Namesake of Bradley Park
The fourth child of Lydia Moss Bradley, founder of Bradley University, Laura was the family's only child to survive into her teenage years. Beloved and doted on by her parents and maternal grandmother, she lived in the wealthy environs of Peoria, Illinois in a big house on Moss Avenue amongst tall trees, flowers planted by her mother's groundskeeper, and other elegant homes. As shown in a family photograph, Laura was a stylish young lady. She favored knee-length silk taffeta and wore jewelry, such as earrings, bracelets, and watches, all probably influenced by her mother's eye for the latest fashions. She learned social graces and proper posture as befitted the daughter of an august family. She adored her father and may have gone out riding with him in the family carriage to visit his various farming properties and commercial enterprises. She also enjoyed playing on the bluff area owned by her family west of town away from the Illinois River. Despite her favorable circumstances, shadows flitted through Laura's life. She watched her two younger siblings die when she herself was just past toddlerhood. Plus, she knew her three elder siblings only through her mother's constant grief for them and visits to their graves. Laura died at the age of 14 and the Bradleys buried her with her five siblings in Springdale Cemetery. After Laura's death, Mrs. Bradley transformed the bluff acreage her daughter loved into the Laura Moss Bradley Park, preserving those green spaces for new generations of Peoria's residents and visitors.
The fourth child of Lydia Moss Bradley, founder of Bradley University, Laura was the family's only child to survive into her teenage years. Beloved and doted on by her parents and maternal grandmother, she lived in the wealthy environs of Peoria, Illinois in a big house on Moss Avenue amongst tall trees, flowers planted by her mother's groundskeeper, and other elegant homes. As shown in a family photograph, Laura was a stylish young lady. She favored knee-length silk taffeta and wore jewelry, such as earrings, bracelets, and watches, all probably influenced by her mother's eye for the latest fashions. She learned social graces and proper posture as befitted the daughter of an august family. She adored her father and may have gone out riding with him in the family carriage to visit his various farming properties and commercial enterprises. She also enjoyed playing on the bluff area owned by her family west of town away from the Illinois River. Despite her favorable circumstances, shadows flitted through Laura's life. She watched her two younger siblings die when she herself was just past toddlerhood. Plus, she knew her three elder siblings only through her mother's constant grief for them and visits to their graves. Laura died at the age of 14 and the Bradleys buried her with her five siblings in Springdale Cemetery. After Laura's death, Mrs. Bradley transformed the bluff acreage her daughter loved into the Laura Moss Bradley Park, preserving those green spaces for new generations of Peoria's residents and visitors.
Namesake of Bradley Park
The fourth child of Lydia Moss Bradley, founder of Bradley University, Laura was the family's only child to survive into her teenage years. Beloved and doted on by her parents and maternal grandmother, she lived in the wealthy environs of Peoria, Illinois in a big house on Moss Avenue amongst tall trees, flowers planted by her mother's groundskeeper, and other elegant homes. As shown in a family photograph, Laura was a stylish young lady. She favored knee-length silk taffeta and wore jewelry, such as earrings, bracelets, and watches, all probably influenced by her mother's eye for the latest fashions. She learned social graces and proper posture as befitted the daughter of an august family. She adored her father and may have gone out riding with him in the family carriage to visit his various farming properties and commercial enterprises. She also enjoyed playing on the bluff area owned by her family west of town away from the Illinois River. Despite her favorable circumstances, shadows flitted through Laura's life. She watched her two younger siblings die when she herself was just past toddlerhood. Plus, she knew her three elder siblings only through her mother's constant grief for them and visits to their graves. Laura died at the age of 14 and the Bradleys buried her with her five siblings in Springdale Cemetery. After Laura's death, Mrs. Bradley transformed the bluff acreage her daughter loved into the Laura Moss Bradley Park, preserving those green spaces for new generations of Peoria's residents and visitors.
The fourth child of Lydia Moss Bradley, founder of Bradley University, Laura was the family's only child to survive into her teenage years. Beloved and doted on by her parents and maternal grandmother, she lived in the wealthy environs of Peoria, Illinois in a big house on Moss Avenue amongst tall trees, flowers planted by her mother's groundskeeper, and other elegant homes. As shown in a family photograph, Laura was a stylish young lady. She favored knee-length silk taffeta and wore jewelry, such as earrings, bracelets, and watches, all probably influenced by her mother's eye for the latest fashions. She learned social graces and proper posture as befitted the daughter of an august family. She adored her father and may have gone out riding with him in the family carriage to visit his various farming properties and commercial enterprises. She also enjoyed playing on the bluff area owned by her family west of town away from the Illinois River. Despite her favorable circumstances, shadows flitted through Laura's life. She watched her two younger siblings die when she herself was just past toddlerhood. Plus, she knew her three elder siblings only through her mother's constant grief for them and visits to their graves. Laura died at the age of 14 and the Bradleys buried her with her five siblings in Springdale Cemetery. After Laura's death, Mrs. Bradley transformed the bluff acreage her daughter loved into the Laura Moss Bradley Park, preserving those green spaces for new generations of Peoria's residents and visitors.
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Daughter of T. S. & L. Bradley
