Longfellow School was selected as one of the two Historic Sites of the Year for 2009. The other was it’s sister school Whittier School.

In 2022, the Downers Grove School District 58 sold the property to a private developer and the building was demolished. It was replaced by 16 homes. Many of the old oaks on the property were taken down as part of the new construction. This is the only designated Historic Site in Downers Grove that has been  lost. 

Longfellow School opened to 148 children on September 3, 1929. It was the second Downers Grove School built north of the railroad tracks. Named for the well-known poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, this school served the community proudly for many years. This building closed as an elementary school in 1978 and served District 58 as an education support facility.

In 2022, the Downers Grove School District 58 sold the property to a private developer and the building was demolished. It was replaced by 16 homes. Many of the old oaks on the property were taken down as part of the new construction.

These words from the Longfellow poem “Children” express the way children were welcomed to this school.

Come to me, O ye children!
And whisper in my ear
What the birds and winds are singing
In your sunny atmosphere.