USA > Illinois > Shelby County > Stewardson > Stewardson, the first 100 years : history of the village of Stewardson, Prairie Township and vicinity > Part 4
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2. Trinity Lutheran Church
3. First Christian Church
The Seventh Day Adventist
Church
5. Washington Methodist Church
B. Churches of Yesteryear
1. The Free Methodist Church
2. Baptist Church
3. Christian Science Church
4. Catholic Church
5. Presbyterian Church
6. Prairie Evangelical Church
7. Wolf Creek Evangelical Church
Readin', Writin' and Hickory Sticks
Education In Prairie Township During The Late 1800's
Education in the early history of Prairie Township, as in any frontier area, was of a primitive nature. Sub- scription schools were set up in the cabin of some centrally located settler or in a meeting house with the parents of each child paying the teacher, often in provisions or in articles which could be bartered or sold for ash. By the year of 1821 the first school- house in the county was built in Cold Spring Township and taught by Moses Story, a popular early teacher. The second one was built in 1832 in adjacent Richland Township. Another quite early school was taught in an empty house on John Spain's place in the adjoining Big Springs Township; but there was little in the way of syste- matic effort to maintain schools previ- ous to the passage of the Free School Act of 1855. This law provided for the
support of schools by public tax money and their supervision by a superinten- dent of public instruction. Compared with our modern schools of today with their work tables and chairs, libraries and instructional materials room, rec- ord players, tape recorders, movie pro- jectors, film strip machines, and their many other instructional aids and de- vices, these early schools were indeed most destitute in equipment as well as construction. The first schoolhouses were probably built of rough logs. Greased paper instead of glass was often used for windows. The furniture was of the rudest character. The in- dividual plan of instruction was the one generally followed during the very early days with the emphasis on the three R's. Frequently there was an interval for loud study especially in the prepara- tion of spelling lessons.
The old style schoolmaster could hardly be called a professional com-
pared to the teachers and principals of today with their bachelor's and mas- ter's degrees and yet there were many of genuine worth.
It would be impossible in a short space to trace all the changes that have been made in the educational field. New methods are ever being tried and discarded, we are always searching for better ways to train each inividual and prepare him for duties of citizenship and perhaps never moving rapidly enough.
Eleven elementary schools including the Lutheran Parochial and a public high school have been in existence dur- ing the history of Stewardson and Prairie Township.
Education 1856-Mound School
Mound School, known as District 1, was a very early school in Prairie Township. William Colston gave one square acre of land to the board of
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This is a picture of the Mound School in the early 1900's. Most of the rural school buildings looked like this one, with a row of windows on one side, a front porch and a coal house.
directors on 11-26-1856 as a site for a school building. The land was located in the east corner of the southwest quarter of township 9 range 5 east. This was known as the E. Deal land in later years.
The first schoolhouse was a frame building located about 21/2 miles south- east of the present village of Steward- son. There were no roads leading to the school at that time. Wild horses and deer roamed the country in num- bers. After the turn of the century an addition, doubling the size of the school, was built.
The population of the district con- tinued to increase until a total enroll- ment of 68 students was reached in 1926. People in the district voted to construct a new brick building. A brick building of two stories was constructed just south of the old building at a cost of $7500, with donated labor and some professional help. Jacob Yakey was president of the board, Elmer Dappert, clerk, and Frank Schultz, director. Patrons and friends came to inspect the new building when it was dedicated in October, 1926. It was said by those in authority to be the best country school building in Shelby County. The lower floor provided for grades 1 through 4. The upper floor included cloak rooms, a small library, and classrooms for grades 5 through 8. Mr. Clinton Mc- Cormick bought the old Mound School and moved it a short distance to his orchard and used it for apple storage.
Milan York, husband of Mrs. Dora York, was one of the early teachers. Others included Mary Pfingsten, C. E. York, Laura York Righter, W. P. Wal- ters, Mary Pfluger, J. T. Knox, T. L. Hillsabeck, Ed Quinn, Maude Beals, Fannie Lugar, Emma Klarman, Jacob Yakey, Daniel Augenstine, Ed Heron, Rose and Mollie Harmon, Nellie Walker and Regina Keck. Salaries were as
low as $18 a month for teaching serv- ices and janitor work.
Mound School continued in existence a few years after the other schools had consolidated. It was later sold. It is now being remodeled into a house.
