifacts allows LT to engage with its past in meaningful ways, Page said. The class of 2015 donated their funds to rebuilding the decayed plaster, repairing damage, and discovering the column’s original paint.

“The column is a really cool artifact of the school’s history,” Page said. “It’s a neat thing to tie us back into that era.”

In the 1920’s, many communities were just being formed. The high school stood as a symbol that LaGrange had been established.

In the 1927-28 school year, the Sunday Evening Club was founded. The purpose of this club was to attract prominent figures to the community to speak and perform, Page said.

People and organizations such as Amelia Earhart, the Chicago Symphony Orchestra and the Sound of Music family were brought to the Reber Center. The Sunday Evening Club lasted until the 1950s, bringing prominent figures to the school and establishing LT as a more respected institution.

“It was an amazing cultural thing,” Page said.

Now the Reber Center has been redone to be simpler and more practical, however, the remnants of the 1928 Reber Center have been restored to the library to reintroduce the historic atmosphere.

“It’s amazing to see how this structure has evolved through the decades, accommodating more contemporary as well as classic pieces,” LT actress Kiera Prinz ’16 said.

In the words of the LION article covering the opening of the Reber Center in 1928, “Such a wonderful auditorium is indeed one to envoke a feeling of pride in every student in L.T.H.S.”