USA > Massachusetts > Franklin County > Whately > History of the town of Whately, Mass., including a narrative of leading events from the first planting of Hatfield, 1661-1899 : with family genealogies > Part 18
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Previous to this last vote, however, and about the time when the new center schoolhouse was completed, having got three schoolhouses more comfortable than the rest, a vote was passed "To divide the town into three school districts, the lines to be Mill river, between the east and center districts, and a line running north and south between Elijah Allis' and Daniel Allis' and between Maj. Phineas Frary's and Reuben Graves', giving Joseph Crafts, Daniel Allis and Reuben Graves liberty to choose which district they shall belong to." This vote was not at once carried into full, even if it was into partial, effect. In 1801 the town voted to build a schoolhouse in the northwest district, 26 x 22 feet, and finish it in imitation of the one in the centre district, "Only twenty lights to a window." The next year the town voted, "To buy the old schoolhouse near Josiah Brown's for a workhouse."
No new movements in relation to schools or schoolhouses appear on the records for the next ten years. In 1811 the school- house in the Straits was replaced, on the old spot, by a new one
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18 x 24 feet, at a cost of one hundred dollars. This house had two fireplaces, one at each end of the room. The same year the middle district was divided, and two new schoolhouses built, each 20 x 24 feet, one where the north center house now stands, the other near Stiles' corner. In 1813 schoolhouses were built in the southwest and northwest districts.
As early as 1824 the families living in Canterbury moved to secure a new schoolhouse for their accommodation, but the town negatived the plan. In 1827 the families living south of Sugar Loaf united and built by subscription a house just on the north line of J. C. Sanderson's land, near where the witch left his print in the ground when he jumped from Sugar Loaf. The next year the town voted to allow the Canterbury families their portion of the school money and also to move the Straits school- house to the corner of the proprietor's highway. In 1829 the town voted that the inhabitants of the east district have liberty to build a house for a select school on the land owned by the town, where the old schoolhouse formerly stood.
A special effort on behalf of the schools appears to have been made this year, the result of which was the adoption by the town in 1830 of the following rules :
RESOLVED, I. That the boys have the privilege of attend- ing the schools in the summer, till they are ten years old, and the winter schools when they are seven years old.
RESOLVED. 2. That the girls have the privilege of attend- ing the summer schools till they are thirteen years old, and the winter schools when they are ten years old.
RESOLVED, 3. That the southwest district and the east district shall be permitted to send scholars to the several schools at an advanced ratio of age provided that the prudential com- mittee of the district and the superintending committee shall judge the increase of scholars will not injure the school.
RESOLVED, 4. That one-third of the money which each district shall draw from the town, be apportioned for the benefit of the small scholars, and the remainder for the large scholars in winter.
VOTED, That the school money be divided, the one-half on the district and the other half on the scholar, the ensuing year.
In 1832 it was voted to divide the town into three districts for the benefit of large scholars, to be called the east section, the middle section and the west section. And the minor arrangements under this division appear to have been left to the
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discretion of the school committee. In 1833 the east district was divided, and a schoolhouse built south of Elijah Allis' place. The six districts, into which the town was then divided, remain substantially unchanged to the present day.
SELECT OR HIGH SCHOOL. The question was several times agitated of erecting a building near the meeting-house for a school of higher grade. In 1829. the people of the east part made a move to get such a building there, and the town so far favored the plan as to give them leave to erect a schoolhouse on the town's land, at Bartlett's corner. In 1831 the matter of building a Town house came up, and the town voted, "To raise one hundred and fifty dollars, to be given by the town, together with the town land lying near Justin Morton's barn, to the pro- prietors of a schoolhouse, provided they have a hall in said building sufficiently large to do all the town business in." The scheme did not succeed.
In the winter of 1838 several citizens associated and raised the necessary funds, and the next season built a select school- house on West Lane. A school was kept here in the fall and winter of 1839-40 by Addison Ballard of Framingham, then a member of Williams college. This school was maintained for a single term, annually, with a good deal of interest, for a num- ber of years. The building was sold and converted into a dwell- ing house about 1854.
