Publications: Nature Study Lessons , 1905

BIOGRAPHICAL SKETCH Lida (Brown) McMurry was born in Kiantone, New York on February 6, 1853.  Mrs. McMurry began her education in the common schools of Chautauqua County, New York, and later graduated from the Illinois State Normal School in 1874. In 1900, Lida came to the Northern Illinois State Normal School by invitation of Northern’s president John Williston Cook.  As a critic, teacher, and supervisor for the elementary grades, Lida McMurry introduced progressive classroom methods by adapting various teaching materials to the Herbartian educational theory.  Author and co-author of several children’s books and poems, Mrs. McMurry’s works include: Classic Stories for the Little Ones; Robinson Crusoe for Boys and Girls; Nature Study for Primary Grades; Our Language Book; Tree-Tops and Meadows; Songs for Mother and Child.  In 1911, the Normal School recognized the achievements of Lida B. McMurry and her brother-in-law Charles when the training school on campus was given their name.  Lida McMurry retired from NISNS in 1917 and died on March 18, 1942.