USA > Massachusetts > Essex County > Topsfield > History of Topsfield Massachusetts > Part 28
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Among the Court Files at Salem is the following paper :
(296)
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SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES
This May Certifie that We ve Subscribers having Examined ye List of families or householders belonging to ye Town of Topsfield and finde There is not one hundred householders belonging to sd Town
Dat Topsfield Decem. 24th 1723
Thomas Gould John Howlett Nathl Bordman Jacob Peabody Selectmen of Topsfield
This certificate was presented at Court for the purpose of relieving the town of the expense of establishing and maintain- ing a grammar school.
In 1732 the town was again presented at Court and this time fined for want of a schoolmaster. This resulted in the election of a school committee, three in number, who hired William Howlett to teach for five months. The widow Robinson was paid £1.12s. for boarding him one month in the summer. His salary was £12. From this time until 1790 a committee of three was elected annually at a town meeting to supply the town with a schoolmaster the year ensuing.
In 1732 it was voted to keep school two thirds of the time north of the river and one third on the south side. The school was evidently kept in various houses in the community in these early days and moved from place to place to accommodate the children in different parts of the town.
The inhabitants saw the need of a schoolhouse as early as 1703, for when Samuel Stanley was re-elected schoolmaster that year it was left to the selectmen to provide a schoolhouse as soon as they could do so conveniently. While the people realized the need of a schoolhouse in Topsfield at this time, it was nearly a century before any buildings were erected at the expense of the town. (1794)
The subject was brought up at town meeting intermittently during the eighteenth century, but either passed over or voted down. In 1733, while no action was taken on the article call- ing for a schoolhouse, the people agreed that all parents or masters who sent their children "to ye Towns schools shall pay four pence for each child for their schooling and the town to make up what is wanting to pay the school master."
The first schoolhouse known to have been built in town was on the south side of the river. Jacob Redington, "for good causes & great desire I have to promote good learning among the children & youth in the neighbourhood in this place, do give to Joseph Herrick, George Bixby & Aaron Estey as trus-
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THE HISTORY OF TOPSFIELD
tees, a certain piece of land containing 12 poles to build a school house upon & keep a school in, situate in Topsfield, south of the river." 1
A schoolhouse was built soon afterwards for in 1740 when Jacob Redington moved to Windsor, Conn., he sold his farm of 571/2 acres to George Bixby "excepting the school house and 12 poles thereto belonging holden by others with me, my right and interest therein being sold." It was still standing in 1751 when George Bixby sold a half interest of the farm to his son Benjamin. No further mention is found of a schoolhouse there. This tract of land was on what is now Hill Street, near Frank H. Towne's place. It may have disappeared by 1764 when an attempt was made to have the town build a school- house south of the river.
But one man was hired each year to serve the town as a schoolmaster. He was boarded in families near the houses where the school was kept and was paid a small monthly salary. The names of schoolmasters were not often mentioned in the records after 1733 as the school committee, who hired the masters, was given the money to pay their salaries and board. They received £23 to pay Mr. Howlett his salary and board for five months the first year. The next year the committee was given twenty shillings "to pay for house room for ye scholars."
Mention was made of Nathaniel Rogers as master in 1741 when the town allowed eighteen pounds old tenor bills to the school committee to pay him for keeping school three months. Nathaniel Fuller was paid fifteen shillings old tenor "for three months house rent to keep school in," in 1742. Mr. Rogers was paid wages for his services again in March 1744, also in 1746, 1747 and 1748.
Jacob Peabody, Jr., was the schoolmaster in 1744-5 and the next year Mr. Capen was paid fifty shillings house rent for the school for three months and Cornelius Balch ten shillings for one month.
March 24, 1746-7 the town was again presented at Court for deficiency of a school and the selectmen had to draw the money from the treasury to pay a fine of £6-13-4. Fines were also paid in 1757 and 1759. March 6, 1749-50 Benjamin Rogers was paid five shillings for "house Room for children at school" and Samuel Phippen received a like sum for "finding house room for the school."
In many instances the records simply stated that the town allowed a certain sum to the school committee for providing the town with a school and for boarding the schoolmaster. The
1 Essex Registry of Deeds, book 79, leaf 87, 1738.
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SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES
following names were mentioned, however, when the committee was given the money to pay the schoolmaster : - Nathaniel Averell, Jr., 1 month schooling 1746; Benjamin Peabody, 1746; Dr. Joseph Bradstreet, 1755 and 1 month 1756; Asa Brad- street, 5 months, three weeks, 1756; Mr. Bridge and Mr. Rus- sell 1759; Mr. Treadwell, 1760, 1761; Samuel Wood, three months 1762; Phineas Adams 1762-3; Mr. Samuel Angiers, 1763-4; Mr. Isaac Bradish 1777-8, Nathaniel Dodge, 1777-8; Nathaniel Weare, 1779.
