USA > Indiana > Wells County > Biographical memoirs of Wells County, Indiana : embracing a comprehensive compendium of local biography, memoirs of representative men and women of the county whose works of merit have made their names imperishable, and special articles by Hugh Dougherty [et al.] > Part 6
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
was the first temple of justice erected in the county. Robinson Mckinney taught school the next year in a double room which stood where the Studabaker bank and the Snyder shoe store now stand. Several men still living in this city, who were boys under the tuition of George Brown, can tell interest- ing stories of that gentleman's unsuccessful attempts to use formidable bundles of wil- low gads on the backs of the larger pupils. James Donaldson and James McQuade taught school at one time in a building at the east end of Market street on the river bank. Both these gentlemen are remem- bered not only for their profound scholastic attainments, but for the severe means of discipline to which they resorted.
Another of the early school buildings was a brick structure which stood on Miller street, just north of the old Baptist church. This is still standing and forms part of the residence of Arthur Linn. In this build- ing Rev. R. H. Jackson and wife were among the early teachers. Mr. Jackson was a Presbyterian minister and his wife was the first music teacher in the town. The third brick school house to be erected in the city was the two-story building at the cor- ner of Marion and Cherry streets, which was called the High School, not only be- cause of its imposing appearance, but for the reason that the larger scholars attended there. Two teachers were employed in this building. This was used for school pur- poses until the erection of the present Cen- tral building, after which it was used as a corn-planter factory, and then as a resi- dence. It also served as the home of the free kindergarten for one year.
Among the early teachers in the city re- membered by our oldest citizens were Eliz-
abeth Jane Burwell, who became the wife of Cyrus Burgan, Mrs. Wilson M. Bulger, Miss Belle Hanna, of Wooster, Ohio, Mrs. Martha Wilson, John J. Cooper, John Fore- man, Mr. Washburn, Jack Drummond, Crawford Marquis, Charles Cruikshank, Cynthia Parker, of Huntertown, Elizabeth Blackledge, now Mrs. E. M. C. Ninde, Liz- zie Cozier, of Pennsylvania, T. A. R. Eaton, John S. McCleery, Mrs. H. C. Arnold, Newton Burwell, Nelson Kellogg and Rev. Russ, a Presbyterian minister. Lewis S. Grove, the first county auditor, taught a school in a building on the hill where the Henry Oman house now stands.
W. B. DeHaven, who came here in 1854, gives his school experience as follows: The first term I went to C. W. Beardsley in the Thoma brick school house. The next year I attended school in the United Brethren church, which stood at the corner of Scott and Market streets, and was taught by C. WV. Beardsley and John H. Buckles. The next year I went to the "planter factory," as it is still called, and was under the tuition of Nathaniel Greenfield. The next year I went to the brick school on Miller street, which was presided over by Nicholas Van Horn. I finished my education the next year in the "planter factory," which was under the care of Prof. J. S. McCleery." This little sketch of Mr. DeHaven will recall to many others their own experience.
We must not think of the school work in those days as a plain, unalloyed effort to master the subjects prescribed in the meager curriculum of that time. School life was varied by the introduction of many diver- sions, some of which are no longer to be found among the adjuncts of school work. Such were the spelling contests, literary
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
societies and school exhibitions. All these served their useful purposes before they were superseded by the ideas of today. The first school exhibition ever given in the city was under the direction of Mr. Fore- man, who has been mentioned in this sketch. It was held in the old Presbyterian church on East Washington street and consisted of songs, recitations and dialogues. It was regarded as a great affair at that time and enlisted the interest not only of the entire town but drew crowds from miles around.
In 1868 the first six rooms of the Central building were built and the other three school properties were disposed of. In the erection of this new building the school board came in for very sharp criticism. It was pronounced by many a very foolish piece of extravagance, and it was predicted that the time would never come when it would all be needed for school purposes. But time has justified the wisdom of those who planned and built at that time, for it was not long until ' the six rooms were over- crowded and it became necessary to build more rooms, making it the present ten- room building. After the erection of the Central building in 1868 all the pupils were brought together and were placed under the care of Prof. Reefy, the first city superin- tendent. Mr. Reefy was an excellent man for the place and soon had the school sys- tem of the city in successful and satisfactory operation. The magnificent maples which adorn the campus of the high school and Central buildings are a monument to his memory, as he planted them with his own hands the first year of his school work here. Since Mr. Reefy, the city superintendents have been as follows: Mr. Lilly, Mr. Thomas, Mr. Buckley, Mr. Vaughn, Mr.
