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Lydia Moss Bradley - Credit Bradley University Special Collections To strengthen the assertion from the previous notable that Switzerland County has probably accomplished more for education per capita I give you the story of Lydia Moss Bradley. She was a generous philanthropist from Peoria, Illinois, but got her start in Vevay, Indiana.

Lydia was born to Zeally and Jenny Moss on July 31, 1816. Zeally was a Revolutionary War hero who was present when Cornwallis and 7000 forces surrendered at Yorktown. Zeally and Jenny had moved from Virginia, to Kentucky, and then to Vevay shortly after Indiana became a state. As a civilian Zeally earned considerable wealth through land and other business transactions.

Even though her father had found success in real estate, Lydia was no stranger to hard work. Zeally and Jenny taught their children about the hardships of the frontier and their struggle to make it to Indiana. From an early age, her hands were never idle. She learned to make butter, raise her own eggs, salt her meat stores and spin yarn.

One story frequently told is that her father once gave her a young colt who had lost its mother. She put forth the effort to raise that colt (which was no small effort) and then raised the money for a saddle and bridle. When coming across a tract of land for sale, she sold the colt, bridle and saddle in exchange for 40 acres of forested land near Vevay, Indiana. This is where her soon-to-be husband came into the picture. She took the forest she owned, cleared the land, and sold the logs to Tobias Bradley, who owned a sawmill and log yard in Vevay.

Laura, Tobias, Jenny Moss and Lydia - Credit Bradley University Special Collections She would marry Mr. Bradley in 1837. Children came soon after, but also the death of her father, Zeally, who was already living in Peoria alongside her brother William. Lydia was given the family homestead after Zeally's death, but continued to take care of her mother and family all the while. Within 10 years, they sold their businesses and property in Vevay and followed her brother to Peoria, Illinois in the spring of 1847. Tobais became a boat Captain for a bit, but with the sale of Lydia's property in Vevay, Tobias Bradley charged head-first into real estate and eventually into banking. Tobias became one of the leading businessmen in Peoria with a short period of time.

The couple had 6 six children, but the enduring tragedy of disease took each one before the age of 15. One had died before moving to Peoria in 1845. In 1847, 2 died only 16 days apart. Then in '52, in '55 and the last, Laura, died in 1864. Tobias' heartbreak should not be discounted, but he was able to maintain his business ventures and partnerships throughout his family's pain. The anguish for Lydia must have been consuming for so many years, as she was the primary caregiver to the children. As occurs with families of multiple tragedies, one chooses to pick themselves up in order to continue the care of the remaining children. What would they do now?

Tobias and Lydia headstone - findagrave.com With no children remaining in the house, the couple began planning what came next for their family of 2. The tragedy of their children's deaths would never leave them, but maybe they could create a positive focal point toward the memory of their children. So, they considered the possibility of building an orphanage or school. Before plans could be written, tragedy struck again. The death of Tobias occurred on May 4th, 1867 after a carriage accident.

This notable could fork in 2 directions from here. We could very well venture to tell the story how Lydia Moss Bradley survived the loss of 6 kids(unimaginable), a mother, father and husband. That story is of legendary status. Seriously, how did she survive and cope? We are going venture to tell the story how she put her head down, went to work and became one of the greatest philanthropists Indiana or Illinois has ever seen.

The settlement of all of Tobias' business affairs took years because he left no will, but when complete, Lydia was left with an estate of $500,000(roughly $10,000,000 in 2022 dollars). So she went back to her roots. Back to what her father taught her about real estate, what her brother and husband knew about Peoria real estate, what she knew about working her Switzerland County property and making it valuable. Land prospecting became her mission. She began with a estate of $500,000, but was able to triple that in 12 years, and eventually amassed a fortune to the tune of $2,500,000. ($71,000,000 in 2022 dollars)

It seems she had a knack for knowing how to get the most good out of every dollar, with the forward-thinking prospect of the good it could do. Her philanthropic efforts began with expediency. It started simply with giving toward charitable institutions, then to churches, then donating land for a hospital, land and monies for a City Park and building a home for Aged Women of Peoria. All the while, "none of these things fully met Mrs. Bradley's idea of what she wanted to do." The pursuit of building a school, one that she and her husband envisioned came into the forefront. She began visiting and collecting information on other schools throughout the country.

Her finances were not quite up to the level of creating her true vision while she was living, but during the making of her will in 1884, she laid plans for the early stages of institute of higher learning. At the time, she expected not to see her family's vision come to fruition. Revisions were made every year to that original plan, the last being in September 1892. That revision spelled out plans for trustees to begin shortly after her death, "unless I shall have already done so". She subsequently bought a school in La Porte, Indiana and moved the entire faculty, students and equipment to Peoria ... she was beginning to see her fruits.

Aerial of Bradley University By November 16th, 1896, the Institute was organized and on October 4th, 1897, 30 years after her husband's death, their shared vision for the Bradley Polytechnic Institute was opened for enrollment. The memories of Rebecca, Tobias Jr., Clarissa, Mary, William and Laura could finally rest in the purpose of educating thousand upon thousands of other children.

Bradley Poly grew to 500 by 1899 with areas of study that included; biology, chemistry, languages, history, drawing, physics, etc. In 1946 Bradley Polytechnic changed its name to Bradley University. It currently enrolls 4600 students and has an academic staff of 390. 2022 marks the 125 anniversary of its founding.

Lydia Moss Bradley statue Lydia got to see the fruits of her labor for a few more years. She continued to be an active participant in the day-to-day operations of the school. All the while, she continued "to make butter, raise her own eggs, and salt her meat stores". Hard work never left the mind of this determined woman. Adding to her list of accomplishments and interesting stories, she was the first female member of an American national bank board, pioneered the Illinois park system, was inducted into the National Women's Hall of Fame AND because of the sizeable fortune she owned before her second marriage, she was the first woman in the country to obtain a prenuptual agreement.

Lydia Moss Bradley, revered philanthropist of Peoria, Illinois and notable daughter of Vevay, Indiana, died on January 16, 1908 at the age of 91. Never to miss the opportunity to work, she had already prepared funeral arrangements well in advance. She was buried next to her husband, 5 of their children, and mother and father in Springdale cemetery.

"Her name has reached but a comparatively narrow circle of acquaintances, mostly within the boundaries of this state (Illinois) and yet she had the satisfaction of seeing her labors prosper in her hands, and the evening glow of her life was lit up with calm joy in the consciousness that the world had been better and would be better because she had lived." ... "No, no, we are praising in Mrs. Bradley not a rich woman but a good woman whose life whether in riches or poverty would have been a precious legacy as it has been a noble service."

A Eulogy by Albion W. Small, University of Chicago