On May 18, 1756, the selectmen were chosen to supply the town with a grammar schoolmaster to serve the town "in teaching thier children the year Insuing and to find houses where the school may be kept from time to time."
On March 1, 1763, this article appeared in the town warrant : "To see if town will purches the House and previlages that Be longs to Samuel Phippan for the use of a school house for the Inhabitants of the north side of the River in sd town at price to be agreed on and also agree upon some proper method to provide a school house for inhabitants on south side of river." No action was taken.
The next year it was voted to build two schoolhouses, one on the north side of the river and the other on the south side of the river. It does not appear that this vote was ever carried out. In May 1775 it was necessary that the grammar school- master be dismissed from keeping school any further for the present, and he was paid two month's salary. During the period of the war, the people were but little concerned over school problems.
The following school bill for 1785 was found among some papers belonging to the late John W. Peterson :-
David Towne estate
To Mr Balch School for 1785
29-14-0
and Boarding himself
5-14-0
35 -8-0
Mr John Lamson to Boarding
1 -4-0
Lt Isaac Averel to Boarding
1-10-0
Mr Amos Perkins to Boarding
4-00-0
Mr David Balch Jr to Boarding
1-10-0
Mr Stephan foster to wood
0- 7-0
Lt Daniel Bordman to wood
0-16-0
Mr Robert Perkins Jr to wood
0- 5-3
Mr Joseph Towne Jr to wood
0- 8-9
Mr David Balch Jr to wood
0-12-3
£45-12-9
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THE HISTORY OF TOPSFIELD
Another note among some old records reads: March, 1784, Samuel Balch kept school at Daniel Townes; in November, at Mrs. Wrights; April, 1785 at Stephen Perkins.
At a town meeting, on April 4, 1785, the struggle to establish schoolhouses in town began in earnest and lasted for more than ten years. Those who wanted buildings erected were persis- tent in presenting the matter at the town meetings. The opponents, and they seemed to be in the majority, were just as firm in their refusal to let any votes be passed in favor of spending the town's money for this purpose.
February 5, 1788, the town voted to employ Samuel Balch, Jr., to keep grammar school "provided he will keep school as cheap as grammar school masters do in general in neighboring towns." It was also voted to employ Doctor Joseph Bradstreet to keep school somewhere in town, in order to pay a sum he owed the town, exclusive of the grammar school. Mr. Chandler kept school in 1789 for "ten weekly months." In 1791 the number of men serving on the school committee was increased to five. In 1788, a committee's report on a plan to build schoolhouses was not accepted and two years later another committee was appointed to divide the town into three school districts. Their report would serve as a directory of the tax payers of part of the town that year for it listed the names of all householders set off in the middle and northern districts. The south district included all who lived south of the river without naming the residents.
Thus the matter rested for three years, until 1793, when eleven men were appointed to make plans where the school- house should stand in each district Even though their report was not accepted and nothing appears in the records, the peo- ple must have gone ahead, selected the place and built three schoolhouses without further action by the town. On Sept. 10, 1794, we find the town voting to build a schoolhouse near the meeting house and defray the charges of building this house and "the three now erected in town." The new school- house was to cost £30. A committee to estimate the cost of the other three buildings set the amount at £116-8-0:
School house on south side of River cost 38-19-6
The middle school house cost 37- 8-6
The northerly school house cost 40- 0-0
Isaac Averell - Committee
116- 8-0
Daniel Bixby
Samuel Hood
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SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES
A rate of £146-5-4 was made to defray these charges and two constables were given lists to collect this amount and turn it over to the town treasurer, David Perkins, Jr. The latter paid Robert Perkins, Jr., £37-8-6, the cost of building the schoolhouse that stood in the middle district near his house on Perkins Street later known as the East school.
The treasurer also paid the following persons money which they advanced for building the schoolhouse on the south side of the river known as the South school.