In 1871 the Town hall was raised up sufficiently for a sec- ond story and enlarged by the addition of twelve feet to the length. The lower story was divided and finished for the uses of a select school, a town library and town offices.
I desire to say a few words relative to the nonacceptance of the farm left to the town by Reuben Belden by his will in 1776. At a meeting held I Dec., 1777, it was voted, "To accept the land given by Reuben Belden," and on the conditions upon which the bequest was made, but they made no attempt to carry out the instructions of the testator. It should be remembered that at this time a mere handful of brave and patriotic men were struggling for national existence and to free themselves and their children from the hated yoke of British tyranny.
Money was scarce and business was carried on by the inter- change of commodities. The taxes were paid in grain, pork, beef, etc., the prices of which were fixed by the General Court, and the selectmen had lists of prices that they could allow : wheat, six shillings per bushel ; rye, four shillings; potatoes,
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one shilling ; barley, four shillings ; pork, four pence per pound ; beef, three and one-half pence, and so on clear through the list. Continental bills were largely counterfeited by the British, so really they were nearly worthless.
All these things combined to prevent our people from attempting to open a school as Mr. Belden's will directed. Even the little stipend appropriated for schools was taken to pay Mr. Wells for his services. His pay, to the last farthing, was rigorously demanded. If it ran overdue the interest was also to be paid, school or no school.
Continual calls for men to fill the quota of the town, to get substitutes for those who had property, as well as the constantly recurring taxes to meet the constantly recurring wants of the town (perhaps two or more tax levies in a year) was a great burden upon the people. It is no wonder that the town allowed the legacy to lapse. Then the inventory of the property was but £26, or $86.66.
Leaving this matter, we will speak of other schools in the town at a later period. The first schoolhouse erected in the Straits was on the east side of the road, near the house of Rich- ard Phillips. The counters were so constructed that they were back of the scholars. When the time came for writing they had to turn around facing the walls of the house, but none but the older scholars were allowed to write. The teacher gave up the time to making pens or in mending the old ones, which were, of course, goose quills, and in examining the writing, seeing how they held the pen and in making suggestions to the pupils. This house was burned. Before building another, the school was kept in a building that had been used for a store by Gad Smith. One of the early teachers was Cotton Nash, son of Joseph Nash.
The Canterbury schoolhouse was on the west side of the road and stood partly on land now owned by Walter W. Sander- son and the heirs of J. C. Sanderson. This was built in 1824. It was afterwards sold to Judethan Eaton, who removed to South Deerfield, and he fitted it up for a dwelling house. It was later owned by his son, L, L. Eaton.
The two center districts each built in 1810 a brick school- house. These were built by John and Salmon White and Thomas Crafts. Mr. Crafts made the brick and had them laid into the buildings. That in the north center has been remod- eled, the walls laid higher with gables, while the old ones were covered by a foursquare roof running to a point.
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The one in the south center district was on ground that, when it froze, was such that it was wholly unsuited for the pur- pose, and it was considered unsafe. About fifteen years later it was torn down and a new house was built of wood on the hill very near the site of the present house.
The writer well recollects the house vacated in 1825. There was a large fire place on the north and south sides of the room, and the amount of wood consumed was immense. There were seats on the east and west sides, three rows with counters, and small seats in front of the last counter for the young children.
The school averaged about sixty scholars. The girls were seated on the west side and boys on the east side. To spell they were arranged on the floor space and they took places, everyone striving to get to the head and often drilled by spelling two or three pages in Webster's spelling' book.
There were no blackboards for examining our methods of solving the problems in Adams' arithmetic, the only general exercise in mathematics. The teacher would call upon anyone whom he chose to rehearse the rules as far as given in our books and asking us many questions to test our understanding of the principles involved in the rules. If the answers were not satis- factory another one was told to rise and give his views and if not particularly satisfactory he would say, "Lay aside your slates and attend to learning the rules."
Our schools were divided into two terms of twelve weeks each. The boys were kept at home summers after they were about eight years of age, but went winters until they were about fifteen. Very few had an opportunity to attend a select school until after 1830.
