Sunnyside

Sunnyside was in central Menard County. In the 1880s the Gus Noyes family had a farm three miles east of Menard, and Sunnyside, one mile west of the Noyes home, was primarily a settlement for workers from the Noyes farm and their families. The Sunnyside school, also called the Noyes school, provided education for children from Sunnyside and the surrounding area. At one time the community had a gin and a store. A drought forced the Noyes family to sell their farm, and the community of workers faded. No evidence of the community appeared on county highway maps in the 1940s, although the ruins of the gin were said to be still visible.