Todd Seminary for Boys

The Todd Seminary for Boys (1848–1954) was an independent preparatory school located in , in the U.S. state of Illinois. From 1930 it was called the Todd School for Boys. Under headmaster Roger Hill from 1929, it became a progressive school that provided students including Orson Welles with a creative educational environment that emphasized practical experience over traditional academics. Only one building, Rogers Hall, remains from the original campus.

The Todd School for Boys was founded by Reverend Richard K. Todd, who brought from his native Vermont, the New England philosophy of "plain living and high thinking, and in harmony with Puritan traditions".

Reverend Todd moved to Woodstock, Illinois, from Vermont in 1847 to be pastor of a newly formed Presbyterian Church. In 1848 he opened a day school in the parsonage, for both boys and girls. This parsonage school continued to 1859, the student population ranged between 6 and 15 students. During this time Reverend Todd also served as the School Superintendent for McHenry County from 1849–1855.

In 1858 the plans for the Pastorage Institute were announced in the Woodstock Sentinel to form a boarding school. The Pastorage Institute grew in enrollment until, in 1861, the Woodstock University was incorporated by the state legislature. In 1864, the title of the school was again changed, this time to the Woodstock Collegiate Institute. At this time the student body consisted of between 80 and 149 students, mostly from the McHenry County area.

In 1867 the school underwent extensive improvements at which time it became exclusively a seminary for boys, and became known as the Woodstock Institute. It held this name until 1873 when it became known as the Todd Seminary for Boys. The final name change occurred in 1930 when it became the Todd School for Boys.

Noble Hill joined the institution in 1888 as Reverend Todd's assistant. Hill resigned a year later due to differences in opinions with Todd. A year later Hill returned with a promise from Todd that he would have his full support. Reverend Todd's wife died during the winter of 1891 and the Reverend now in his 70s went to live with his son who was a professor at the University that would become Stanford University.

In June 1892 Noble Hill arranged to purchase the Seminary from Reverend Todd, at a cost of $20,000.

In 1929, Noble Hill transferred ownership of the school to his son Roger Hill, called Skipper, and retired to California. As headmaster, Skipper Hill developed the Todd Seminary for Boys into a progressive educational institution based on his philosophy that all young people were "created creators". In addition to academics the school's educational plan offered a 300-acre working farm; a radio station; a theatre company with facilities on campus and tour buses that took the company throughout North America; sound motion picture production facilities; and a nearby airport with a flight simulator and small aircraft for students who were interested in flying their own plane.

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