USA > Massachusetts > Suffolk County > Boston > Sketches of Boston, past and present, and of some places in its vicinity > Part 19
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PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN BOSTON.
tute the School Connmittee, and have the superintendence of all the Public Schools.
The first meeting of the Board is required to be held early in January, and the Mayor is ex officio, Chairman. A visiting Committee for each school, consisting of five for the Latin and English High Schools, respec- tively, and three for each of the other Schools ; a Committee on Books, consisting of five members ; a Committee of Music; a Committee of Con- ference with the Primary School Committee; and a Committee on the erection, alteration, and ventilation of School-Houses, of three members each, are appointed by the Chair, subject to the approval of the Board. Stated quarterly meetings are held at the room of the Common Council, on the first Wednesday of February, May, August, and November. The sub committee are required to examine the individual schools at least once in each quarter of the year, and to visit them not less than once each month, without previous notice to the instructors. Reports of these ex- aminations must be made in writing, at the quarterly meetings, together with all circumstances of note appertaining to the schools. The appoint- ments of instructors take place annually, in August, - the masters by ballot, - the salaries are then fixed and voted, and no change in amount can be made at any other time. The teachers all hold office for one year, unless sooner removed by vote of the Board, and no longer except by re- election. At the May meeting two examining committees are annually appointed, of three members each; one for the English Grammar Schools, and one for the Writing Schools. In May, June, or July, these commit. tees must critically examine the pupils of the first class in all the studies prescribed for the first, second, and third classes, in order to ascertain the condition of the schools, and report before the election of masters, that the appointments may be judiciously made. Similar examinations, and for similar purposes, are, also made by the Visiting Committees of the Latin and English High Schools, and these Reports, after being accepted, are printed and distributed among the citizens, one copy to each family.
The laws of the Commonwealth provide that "no youth shall be sent to the Grammar Schools, unless they shall have learned, in some other school, or in some other way, to read the English language, by spelling the same." This law excluded from the benefits of public instruction a large number of children whose parents were unable to pay for their tui- tion in private schools ; but it was not till 1818, that any provision was urade for remedying the evil. At a legal meeting of the inhabitants of the town of Boston, assembled in Faneuil Hall, June 11, 1818, notified for the purpose of considering the subject of establishing Primary Schools, the following vote was passed, and $ 5,000 appropriated for the first year's support of these schools. .
" Voted, That the School Committee be instructed, in the month of June, annually, to nominate aud appoint three gentlemen in each ward.
PUBLIC SCHOOLS IN BOSTON.
whose duty collectively, shall be to provide instruction for children be- t ween four and seven years of age, and apportion the expenses among the several Schools."
In accordance with this Vote of the Town, the original Committee for Primary Schools was appointed; and from year to year it has been con- tinued, and the number enlarged. It is now one of the standing regula- tions of the Grammar School Board, to appoint annually. in January, a suitable number of gentlemen, whose duty shall be to provide instruction for children between four and seven years of age, by means of the Prima. ry Schools. The Committee of these Schools are authorized to organize their body and regulate their proceedings, as they may deem most conve- nient ; to fill all vacancies which may occur in the same during the year, and to remove members at their discretion.
It having been found that there were many children in the City, who were old enough to attend the Grammar Schools, but who could not read well enough to be admitted there, application was made to the City Gov- ernment, at an early period, for the establishment of Schools for this neg- lected class of our population. But it was not till 1838 that any provision was made for their instruction. In March of that year, an Order was passed by the City Council, which, in December, 1816, was amended as follows : -
" Ordered, That the Primary School Committee be, and they are hereby authorized to admit into one or more Schools, to be by them selected, in each of the school Districts, any child who is more than seven years of age, and is not qualified for admission into the Grammar Schools."
These last are called Intermediate Schools, and are the last link in the chain of public instruction. The system, then, may be summed up as follows : --
First. The Primary Schools, -each taught by one female teacher, elected annually, in July, by the District Committees. These Schools re- ceive all applicants between four and eight years of age. Here are taught the Lord's Prayer and Ten Commandments, Reading, Spelling, the use of the Slate, the first principles of Arithmetic, and plain sewing. at discre- tion. At eight years of age, every scholar, if deemed qualified, receives a certificate of transfer to the Grammar Schools. Transfers may take place on the first Monday of any month, when deemed necessary, but the regular time for them is semi-annually, on the first Monday in March, and at the time of the July vacation. Monthly, quarterly, and yearly ex- aminations are obligatory upon the different committees, - the last by the Executive Committee in the first two weeks of May. The Intermediate Schools, for the special instruction of children over eight years of age not qualified for the Grammar Schools, belong under the Primary organization.