John Peabody 3- 9-9
Benjamin Pike 2- 5-8
John Dwinell 2-15-5 Jacob Towne, Jr. 1-13-0
Daniel Bixby 4- 3-3 John Balch 2-14-0
Roger Balch 1-12-6
Nathaniel Fiske 1-15-9
Cornelius Balch 1-12-11
Nathaniel Fiske, Jr.
0-10-7
& Roger Balch 1- 9-9
Moses Perkins
0-13-1
Daniel Balch 0-12-7 John Conant, Jr. 0-10-2
Israel Rea
2- 2-7 Ephraim Towne
2- 0-11
Thomas Moor 1- 8-3 Daniel Estey
4- 2-2
Thomas Balch 1- 0-3 John Peabody, Jr. 1-19-1
Widow Nabby Bradstreet 0-12-4
These persons were paid for money advanced for the build- ing in the northeastern part of the town later called the North school.
Lt. Isaac Averell and 7- 0-2
Abraham Hobbs 2-10-7
Benjamin Hobbs 2-19-6
Moses Averell
David Hobbs 1- 8-0
Capt. Thos. Cummings 4- 2-11
Aaron Kneeland 1-15-5
Jonas Cummings 1-13-11
Josiah Lamson 6- 0-4
Thomas Cummings 0- 7-9
John Conant 0-15-3
Asa Perkins 1- 7-6
Charles Davis 1- 8-5
Lt. Daniel Town
0-17-4
Nathaniel Foster 4- 1-4
Dudley Wildes 0-17-1
Daniel Perkins 2-14-6
Immediately an unsuccessful attempt was made to sell the North school, or, move it to the training field near the meeting house. The new school was built, however, and stood at the right of the meeting house and became known as the Centre school.
The new school south of the river stood in Asa Bradstreet's pasture some distance from what is now the Newburyport turnpike near the top of River hill. This was quite a distance from the homes of many of the families south of the river and caused much dissatisfaction in that part of the town, especially among the people living in the southwestern part. They definitely asserted their feelings in a petition dated December 16. 1794 :-
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THE HISTORY OF TOPSFIELD
We the subscribers desire to state to you that the Inhabitants dwelling in south western part of Topsfield feel agrieved by reason of the present arrangement of the Town school they justly consider the education of their children and youth under their care an object of great importance-the foundation of their present happiness. Yet by reason of the Remote Situa- tion of the school houses, and the present management of that business they are in effect deprived of this inestimable privi- lege they are sensible that by reason of the dispersed Situation of the Inhabitants the Children and Youth cannot be conven- iently collected in any one place for Instruction-hence arises the Necessity of dividing the Town into districts, or of adopt- ing some other method whereby the Inhabitants may equally enjoy the benefit of the school. The Inhabitants of the south western part of the Town claim no exclusive priveledge but they are entitled to equal rights, the taxes paid by them and arising from the land near them amount to about one twelfth part of the taxes of the whole Town. They have chearfully paid their proportion of Town and other charges they ask for their proportion of the arising benefit. We therefore desire you Gentlemen to call a meeting of the Inhabitants of Topsfield to take this subject into their consideration and to provide a school house for the reasonable accommodation of the western part of the Town and to adopt some method by districting or otherwise Whereby all the Inhabitants may equally receive the advantage of a school Education and we request you to insert the foregoing in the warrant for the meeting.
Abraham Foster
Benjamin Bixby
Samuel Cummings
William Money
Elijah Towne
Stephen Perley
Daniel Porter
Ephraim Dorman
Amos Foster
Jacob Symonds
Joseph Towne
John Batchelder
Asa Gould
Archelaus Towne Asa Foster
Nathaniel Gould
David Towne
Elijah Gould
Eliezer Lake, Jr.
Jonas Meriam
John gould, Jr.
Ephraim Wilds
Thomas Emerson, Jr.
Jacob Peabody, Jr.
Asa porter
Being refused any consideration by their fellow townsmen, the next year these subscribers attempted to have the town pay them their proportion of school money appropriated, or, already paid in. Not willing to do this, they tried to have
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SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES
the town agree to move the new schoolhouse to the road lead- ing from Ephraim Towne's to Joseph Herrick's (now Hill St.), near where their first school was built in 1738, but this was dismissed.
March 1, 1796, still persisting in their endeavors to have a school nearer the southwestern part of the town, they peti- tioned this time to be given the money they had paid for the school in order to build a schoolhouse near the burying ground (South Side Cemetery) but were again refused.
