An iconic landmark which has stood at 208 South Johnson Street since 1915 will soon be the site of a real estate auction Nov. 3, at 10 a.m.
The historical “Old Macomb High School” is being offered for sale by Spoon River College, who made extensive upgrades to the building when they purchased it in 1983. Spoon River officially opened its new campus at 2500 E. Jackson in September 2025.
The Fourth Ward School, or Douglas School was condemned as unsafe in 1913, and torn down in 1914. This action made room for the building of a new Macomb High School on Johnson Street. A cornerstone was laid in 1914, and the building was occupied in September 1915. At that time there were 166 students in the high school, which included grades 7 and 8. The people of Macomb were determined to assert their commitment to high school education, which was not then available in some communities.
The building is listed as a historic, three-story building with endless possibilities for re-development. With classrooms, offices, an auditorium, shop space, restrooms on all floors, and parking lots on both the north and south sides, the property is an ideal candidate for apartments, assisted living, healthcare, office space or other uses.
The building also has a hydraulic elevator providing access to all floors (not currently in working order) and centralized automation and controls for HVAC.
Each floor has its own air handling units with each classroom and office having its own thermostat.
Wide stairways grace both the north and south sides of the building with each floor being comprised of different sizes of offices and classrooms.
Excerpts from the legal terms of the auction are as follows: “The property will be sold for the “lump sum” total dollar amount. Immediately following the auction, the successful buyer will be required to sign a real estate contract and pay 10% of the purchase price as a non-refundable down payment. December 2, 2026 will be the closing date on which the balance will be due.”
At the time of this writing the Spoon River Board had not decided on a minimum bid that it will accept.
Credits: John Hallwas, Macomb A Pictorial History Sullivan Auctioneers Spoon River College Tri-States Public Radio
MHS/SRC building today with the auction sign.