Education 1870-Elm Grove School
Elm Grove School was located in a German settlement about 4 miles north- west of the present village of Steward- son and was built sometime before the year 1870. It was built to provide schooling for the children of that area who did not attend St. Paul's Parochial School at Strasburg. The ground was donated by Chris Altag, and the school might possibly have gotten its name because it was situated near a grove of elm trees. Joe Barr, Nellie Zimmers, May Rice, Amanda Green, and Mayme Green were some of the early teachers. In those early days there was little op- portunity for higher education and the students continued in grade school until they were almost as old as the teach- ers. Recreation centered around the school after the fall work on the farm was completed. The school house was sold at auction and torn down following consolidation of the schools. The land now belongs to Robert Stremming, a great-grandson of Mr. Altag.
1878-Herborn School
On November 8, 1878 Michael Weber donated an acre of ground for the' Her- born School. It was known as District No. 7 and was located approximately two miles north of the village of Stew- ardson. It was donated with two stipu- lations: first that it be enclosed with a fence kept in good repair, and secondly, that whenever the lot was no longer used for school purposes, it would re- turn to the original owner as was the custom at that time.
For instructional purposes the schol- ars were divided into primary, inter- mediate and advanced groups. Even though it was a very full schedule for one teacher, programs were frequently given which also included older mem- bers of the district and served as en- tertainment for the community. An or- ganized singing group, under the direc- tion of Mr. Andrew Patton provided recreation. Even though many of the scholars had to walk a distance over unimproved roads and in inclement weather, perfect attendance was stress- ed. One student of many years ago remembers receiving a white Bible for having completed a year without ab-
sence or tardiness. The teacher often spent the night at the home of children, because of poor transportation and ex- treme weather conditions. Early teachers included Ada Lutz, Monroe Williams, Albert Bailey, Henry Pfing- sten, Ed Burchfield, Nanna Boise, Arlyn Williams, and Rose Bingamon. It was sold to Ernest and Chris Kruger after the consolidation movement. Later Joe Brooks bought the building and moved it to Beecher City, and con- verted it into a house.
Education-Keystone School
The Keystone School House is still standing about two miles west and one mile south of Stewardson. It was first called the Bailey School. Ada Burke, Anna Scheef, Roxana Beck, Walter Dunlap, Florence Elliott, and Rose Harmon taught there a number of years ago. Schoolroom equipment compared with the schools of today was very, very meager. It was the custom in many of the rural schools to have a pie supper in the fall to provide money for some of the extras, such as library books, maps, globes and art supplies. The pies were baked by the young ladies of the district, put in gaily dec- orated boxes, and auctioned off. The young men buying the pies then ate with the young ladies. Contests were also conducted such as the most popu- lar young lady at a penny a vote to bring in more profit.
The school building was bought by a group from Chicago called the Allied Gun and Rod Club.
Education-Rockford School
The Rockford Schoolhouse is one of the few rural schoolhouses still stand- ing. It is located four miles north and three miles west of Stewardson. Myrtle Tressler was one of the early teachers. The schools in those days had what was called a winter term of five months and then a spring term of about two months. As a rule only the younger children attended the spring term be- cause the older ones had to help with the spring farm work. Often a dif- ferent teacher would be employed for the spring term. Although the three R's were stressed, the students were given a chance in more recent times to try their skills at handwork. Wood- work articles were made at recess when the weather did not permit out- door play. Gilbert Ulmer bought the schoolhouse and used it for an animal shelter.
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Education-Prairie Hall School
The students living near the north- east edge of Prairie Township first went to school in a building located on Jim Kull's place. Later Prairie Hall School was built on land donated by Albert Vogel about 412 miles north and 1 mile east of the present village of Stewardson. In design it varied some- what from the other schools. There was a hall extending across the front of the building with hooks for the chil- dren's wraps and shelves for their lunch buckets. Early teachers included Thomas Graybill, Claude Beck, Paul Chrisman, Ezra Blythe, Florence Staehle, Effie Beck, Robert Zimmer, F. J. Laughlin, and Fannie Hancock. In the 1890's the course of study in- cluded McGuffey's reading and spell- ing, history, arithmetic, grammer, writing, physiology, and geography. During the 1940's one of the highlights of the year was the so-called Field Day. On this day the neighboring schools would get together for athletic contests in the morning, followed by a basket dinner at noon, and a program of sing- ing, folk dancing, plays, and recitations with all the schools contributing in the afternoon. Gaylord Figgins bought the school building, moved it, and used it for a machine shed following consoli- dation with Unit District 5A.