Apparently undaunted, these people went ahead and built the schoolhouse and on May 17, 1798 asked the town to pay the proprietors of the schoolhouse on the south side of the river £41 - 8 for the cost of building second schoolhouse. It passed in negative. The next month they not only asked for $138. for the expense of building the schoolhouse, but, that they also be allowed their proportion of school that was to be kept in town. Again they were refused. The last attempt was made on March 2, 1802 when they again asked the town to pay for the building. The list of proprietors, or men who contributed to the cost of building this school is probably not extant today. Realizing that the town would probably refuse their request that they be paid $135. for the expense of the schoolhouse, an additional article was inserted in the warrant that the town pay for it and then sell one of the schoolhouses on the south side of the river and remove the other into center of the south side of the river.
The town voted not to pay for the second schoolhouse but agreed to move the one near Daniel Estey's into the center of the south side of the river. But their action was negatived when they refused to appoint a committee to move the build- ing. John Henry Towne wrote in 1902, a schoolhouse was standing opposite the South Side Cemetery about where the bend in the wall occurs in Batchelder's orchard (now Sanders) in 1790 and remained in existence within the memory of the last generation, tho' its use for school purposes had long since been discontinued.
Jacob Kimball taught school here from 1792 to 1794. A paper, now in possession of the Topsfield Historical Society, notified the people of the change in the place of holding school. It was dated Topsfield, June 23d, 1792 - Publick Notice is hereby given to the Inhabitants of said Towne that the School will be Kept at the house of Mr David Towne on Monday the 25th Day of June instant said School to begin at the usual time.
Daniel Bixby : Pr Orders
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THE HISTORY OF TOPSFIELD
After the four schoolhouses were built, it would generally be supposed each was supplied with a teacher but such was not the case. In 1796 a committee proportioned the number of weeks school should be kept in each schoolhouse, governing themselves by families. The schoolhouse near Robert Perkins (North school) was to have nine weeks two and one half days; the one near Mr. Hobbs (East school) eleven weeks four days; the one near the meeting house, seventeen weeks two days, and, on the south side of the river, thirteen weeks and one half day ; a total of fifty-two weeks. School was to begin in the north school and so from house to house as above mentioned until the whole term be kept out in said town each house having one half of the number of weeks kept at a time and that the school begin at the second house now mentioned the next year and so on round from year to year.
The following, copied from an old paper, shows that the term of school in the north district was to begin on January 28, 1799 :-
Notice is hereby given that the school will move from the schoolhouse on the South side of the river to the schoolhouse near Benjamin Hobb's tomorrow by order of the school com- mittee.
Topsfield, Jan. 27, 1799 Jonas Meriam
In 1797 the Town paid $1.34 a week for boarding the school- master.
The first teachers mentioned in the records, after these schoolhouses were built, were Andrew Bryant, 1798; Joel Rogers, 1798-1800; Jacob Kimball, 1799; William Thomas, John Dodge and Henry Prentiss, 1801. In 1802 it was voted to hire two school dames to keep school five months each and two masters to keep school six months each. Elizabeth Symonds and Anna Clark were probably the first women teachers as they were each paid $42.78 in 1803. The next year three women and three masters were hired to teach four months each and we find the following were paid in November :- Anna Clark, eleven weeks four days; Sarah Towne, ten weeks; Nancy Pillsbury, seventeen weeks two days; Abigail Perkins, nine weeks three days; Grizzel Gould, four weeks. The masters that year were Jacob Kimball, Jr., David Cummings and Jacob Towne, 3d.
In 1804, Rev. Asahel Huntington was paid at the rate of twenty-two dollars a month for keeping school four and one third months; Jacob Towne, 3rd, eighteen dollars a month for keeping school two months and twenty-two days; David Cum-
-- -
305
SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES
mings, twenty-two dollars a month for three months nine and one half days; Abner Johnson twenty dollars a month for nine weeks two days.
The next year one hundred dollars was appropriated for a womens' school for twelve months. Soon after this a man and a woman were appointed to teach in each of the four district schools. The names of those who were paid for teaching, by the school committee, after 1805, included Doctor Barnard Tucker eleven weeks one day, 1807; Asa Wiles 1806-10; James Bradford, and R. A. Merriam 1809; Almira Merriam, Mercy Lamson, Nabby Perkins and Sarah Pike in 1814. Mary Smith replaced Mercy Lamson in 1815. The masters that year were : Nehemiah Cleveland, Jr., Jacob Hood, Nathaniel Bradstreet & Elisha Huntington.