About 1838 or '40 the northwest and the south center dis- tricts built an additional room and each winter graded the schools. The older scholars were given superior opportunities. These schools ceased in a few years for the want of scholars.
In 1854 the town opened the Town hall for use as a high school and the increased educational advantages were enjoyed by a large number from all parts of the town. The pupils from the west part would hire rooms and bring needed articles for housekeeping and food for the week.
These schools were continued for a number of years, afford- ing untold benefits to a great number of scholars. The town built an addition to the Town hall and raised the hall one
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story higher. The lower portion finished for use as a school- room, a room for the town library, the selectmen's room, etc. Of late years scholars go and come on the railway to Deerfield or Northampton and some few have graduated there.
A better educated class of teachers is required for our schools, and they also have whatever of advantage there may be in having a competent superintendent. I wish here to say that our town has for many years been earnest in its efforts to fur- ther the interests of the schools and has made liberal appropri- ations for their support.
But to again recur to the old time studies and the methods of instruction since the writer can recollect, say from 1822 when he was five years old. The previous summer we had mastered the alphabet, standing at the side of the teacher who pointed with her penknife to each letter and telling what its name was. After the second year I was furnished with the New England primer, which contained many Bible stories, and the catechism, and a spelling book. These two occupied my time until I was seven years old. I had to learn the catechism and rehearse daily.
About every two or three weeks Mr. Wells would come in and catechise us. We had to go out onto the floor and stand in a row, ten or twelve of us, and the good old man, dressed in knee breeches and long black stockings, morocco shoes with knee and shoe buckles, (apparently silver) with his gray hair braided and tied in a cue with a black ribbon hanging down his back about eight inches, with the ribbon three or four inches lower and surmounted by a black silk frock or mantle open in front, with rather wide sleeves, would question us. He needed no book, as he was perfectly familiar with the questions and answers.
Then, for a wonder, I was the best posted in the class, and often had to answer when no one else could or would, and many is the time that the kind-hearted, old man has laid his trembling hand upon my head and said, "James, you will make a man that your parents will be proud of."
Strange to say, that then I had not a doubt but that every word in that catechism was true and now, though the minds of the young are thoroughly imbued with doctrines pertaining to the trinity, redemption, justification, sanctfication and damna- tion, yet many of us have outgrown these awful tenets warping the minds of many of us. Really the twig was bent only to re- bound eventually.
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The reading books were ill adapted to the wants of the scholars. The American Preceptor and Scott's Lessons, both unfit for pupils under twelve. Later, when attending win- ter terms, we had for a reading book the First Class Book, and the smaller scholars had Easy Lessons and the Young Reader, Webster's Speller, Woodbridge's Geography, Murray's Gram- mar and Adams' Arithmetic printed in 1815. The Woodbridge Geography was accompanied by an atlas and was the earliest one I had ever seen-before that we had Morse's and Dwight's. The bulk of our school books would not be tolerated in our schools to-day.
I have before me a proprietary rate made for schooling, done for the following persons in Whately and Deerfield, between 16 May and 5 Oct., 1781, being five months complete after the deduction of two absent days, at ye rate of £1, 12s, od per month, inclusive of board :
Lieut. Tho's Sanderson, 2 scholars at 9s, 2d £0 18 4
Joseph Belden, 11/2 scholars at 9s, 2d O
I3 9
Benjamin Scott, I scholar at 9s, 2d O
9
2
Benjamin Smith, I scholar at 9s, 2d 9 0 2
Joel Waite, I scholar at 9s, 2d O
9 2
Philip Smith, 2 scholars at 9s, 2d 0 18 4
These above belonged to Whately and the following from Deerfield :
Lieut. David Stebbins, 2 scholars at 9s, 2d £0 18 4
Aaron Pratt, 2 scholars at 9s, 2d O 18 4
Jonathan Russell, I12 scholars at 9s, 2d O
I3 9
Benoni Farrand, 2 scholars at 9s, 2d O
18 4
Solomon Jepherson, 11/2 scholars at 9s, 2d 0 I3 9
£8 00 5
This school was probably kept at Canterbury in the house of some one of the people, or possibly at some house in the edge of Deerfield, as the Hon. H. S. Allis well recalls his first year at school. They had a room in what was known as the Stebbins house, where later has lived A. A. Jewett. The old house was a large one, and there he attended school when four years of age.