Roley School
Roley School was located 21/2 miles west of the little town of Herborn on ground donated by Samuel Roley. The land is now owned by Clarence Grove. This school house was one of those in which the teacher's desk sat on a plat- form extending across the front of the room. This style of building no doubt gave the teacher an advantage in spot- ting an unruly child. Early teachers, in- cluded Ella Green, Charles Wilson, Laura Wilson, and the Boise sisters, Lydia, Nanna and Edna, Emma Har- mon, and Fred Grabb. Social activ- ities such as egg roasts, debates, and various kinds of programs involved the entire district. After the schools were consolidated Roley School was torn down and the lumber was used by Elza Grove in the construction of his house.
Zalman School
The Zalman School was probably one of the first schools organized in Prairie Township. It was built on land owned by Henry Zalman and August Klitzke about 21/2 miles northeast of the pres- ent village of Stewardson. Selma Quinn, Ales Beck, Ethel Barker, Ber- tha Hoese, Nellie Walker, and R. A.
Peters were some of the early teachers. No doubt there were interesting ac- tivities revolving around the school. One source states that in 1887 the Literary and Debating Society was pro- gressing well.
By 1907 the first schoolhouse had served its usefulness and it was sold to Fred Gruntman. He moved it to his farm west of Herborn where Cloide Car- ruthers now lives. In 1907 the citizens in the district voted to construct a new building on the same site. This build- ing served the district until 1944. By that year the enrollment had decreased so much that it seemed impractical to continue having school in the Zalman district. The pupils, in the fall of 1944, were transported to the Stewardson School District No. 103 for a monthly sum of $45. The building was sold to Frank Anderson. Two years later Charles Anderson bought it and moved it across the road where it still stands.
Washington School
The Washington Schoolhouse once stood where the Washington Church is now, some 3 miles northwest of Stew- ardson. It was used both as a school and as a church. Later, it was moved 1/2 mile south, to the corner. Early teachers were Monroe Williams, Joe Barr, Dow Williams, Adolph Peters, John Quicksall, Roy Shuff, Vernon Wil- liams, Alma Williams, John Cihak, Jon Blythe, Ethel Krapp, and Nona Shu- mard. By 1917 this schoolhouse no longer met building specifications. It was bought by William Krumreich and moved across the road from his home and used as a granary until recently. It still stands on land owned by Clar- ence Krumreich. A new schoolhouse was completed and ready for use in the 1917 - 1918 school year. It was struck by lighting during its construc- tion. Closing day in these rural schools
was usually an eventful day. The pa- trons of the district gathered for a basket dinner at noon and stayed for a program put on in the afternoon by the school children and to view an ex- hibit of the school work.
When the schools were consolidated, the Washington building was sold to Ernest Kruger. He moved it east of Shumway in the subdivision known as Idaville and remodeled it into a house. It was later sold to John Klepzig.
Education 1870-Lutheran Parochial School
The children in the Lutheran families were first instructed by Pastor Rinker during his pastorate here. In 1876 Pas- tor Schlechte moved to the village of Stewardson and built a house which is now owned by the Charles Allsop fam- ily on East Main Street. He taught school and instructed the children for confirmation until 1882 in the summer kitchen at the rear of this house. The old building is now being used as a garage, on other premises. In 1882 a new building was constructed on some land acquired from the village of Stew- ardson, near the Lutheran church. A new school was built in 1938 at the cost of $2750 plus much labor donated by members. It contained a full base- ment, a furnace and a kitchen. The old school was sold at auction for $115 to Philip Peters. He moved and re- modeled it into a modern home which is still being used. At the present time it is owned by Karl Lugar. The pastors did all of the teaching until 1950. Regu- lar teachers were then employed. A house was built south of the church to be used as a teacherage in 1950. The Trinity Parent Association was formed in 1951. It is now known as P.A.L.S. with Richard Stremming as president this school year. By 1952 the school
Trinity Lutheran Parochial School
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enrollment had increased to such an extent that another teacher was added to the staff to take care of the first four grades. By 1962 the enrollment had risen to 61 pupils and plans were made for the construction of a new building. A brick building, consisting of two class rooms, confirmation and meeting room, and gymnasium, was built at a cost of $64,000. It was dedi- cated in October, 1964. The previous building was sold to Joe Falk, torn down, and rebuilt into the present Stew- ardson Fabric Center on West Main Street. The enrollment for the present school year (1973-1974) is 29, which includes grades 1 to 8. The teachers are Mr. and Mrs. Charles Lieder.
