Howard Spurgeon

In 1941, Howard Spurgeon and his wife Erma moved to Central Illinois, buying two lots in the brand-new Sunnyland area.  After faithful military service building ships during WW II,  he began work as a contractor in the area in the late 1940s, building and flipping houses in expanding communities.  He also built commercial buildings and schools, including the original four-classroom Robein School in 1948 and a 1949 addition to Davenport School in Eureka.

In 1955, Spurgeon set his sights on the westward expansion of Washington. He envisioned a large subdivision and shopping area just west of the newly built Kroger store and Essig Motors.  He would call the subdivision Washington Estates, and the shopping area was originally to be called Washington Plaza.  In the development of Washington Estates, Spurgeon offered two acres of his property to Central School District 51 to construct a new school.

In the 1960s, Spurgeon focused on Sunnyland and their sewer disposal needs.  He created the Sundale Utilities Corporation for unincorporated residents.

Spurgeon, instrumental in much of the development of Washington we now take for granted, passed away in 2000 and is buried in Parkview Mausoleum Chapel of Peace in Peoria.