An effort has been made to establish a new system of school- ing in town, which is to build one large schoolhouse for the accommodation of all the pupils in town and have them trans- ported at public expense to the center of the town, and this to be a central graded school. This is the recommendation not only of our school committee, but of your former, as well as
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present superintendent of schools. For one, I very much doubt whether such a plan could be well carried out, for several rea- sons. The condition of Sunderland is cited as the main argu- ment in its favor.
The conditions of Sunderland and Whately are far from be- ing similar. The population of Whately is scattered over a larger extent of territory and much of it hilly and rough. This would cause much unnecessary inconvenience and consequent suffering. It is true at the present time there is a paucity of number of scholars, and it seems more desirable to allow the two west schools to be taken to one schoolroom, and so of the two east at one place. When we consider that the little tender child, of just school age, is compelled to be hurried off through storms and drifting snows and, sick or well, is obliged to remain all day amid suffering, only to get home at a late hour, it seems to me to be a pretty strong inducement for the loving par- ents to dispose of their property and leave the town.
When he bought his farm his deed conveyed all the rights, privileges and appurtenances thereto belonging. Among those privileges largely inducing the man to buy, was the nearness of the schoolhouse. Had he for a moment expected that his little loved daughter was to be transported by ever so kind-hearted a man he would never, for an instant, have con- sidered the question of locating in such a locality, and now, after he is compelled to submit to such arrangements, he must feel as though he was deprived of a portion of his actual rights-and for what ? Who is benefited by such a concentration of all the scholars in one building ?
Is a better class of teachers to be employed ? Are the dul- lards to be brightened and they induced to renewed efforts. Where I live the schools are all graded. Are the scholars, all of them, any more efficient than those who, like myself, attended the district school ? We then had some bright scholars and some were, Oh, so dull. So it is with our schools here. We had scholars of eight years that were better readers and spellers than many great louts of double the age. Fathers have rights, but consider for a moment, the terrible strain to the tender, loving and anxious mother as she thinks of her loved one plodding through drifts and amid the storms, coming home cold and sick. But, having had much to do in school direction in years gone by, I can be classified as an old fogy and so will drop the matter.
As there are but few now living in Whately who can recall
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incidents occurring in the schools seventy-five years ago, as well as the methods of teaching, and knowing well the excellent mem - ory of my old-time schoolmate, Hon. Hubbard S. Allis, I asked him to contribute a sketch for the chapter on education, and I am now in receipt of his paper. Simply promising that the inci- dents he relates have much of historic value, we give the moiety of space for its publication, as a sort of relief to the recital of simple, tame and not over-interesting matters. Mr. Allis has returned to our own well-loved town in his old age, where we hope he may enjoy his fine residence for a good long time.
WHATELY, MASS., May 7, 1899. HON. J. M. CRAFTS,
ORANGE, MASS.,
My Dear Sir :-
You requested me to write out some of the incidents of my school days in Whately, and of the location of the schools and the teachers thereof, within my recollection from 1823 to 1839, the year I left Whately for Rochester, where I resided until 1896. Now, I think you are eighty-two and as I am only eighty, you have two years' more knowledge of Whately early schools than myself; at any rate I used to think you had more brains when we sat together in the old south school, figuring on an old slate addition and subtraction of fractions when we were young kids.
I remember all about that school and I had reason to for, between us both, I got the biggest pounding from the teacher that I ever had for my boyish deviltry. It occurred in this way: You made up wads of paper and passed them under the bench to me and, when teacher's back was turned, I would shy them across the room to the girls, hitting their faces. They would scream out, disturb the school and they would not know who sent them. We worked that dodge several times, and finally I was caught.