Gunder, Mr. Ernst, P. A. Allen, 1881 to 1891, W. P. Burris, 1891 to 1897, E. D. Walker, 1897 to 1899. W. A. Wirt, the present very efficient superintendent, has been in this position since September, 1899.
The increase in school accommodations has more than kept pace with the growth of the city. The five school building's now in use date as follows: Central building, six rooms, in 1868, to which four rooms were added in 1879. Two rooms of the Wash- ington Park building were erected in 1883 and the other two rooms were built in 1886. The high school building was built in 1890, and the Columbian building in 1893. The manual training department occupies the old Baptist church on Wabash street.
The high school was organized by P. A. Allen in 1881, and in 1883 graduated its first class. It was commissioned in 1885, and the course has been strengthened from year to year by the addition of studies, and its work has been made more effective by the equipment of good chemical, physical and biological laboratories. The high school has never failed to send out each year a fine class of graduates, the class of 1886 consisting of thirty-four young ladies and gentlemen, being the largest in the history of the school. The library was started in 1881, and received additions each year of books purchased by funds raised by means of various enterprises for the purpose and by collections taken in the different rooms. It had grown to several thousand volumes before it was changed to a public library and a tax levied for its maintenance.
The present teaching force now numbers twenty-five in all the schools, and ·Superin- tendent Wirt is wonderfully successful in his administration of the various interests of
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
the schools under his care. Substantial progress marks each year's work. Manual training has been introduced in several of the grades and that part of the work placed under the care of Prof. F. C. Whitcomb. The manual training building on Wabash street is well fitted up with the necessary equipment for that line of work.
The beginnings in thé rural districts of the county are full of interest, but we are sorry to say that data for that part of the sketch is very meager. A comparatively few names were obtainable from the avail- able sources of information, and we regret we are not able to enrich this chapter with a profusion of the incidents and happenings which must have belonged to that time.
The first school in Lancaster township, and probably the first in the county, was the one taught by A. B. Waugh, father of Representative A. A. Waugh. The building was made of round logs, and greased paper served for windows. It had in it the old fashioned school furniture of that period, and must have been very primitive indeed. Some of those who attended school at that time were O. F. Sutton, Jacob Harvey, Wil- liam Harvey, Tom Logan, Campbell Scott, William Metts, afterward a minister in the Methodist Episcopal church, Dr. J. I. Metts, Mary Ellen Metts, now Mrs. T. A. Doan. It was a subscription school. One of the incidents of that first school was a law suit which grew out of a whipping which was administered by Mr. Waugh to one of the big boys. It was inflicted by the use of a rule. The suit resulted in Mr. Waugh's favor, the court deciding that the punishment was not only deserved but reas- onable. Another incident of the first school, which illustrates the progress that has been
made in temperance, occurred at the close of the term. It was known to be the cus- tom to treat the scholars on such occasions, and Mr. Waugh, in complying with this unwritten custom, provided a wash-tub full of egg-nog, and all present were invited to help themselves freely to this beverage. A natural result of the free use of this kind of refreshment was that several of the larger boys became too drunk to get home without assistance. The fact that this incident met only a slight protest from a very few of the stricter ones shows how ideas have changed in the past sixty-four years. The second school house in Lancaster township was built about ten years later, four miles east of Murray, on Allen Clark's land, not far from Souder's farm. A man from Ohio was em- ployed to teach, but he encountered the con- ditions described in the "Hoosier: School- master," and not having the grit and tact of Ralph Hartsock, was driven off by the larg- er boys before the school had progressed very far. The plan of these boys was to combine themselves whenever the teacher attempted to punish one of their number. After the Ohio man had been driven from the field, David Clark was employed, but . he suffered the same fate as his predecessor. His father, Allen Clark, was then employed, but he fared no better than his son. As a fourth effort in that term Sutton Metts was engaged to teach the school out with the understanding that he must succeed or he would not get any money for his services. The third day it became necessary for him to punish one of the disturbers. At this juncture some of the other boys attempted to carry out the tactics which had proven so successful with the other teachers. But they met with a surprising and very effect-
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
ive defeat. Mr. Metts, determined to profit by the experience of his predecessors, had provided himself with a lot of short clubs, which he had hidden until needed. When the boys were beginning to concentrate their forces, Mr. Metts had recourse to his supply of clubs, which he used with such rapidity and skill over the heads of his assailants that they were effectually knocked out in the first round and the rumpus settled in short order. Mr. Metts taught the term out and it is said that there was never any more trouble in that district afterward.
