Mary Elizabeth Manning

Mary Elizabeth Manning, 95, died on Friday, July 17, 2026, at JourneyCare in Barrington, Illinois. She was the daughter of Edmond and Mabel (Donahue) Hemmer of Huntley, born May 20, 1931. With the exception of her years at college, she lived her entire life in Huntley. She married Francis (Duke) Manning at St. Mary Church, Huntley on December 26, 1954. She was a 1949 graduate of Huntley High School and graduated from Mundelein College, Chicago in 1953. Her years as an elementary teacher were spent in Hampshire, Huntley, and Marengo - Union District 165 where she retired in 1990. After retirement, she became a volunteer at McHenry County Historical Society Museum in Union. She was a member of the Huntley Sesquicentennial Committee and was instrumental in the publication of "At Home in Huntley" marking that event. Most recently, she worked at the Huntley Area Public Library from 2001 to 2013 and coordinated the local history collection there. As a local historian she has given numerous public presentations about Huntley's past, including tributes to her great-aunt and former Chicago Cubs executive, Margaret Donahue. She was a charter member of the Friday Morning Book Club at the Huntley library and was an avid reader. She was a member of the St. Mary Altar and Rosary Society. She was a church organist, starting at age 13 and served in that capacity for 35 years. Mary's four sets of great-grandparents settled in Huntley in the 1850s. In addition to them she was preceded in death by her parents, her husband Francis (Duke), and her sister Margaret. Survivors include daughters Regina and Elizabeth Manning and Marian Paquette, son, Paul (Mary); and six grandchildren, Anthony Ruth, Caroline Campbell, Robert (Hannah) and Mark Paquette, Jacob (McKenzie) and Molly Manning; one great-granddaughter Therese, one sister Barbara (Charles) Ernesti, and a number of nieces and nephews. Visitation will be held on Thursday, July 23rd from 9:00 a.m. until the Mass of Christian Burial at 10:30 a.m., located at St. Mary Church, 10307 Dundee Rd., Huntley. Burial will follow in St. Mary Cemetery in Huntley. Mass intentions or memorials in her name may be made to the McHenry County Historical Society Museum, in lieu of flowers.

Mary Elizabeth Manning

May 20, 1931 - July 17, 2026