In 1816 Lydia Bradstreet, Sarah Rea and Samuel Cummings were new teachers. The next year stoves were bought for the South, East and North schools at a cost of $66.42 and one in the school near the meeting house cost $34.65. Some years before an article had been inserted in the warrant at the annual town meeting to see if stoves would be provided to render the school- houses more comfortable and less expensive for fuel than they now are, but the request was negatived.
A long list of teachers for the following years has been com- piled from some unknown source, perhaps from the selectmen's records. Many local young men and women as well as others from neighboring towns were included. Among those who taught for some years was Edward Todd, of Rowley, who gave a receipt in February, 1837, for payment of his services three months and a half at twenty-five dollars per month (including board) $87.50.
In May, 1836, the chairman of the school committee, R. A. Merriam, certified that Miss Cynthia Gould of Ipswich has given to the school committee of Topsfield satisfactory evidence of her literary and moral qualifications to teach in any of the summer schools of this town. In September she presented a bill of $33.75 to teaching a school at the south district fifteen weeks at $2.25 per week including board.
The first printed report of the school committee issued by the town of Topsfield, was for the year ending March, 1839, in accordance with statute provision recently enacted. Dr. Royal A. Merriam was chairman of the committee and probably pre- pared the report.2
After introductory explanation, appears the following : The
2 Topsfield Hist. Coll. Vol. XVI, pp. 34-37.
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THE HISTORY OF TOPSFIELD
Committee have endeavored to follow the statute as nearly as circumstances would allow, by visiting and exercising such supervision as the law enjoins. The town, not districted, maintained four Schools from six to eight months each in the year, at an expense of five hundred dollars for the whole. The branches taught are Reading, Writing, Spelling, Defining, Geography, Arithmetic, Grammar, History, and Philosophy.
The summer schools were taught by females, and the com- mittee state that no complaints of dissatisfaction have come to their knowledge. The schools, four in number, were taught by Misses Ruth Batchelder, Mary P. Lamson, Harriet Towne and Mary P. Towne, all natives of the town. Emerson Gould taught the winter term at the Centre school which was not so fully attended as in years previous, there being a private Female School kept in the vicinity. There was no marring or injury done to the buildings, not even a pane of glass broken for the winter. The term was sixteen weeks.
The North school was kept by Nehemiah Cleveland Brad- street and the East school by Seabury T. Witt, a gentleman whose literary and moral qualifications were undoubted, but who proved not to be a success as there was a failure in a perfect control over the school. John G. Hood presided over the exercises at the South school which excelled in writing. The committee suggested the propriety of engaging a female teacher for the Centre school, to aid the male teacher when the attendance should exceed fifty scholars, and they also recom- mended that more money be expended on the summer schools as they were more largely attended than in the winter.
The report for the succeeding year is well written and prob- ably was from the pen of J. C. Batchelder .- The North school, under the direction of Mr. Robert Gould, like the times, appeared to be sadly out of joint. Very little dependence could be placed on the children's attendance. A majority of them made their appearance or not, as circumstances favored or opposed, and until parents awake to a sense of duty to their children, the best regulated efforts of the teacher cannot be successful.
The report for the year 1840-41 was, in the main, a philo- sophical oration on life and morals. Little information is given as to the progress made in the several schools during the year, but the school buildings are held up for inspection. Our school houses can hardly escape the well merited term of nuisance; the inhabitants all lament their condition, but noth- ing is done to improve them.
For some reason, perhaps expense, no report was printed
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SCHOOLS AND SCHOOLHOUSES
for the succeeding year, but the year following, 1842-3, is particularly complete, showing the date of each visit made to each school with the conditions existing.3 On July 15, the scholars at the Centre school were found to be in rather a languid state. August 14th the scholars at the Centre school were censured for idleness and disorder. The whole number of scholars attending at this time was 79 and the teacher was paid the munificent sum of $10.25 per month. The committee decided that the erection of a new meeting house in the immediate vicinity of the schoolhouse ought to be considered an extenuating circumstance in the matter of disorder in the school, but the opinion is expressed that the disposition of the teacher was too amiable and indulgent and she was better qualified to be an usher than a principal in a large school. During the winter term, which was taught by Humphry Balch, the whole attendance was one hundred, but the average atten- dance was much below, owing to the opening of the Topsfield Academy under Edmund F. Slafter. School libraries were introduced into the various schools this year and the committee suggested bringing all the schools together on examination day, advocating the plan as a stimulus to greater effort among the scholars.
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