Another institution, aside from the public schools, which had great influence for good on that part of the country was the opening at Murray, in 1852, of an academy. This was held in the old Presbyterian church, which is still standing and is used for a barn on the McCleery property. The lead- ing spirit in this enterprise was Rev. Wil- son M. Donaldson, who was the pastor of the Presbyterian church at Bluffton and later at Ossian, Hiram Hatfield was a member of the board of that institution. The academy drew an attendance of young people from eight or ten miles around. The · course of study provided was high for that time, and the academy left its impress upon the people of that generation in a marked degree. The principal was Joseph Ster- ling, of Pennsylvania, and the tuition was at the rate of five dollars per term of three months. Among those who were students at the academy were George E. Gardiner, Sam Ogden, Henry Mclellan, R. F. Gavin, Mary Cotton, A. H. Metts and many others. The institution continued în opera- tion until, in the early 'sixties, during the war, when it suspended operations.
Among the early teachers in Lancaster
township were Dr. J. I. Metts, who taught in the old Methodist church at Murray. Mc- Coy Smith taught at the Center in 1851. Simeon Myers also taught at the Center. J. L. Myers taught in that township and also at Rock Creek Center and at the Far- ling school house. Slyvia Tobey, of New- ford, was the second teacher at Murray. Later teachers were Dr. Williams, Craw- ford Marquis, Johnson Marquis and Adam Davison.
The first school in Jefferson township was taught by Isaac Hatfield, two miles northeast of Ossian. The second was in the Ogden neighborhood, southeast of Ossian. These were established a few years before the opening of any school at Ossian. The history of the schools of Jefferson township is closely identified with the official career of Dr. J. I. Metts, who served as trustee in all nearly twenty-two years. He was elected in 1859 and served until 1878, when a change in the state law limited the term of trustee and he was not eligible for re-elec- tion. He was again elected to the office af- ter an interval of four years, and served the prescribed limit, two years. It was under his administration that the township graded school was established at Ossian, the first one to be established in the county. He planned the brick building at Ossian and provided for its erection. His successor, James Gorrell, took up the work and carried it to completion in 1878. A class of four members was graduated from the Ossian high school in the spring of 1881, which was the first class to be graduated in the county.
One of the early schools in Jackson township was called the Colbert school, and was in the north part of the township.
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
In 1851 the teacher who had been selected for the place gave up the job and James R. Bennett was chosen, but declined to take the position, modestly contending that he was too young for the place. He was then asked if he would assist in case W. H. Parmerlee, living near Bluffton, should be chosen to take charge of the school. He agreed to this proposition, and accordingly took up the work of assistant to Mr. Parm- erlee, who was an old man and in ill health, which often occasioned his absence from school. Mr. Bennett's duties were to solve all difficult problems, write all the copies and take full charge in the absence of Mr. Parmerlee. A year later the school at Dill- man was built of logs, and it was regarded as the finest school house in the county at that time. J. R. Bennett and R. L. McFad- den were among the number who helped to raise the building. Robert Alexander was the first teacher to have charge in this build- ing. Among the scholars in that first Dill- man school were R. L. McFadden, Frank McFadden, Martha McFadden, D. K. El- kins, Sarah Elkins, and the families of Wm. Duckwall and Jacob Banter. Among the prominent teachers in the earlier days of the township were Eli Arnold, B. M. El- kins, Fanny Ricketts and Mr. Lockwood. It is remarked by one identified with the early days in Jackson township that the prevalent idea was "no lickin', to larnin'," and for that reason the gad was held in high esteem by the teachers and regarded with great fear by the scholars. This was no doubt true of every township in the county. The same authority states that the people of the township prided themselves on their good spelling, and it was the highest ambi- tion of larger scholars to be able to master
the old Webster's Elementary Spelling Book.