The teacher came by the desk, took me by the neck, hauled me out of the seat, as you would a trout out of a brook, cuffed my ears and bent my back, putting my head under his long table filled with his books, inkstands and other traps. I had been in that position about one-half an hour, when my disposi- tion for fun got the better of me, by turning my head towards the girls and by making up faces towards them to make them
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laugh, etc. I was caught at that, when the teacher's two and one-half ft. ruler came down upon my back like a cyclone. I made one jump on purpose, raised my body with extra strength, turning over the heavy table, scattering his books and ink all over the floor. He then went for mne like a crazy man and pounded me all around the room. Oh! such a pounding, no scholar ever had in the town of Whately. It cured me of deviltry from that day on.
My first recollection of schools I attended was in 1823. My father lived at the Major Sanderson house in Canterbury, oppo- site the shoe shop. The house was burned a few years since. I was sent to school kept in the Stebbins house, standing near the west end of Sunderland bridge. The teacher was Hannah Clapp from Northampton. The scholars I remember were Levi and Emerson Parker, sons of Capt. Asa Parker, William and George Sanderson and Harriet Smith and other children as far south as Frances Belden, for I remember Roxana Belden coming to the Stebbins house school, and she sat beside me. On one occasion she came to school with a new yellow dress and I thought she looked so very nice and pretty, and after that we used to walk hand-in-hand as far as my home. She was a sister of Alfred Belden.
Capt. Parker's first wife died 11 April, 1822, and Miss Clapp's school was moved from Stebbins' house to Parker's house, and he married her, how soon after his first wife's death, I do not know, but I know she gave me the first whipping I ever had in school. I had been making some trouble in some way and she shut me up in a large closet, very dark. I yelled loudly to get out and she said I could not until school was over. Now, this closet contained a quantity of walnuts. I threw the walnuts against the door so continually that she could not keep school. She finally let me out, gave me a good whipping, sent me home and father doubled the dose.
The marriage of Miss Clapp probably ended school at the Parker house, and a schoolhouse was built between J. C. San- derson's and Dwight Sanderson's houses in 1824. I saw the building raised, sitting on a board between Diana Sanderson and Harriet Smith, sister of Cutler Smith. I recall an incident that occurred at that time, thus: When the frame was raised, ladders down, etc., the last man down was scolded for not driv- ing in a peg to a brace. Some man said. "Call Orrin Brown with his axe, he can reach it." Orrin was over six feet tall, and
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took his axe and at two strokes drove the pin home, and three cheers were given for Orrin.
Joseph Brown was the grandfather of Theophilus Brown, and lived in an old house about twenty-five rods south of S. W. Allis' house. I went to school in the new house for a short time, and then we moved to Whately street in 1825, to the place where I now live.
The first school I attended after we moved to Whately street was at the north center brick house, which stands there to-day. The teacher was Fanny Crafts, sister of Cotton, for I remember of her taking all the school children to her home to eat maple sugar. The second school I attended in the street was a private school, kept in a store that stood about where the Town house now stands. This building was afterwards moved to the west side of the street, where Horace Manning now lives, by J. M. Cooley and remodeled. When he went to Springfield, Mr. Temple occupied it.
Our teacher was the Rev. Mr. Perkins, afterwards one of the first missionaries to China. He was a rigid disciplinarian, and gave me my first whipping wrongfully. I pleaded with him not to whip me, as I was not the one who did the mischief, but - I did not give away the other boy, but took the dose manfully. I made up my mind I would get even with him. About a month after I went to the schoolroom at noon time, put a large bent pin in his big arm chair seat, and when he opened the afternoon school, and sat down in the chair he jumped half over the room, pitching his table and books before him. He never could find out the boy rogue who did it, for that boy's head was close to his slate all that afternoon, wrestling with the mysteries of fractions and, occasionally, seeking his advice to unravel them. S. B. White attended this school, also Albert Sanders, Deacon Reuben H. Belden, Zabina W. Bartlett, Charles D. Stockbridge, Rufus P. Wells, Mary Morton, Experience Wells, Harriet Frary, John H. Bardwell and sisters, and many of the older scholars from other districts.
About this time the people north of the old church, this side of Gutter brook, got set off to the south district school, taught by Lydia Allis, afterwards Mrs. Dr. Myron Harwood, who took the place of Salmon White, son of Justice White, who died while a teacher there, if I am not mistaken. It was a summer school, and I don't think you attended. I think there is no one living now who attended school in that district, except myself
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