Education-Stewardson Public School
In the fall of 1874 Mr. Goodell came to Stewardson and had school that win- ter in one room of his house. He re- ceived his pay from the parents of each child attending.
The first public school building was built in 1875 on a tract of land secured from Mr. Dicky Miller. It was a two room frame building with one room above, a room below and a hall and stairway on the west. Mr. and Mrs. Henry English were the first teachers. Four grades were taught by each teach- er. Later an east wing was built with a hall and stairway in the center mak- ing four rooms. It was only a grade school until C. M. Fleming organized a two year high school in 1898. The first class of two pupils, Bessie Singer and Gaylord Miller, was graduated in
Mary Pfingsten
Miss Mary, as she was known to her students, taught the first grade in the Stewardson Schools for many years.
1900.
In 1909 a brick building was built just south of the frame building with a basement consisting of a furnace room, coal room, and two play rooms; first floor, three rooms and a hall; and the second floor, with two rooms and an office. J. J. Baker was the principal. Other early teachers and principals were Mary Pfingsten, R. A. Peters, Tom Shaw, Rose Gruenewald, Emma
PICTURE OF STEWARDSON PUBLIC SCHOOL 1905 - 1906-Built in 1875 Tom Shaw, Principal; Rose Gruenewald, Assistant; R. A. Peters, Grades 7 & 8; Emma Sparks, Grades 4, 5 & 6; Mary Pfingsten, Grades 1, 2 & 3; Joe Whitacre, Janitor.
Sparks, Ed Graybill, Mollie Fenton, James Montgomery, Walter Beals, John Sargent, Mary Pfluger, and Mr. Utterback. John Klepzig bought the old frame building and built a house in the country east of town where Harold Reynolds now lives. A three year high school was organized in 1911 with six graduates in 1912: Rose Bingamon, Gail Frede, Virginia Voris, Lillian Bigler, Zepha Hagerman, and Edwin Engel. This was quite a step forward, but if students wanted a complete high school education they were obliged to go elsewhere. Some chose Wind- sor, Sullivan, or Shelbyville. Even in those days there were car pools. When the unimproved roads became impass- able, there was transportation on the old Wabash railroad. Some of the students roomed and boarded in. Meet- ings were held as early as March 17, 1922 for discussing the organization of a community high school. In 1925 a referendum and a building expansion program made it possible to complete a four year high school. A gymnasium, assembly room, class room, and hall were added to the existing building. A water system and new furnace were installed. The first class of the four year high school was graduated with 21 members in 1926. In January, 1926, the basketball game between Steward- son and Strasburg was the first one played in the new gym. The largest graduating class from the Stewardson High School was in 1932. In December 1935 a permanent stage was constructed at the south end of the assembly hall.
This building served both the grade school and high school for nearly 25 years, with the first six grades on the lower floor and the seventh and eighth grades and high school on the upper floor.
School Consolidation Movement
A school consolidation movement was started in 1949. Several rural schools in Prairie Township and in adjoining townships and the Stewardson and Strasburg Public Schools united and became the Stewardson-Strasburg Unit District 5A. A new high school building was constructed in the country on Route 32, near Herborn and has been in use since 1951. Harold Diel was superintendent and Lloyd Elam was as- sistant superintendent. A vocational agriculture department was added to the curriculum with the completion of the new school building. High school enrollment for 1973 - 1974 school year is 192.
Lloyd Elam, Superintendent; Melba
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The top picture shows the high school part of the Stewardson-Strasburg School on Route 32, midway between the two towns.
The lower picture is the grade school section that was added to the high school building.
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This 1974 Stewardson-Strasburg High School Basketball Team cele- brated the Centennial year for both towns by winning the first Sectional Basketball Tournament ever for the High School in either town, and advanc- ing to the Super-Sectional.
They also won the National Trail Conference and finished with a record of 25 wins and 5 losses.
Back Row, left to right: Coach Monte Nohren, Steve Strohl, Bruce Krile, John Merriman, Kevin Pickesh, Russell Bridges, Brian Rothrock, As- sistant Coach Larry Holle.