An old resident of Nottingham town- ship states that Stanton Scott, father of Thomas E. Scott, was actively identified with the school interests at the beginning of that township. Beginning with 1849 he was trustee and treasurer till the close of 1853. Jason R. Blackledge was a trustee and clerk during that period. An old rec- ord shows that the first election for school officers of the township was held in 1849. The enumeration of school children taken in September of that year showed that there were 149 children of school age in the town- ship, which was divided into nine school districts. The districts varied in the num- ber of school children from five to thirty- one. The enumeration taken three years later showed 168 school children in the township. At an election held in August, 1851, to elect a trustee, but six votes were cast. the successful candidate receiving three of them. The clerk received twenty- five cents for taking the first enumeration, and later he received seventy-five cents for that service. The names of Gabriel Bur- gess, E. Harlan Philips, James S. Williams and others also appear as having been trus- tees. Martha Marmon was paid one dollar and a quarter for a half acre of ground on which to build a school-house at District No. 9, known as the Scott school.
The first school in Union township was erected in 1848 or 1849, and was built of round logs, puncheon floor, stick and mud chimney, roof of clapboards held in place by weight poles. The seats were of linden or bass wood, from trees eight to ten inches in diameter, split in halves, with pegs in each end for supports. Such were the ma-
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
terial and furnishings of Zion school house, or "Old Zion," as it was called, that stood one mile south of Zanesville. Abraham Beaber, who then lived three-fourths of a mile south, taught there the winter of 1850. Nothing now remains to show where this once great institution of learning stood. Ormsby's school, near the old Ormsby farm, was of the same class, as was "Center school" and "College Corner." At the lat- ter place the first school was during the winter of 1851-52 and was taught by a Mr. Hixon, a brother of John Hixon, the grand- father of Frank Hixon, of this city. The school house in the south part of the town- ship was built in the woods somewhere near the present location of Jeremiah Roe's farm buildings. The late John Kain was largely instrumental in having it erected. He had a large family of boys and girls of school age, among them Rev. D. F. Kain and Frank Kain, of this city. James Jen- nings, who went west during the Pike's Peak gold excitement, was the first teacher. He was a brother of Peter Jennings, still a resident of Union township. E. J. Felts, who died in this city a few years ago, taught the second term at Kain's school house. Stephen D. Cartwright, who wielded the birch in the old log school house at Union- town, is yet an honored resident of the township. The furniture of all the schools taught was usually about the same; the teacher occupied a split-bottomed chair at the point in the room opposite the door, in his left hand he held a book, pen or slate, as might be required, while in his right hand he held the emblem of his power, a water beech gad from four to six feet long. First he called the little boys and girls, who came individually and stood by his knee while
they said the a, b, c's. One book served all the boys and one the girls, if there were two; if not. one served for all. Then came the first spelling class, second spelling class, first. second, third and fourth reading classes in the order given. Scholars while reciting stood in line close to the wall oppo- site the teacher's seat. One or two books answered for half a dozen pupils. The teacher looked over the shoulders of one of the pupils, or if he had a book of his own, he looked on and assisted in pronouncing the hard words. If some boy or girl came across a "sum" that he could not "work," the teacher was called upon at any time to "do the sum," and woe to him if he refused for any reason to comply. What was he paid the enormous salary of one dollar per day for if not to do sums for the scholars? Before dismissing school all the scholars stood in a row and spelled a prepared les- son. The teacher pronounced the words and the scholar at one end of the row, called the head of the class, named the letters in their proper order and pronounced each syllable. If this one failed, then the next one at- tempted the task, and so on until the word was correctly spelled and pronounced. The successful speller went above the first one to miss, and if he got to the head of the class and maintained that position until the end of the day's session, he was credited with a "head mark," and very up-to-date teachers of that time gave prizes at the end of the term to the scholars who secured the most of these marks. There was often lively competition at the beginning of the term among a number of pupils, but later it narrowed down to two or three contestants,' who actually competed for the prize, while the other pupils arrayed themselves as
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
friends of the one or the other of the leaders and aided or opposed them by means not always fair. The spelling school was the great social feature of the school. Log- rollings, raisings, corn-huskings and wood- choppings were the social gatherings of the country, attended by young men and women and older persons, but it was at the spelling school that the small boy and girl were allowed to have sport, and felt them- selves a real part of the procession. Every week the pupils clamored or a "spellin'." When the teacher, after roll call in the even- ing, announced that if candles could be furnished a spelling school would be held on a certain night during the week, there was immediate excitement. "We'll furnish one," called out a representative of some family, and then there was a whispering be- tween brothers and sisters, and it usually took all the resources of the district in that line to furnish the three or four candles nec- essary to dimly light the room, and the teacher had to hold one in hand to "give out" by. The spelling school of those days is well described in the "Hoosier School- master." Pupils did their utmost to have the announcement made through their own and adjoining districts. "The more the mer- rier" was their motto, while the teacher who had to manage the crowd in the little 20x24 school room took an opposite view. Aside from the fun to be derived from the spelling school there was no little benefit. The rivalry between the different schools and the desire to be chosen among the first caused many a boy and girl to spend hours in their efforts to master all the words in the old Elementary Spelling Book. An- other social and intellectual feature of many of the schools was the debating societies.
These were participated in by the boys and young men, and often the patrons of the district. Embryo statesmen, with all the fervor of actual combat in congressional halls, debated such questions as these : "Resolved, That the dog is of more use to man than the gun," "Resolved, That cattle are of greater use to mankind than the horse," "War is a greater evil than intem- perance," "The negro has greater cause to complain than the Indian."
About the year 1854 township libraries were established, which were kept at the homes of the trustees. As there were then three trustees in each township, when the books were divided among them, they were so distributed that every boy who wished to debate could have access to them, and every volume was carefully searched for material with which to down the other fel- lows in the great debates.
There were few church buildings in the country and religious meetings of all kinds were held in the schoolhouses. The pro- tracted, or "big meetings," always conduct- ed in the winter, were often continued for a period of six consecutive weeks, evening meetings only being held excepting on Sun- day. Thus they took the place largely of the spelling school and debating society. Young people and old attended and even if not interested in their spiritual welfare, they met their friends and enjoyed a social hour together.
If the small boys played "blackman" in the woods during the services it was because there was not room for them inside, at least that is what they told their mothers on going home, and it was often if not always the truth. If the sleighing was good most of the inhabitants of the township attended
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WELLS COUNTY, INDIANA.
the "big meetin'." In later years, since churches have been erected in every neigh- borhood, the use of the school houses has been limited to educational purposes almost exclusively.
Up to the time of the Civil war few or no lady teachers were employed. It was then thought that "school marms" could not govern the big boys. What led to the introduction of lady teachers at this time was the fact that the big boys had mostly gone to the army, and consequently were not in attendance as pupils and could not be em- ployed as teachers. Teachers were a ne- cessity and this necessity was the school ma'am's opportunity. She was employed then and has ever since held her position. One of the first to take command at "Col- lege Corners" was a Miss Smith. The boys "reckoned they could run her out afore three weeks." They did not, however. The larger number of the scholars liked her and obeyed her for that reason. Those that did not soon found that she could lick with a stick just like a "master." She taught two or three terms at the same place and fully demonstrated that a school marm could' keep "winter school." In the mean time school buildings had improved. Hewed logs or frame buildings had taken the place of the little pens, blackboards and some maps and charts were installed, methods of teaching were improved and the old recog- nized truism, "no lickin', no larnin'," was questioned. It is the opinion of our in- formant that the teachers of Union town- ship were generally in advance of their pa- trons in the march of improvement. · Pa- trons as well as pupils had to be educated. What was true of Union township was doubtless true of every township in the
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