Front Row: William Augenstein, Ed Renshaw, Dana Anderson, Greg Wascher, James Noffke, John Widdersheim.
Middlesworth, Sec.y; Donald Harrison, Principal, Geometry; Sheila Renner, Secy .; Pauline Breeden, English and Journalism; Berneice Buesking, Home Ec. and Consumer Ed .; Kenneth Brauer, Typing, Bookkeeping, Business Math, General Business; Cloide Car- ruthers, Jr., Agriculture and Science; Larry Holle, P.E. and Health; Mary Kessler, Library; Kenneth Knop, World History, Baseball Coach, Guidance, Athletic Director; Marlene Kincaid, Sociology, Office Practice, Shorthand, Economics; Lois Luallen, French and English; Monty Nohren, Biology, Driv- ers Education, Basketball and Track Coach; Larry Speakman, Industrial Arts and Building Trades Class; Don- ald Oyer, Band and Chorus.
Four new subjects have been added this year: Health, Sociology, Economics and Building Trades. The Building Trades class is constructing a one- story, three bedroom house in the northeast part of Stewardson. It is expected to be ready for sale this spring, by sealed bids. The athletic program provides for baseball, basket- ball, and track. A Pep Club gives the team support at the games and the Letterman's Club runs a concession stand.
The Spinebinders (a library group), the National Honor Society, Projection Club, Future Business Leaders Assn., Future Farmers, and the Future Home- makers of America are active organi- zations in the school.
Stewardson-Strasburg Elementary School
Following the completion of the new high school building, Grade Schools were conducted at Stewardson, Stras- burg, and Mode. Grades 7 and 8 were taught in Strasburg on a departmental basis. After several years with this arrangement it seemed no longer prac- tical to try to keep these buildings up to specifications, so a new elementary building was built adjacent to the high school on Route 32, in 1969. The Stew- ardson school building and ball diamond were sold to the City of Stewardson May 2, 1970 for $3200 and the building is now being used as a Civic Center.
There is a kindergarten which serves all children in the district. There are two rooms for each grade, 1 through 3. The Junior High (grades 7 and 8) has had three teachers for a long time. Be- sides the regular teachers there are teachers for library, art, vocal music for all, and band for those who want it. starting with the 5th grade. The last three years there has been a teacher
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This is the picture of the first Stewardson Basketball Team to win the Shelby County Tournament. They were coached by J. P. Winn.
At the time of the County Tournament the road from Stewardson through Strasburg was almost impassable. The rural fans walked or rode horses into town and they rode with some of the town people.
On the last night a few places just north of town were so bad that the cars had to be pulled through by teams of horses. Some of the fans chipped in and they hired some draymen from town to pull them through going to Shelbyville and then had them wait until they came back to pull the cars through again.
The model T cars were light enough that the men could lift them out of one deep rut into one that wasn't so deep in some of the mud holes.
Seated Front Row, left to right: Otis Dappert, Charles Voris, Dudley Voris, Ernest Friese, Wm. Bruns.
Standing, left to right: Harry Strohl, Harold Peters, Elmer Schultz, Irl Schuyler, Dwight Dappert.
(Title I) working with students who are not working up to their potential. A speech teacher replaced Title I in the 1973-74 school year.
The enrollment for several years has ranged between 325 and 350 in the ele- mentary school. Elementary and Jun- ior High Faculty for 1973-74 are: Ralph Buesking, Principal and Grade 6; Zona Gail Doty, Secy .; Carol Manhart, Kin- dergarten; Janet Giesler, and Elizabeth Stilabower, Grade 1; Marlene Wirth and Elverna VonBehren, Grade 2; Marilyn Allsop and Beverly Storm,
Grade 3; Gerald Lindsey and Ruth Manhart, Grade 4; Florence Richards and Martha Oyer, Grade 5; Delbert Fatheree, Grade 6; Marilyn Kaufman, Jr. High, Girls P.E. and Health; Con- stance Green, 6th Grade and Library; Thomas Niemerg, Junior High Math and Science; Linda Hart, Junior High English, Lit and 8th grade Ortho- graphy; Alan Krietemeier, Jr. High Coach, Social Studies, 7th Orth., and Boys P.E .; Dorothy Austin, Elemen- tary Music; Lynda Ray, Art for Unit; Jane Giles, Speech Correctionist; Betty Stout, Teacher's Secretary.
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