Second. The English Grammar and Writing Schools, - taught by Masters, Ushers, and female Assistants. These receive all children who
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apply and "can read easy prose," at the age of eight years, and chil- dren only seven may be admitted, " when they shall satisfactorily appear, on examination by the Granumar Master, to be otherwise qualified for admission." New pupils can be admitted on the first Monday of the Calendar months only ; but transfers from one Grammer School to another can be made at all times. If the applicant does not come from a Primary, or another Grammar School, he must bring a certificate from a physician as evidence of his previous vaccination. Boys retain their places in these Schools until the next annual exhibition after they are fourteen, and girls un- til after they are sixteen years of age. Special leave from the Sub-Commit. tee may, however, be given for longer attendance. In these Schools are taught, chietly, Spelling, Reading, English Grammar, Geography, History, Writing, Arithmetic, Algebra, Natural Philosophy and Drawing. Geom- etry, Physiology, and Natural History, are, however, allowed, and Vocal Music is taught by a Professor, semi-weekly. Every school is furnished with a set of philosophical apparatus, globes, outline maps, a pianoforte, and all other desirable aids to the complete illustration of the subjects taught. The departments are subdivided into four grades or classes, with prescribed text-books and courses of study to each, and no pupil is allowed to attend without a full supply of the former. In addition to the above studies, Vocal Music is taught in all the Grammar Schools, twice each week, by a teacher specially employed.
Third. The English High School, - under the charge of a Master, Sub-Master, and so many assistants as shall give one instructor to every thirty-five pupils. Boys only are admitted to this school, and candidates must be at least twelve years old, and can remain members of the school only three years. This school was instituted with the design of furnish- ing a complete English Education to those young men of the city not in- tended for a collegiate course. Instruction is given in the elements of Mathematics and Natural Philosophy, with their application to the scien- ces and the arts, in Grammar, Rhetoric, and Belles Lettres, in Moral Phi- losophy, in History, Natural and Civil, and in the French Language. This institution is furnished with a valuable mathematical and philosoph- ical apparatus, and a fine telescope. Examinations for admission can be made only once a year, -on the Thursday and Friday next succeeding the exhibition of the school in July.
The Fourth and last grade in the system of Public Instruction is the Latin Grammar School. The instructors are the same in number and rank as the High School, and like the last must have been educated at some respectable College. The rudiments of the Latin and Greek Lan- guages are taught, and Scholars are fully qualified for any College. In- struction is also given in Mathematics, History, Declamation, and English Composition. The qualifications and the time for admission are the same as with the High School, and the regular course of instruction continues
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five years. Special permission may, however, be given for longer attend- ance.
Thus have we given a pretty full, and, we trust, accurate view of our justly boasted School System, - which, strange as it may seem, is scarce- ly comprehended by one citizen in a hundred. The work, we believe, will be a valuable and acceptable one, and to enhance its interest, we sub- join a chronological sketch of each individual school, with an accurate en- graving of each house. We have said that the system was " nearly com- plete and almost perfect." There is, however, one hiatus, of vast magni- tude, and that is the want of a High School for Girls. It is rather a hu. miliating truth for a Bostonian to utter, when questioned as to our public aids to female culture, that we have no public institution to perfect young ladies in an advanced education. Some superior private schools we have, but they are only fortunate accidents, and liable to be broken up at the will of an individual, and subject only to his whims and caprices. The subject has been, at various times, ably and faithfully presented to both the School Committee, and the City Council. Reports have been favorably passed upon, and much feeling elicited upon the matter, but thus far noth- ing has been effected. How long the " Athens of America " shall contin- ue to be the only large town in Massachusetts that does not furnish a su- perior seminary for females, at the public expense, is a problem that we have now no means of solving.
BOARD OF SCHOOL COMMITTEE FOR 1851.
John Prescott Bigelow, Chairman, Er Officiis.
Francis Brinley, President of Common Council, -
By Election from Wards.
Ward Ward
1. Rev. Edward Beecher, D. D. Benson Leavitt.
2. Dr. William H. Thorndike, Silas B. Hahn.
3. Dr. Edward D. G. Palmer, Rev. Pharcellus Church.
4. Rev. Samuel K. Lothrop, Rev. Hubbard Winslow.
5. Frederick Emerson, Loring Norcross.
6. Sampson Reed, Frederick U. Tracy.
7. Hamilton Willis, Dr. Zalliel B. Adams.
8. Rev. James I. T. Coolidge, Samuel W. Bates.
9. Joseph M. Wightman, Samuel F. Guild .:
10. Rev. Joseph B. Felt, Rev. George M. Randall.
11. Willliam H. Foster, George Eaton.
12. Alvan Simonds, Francis Alger.
NATHAN BISHOP, Public School Superintendent. SAMUEL F. McCLEARY, JR., Secretary of the Board.
LATIN SCHOOL.
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LATIN SCHOOL, BEDFORD STREET. Established 1617, Erected 1841, Cost $ 57,510.81.
EPES SARGENT DIXWELL, Master ; CALEB EMERY, Sub-Master.
This School was instituted, in the language of our ancestors, "to the end that learning may not be buried in the graves of our forefathers in Church and Commonwealth." Its origin seems to have been in hostility to His Satanic Majesty ; - in the statute words, " it being one chief proj- ect of Satan to keep men from the knowledge of the Scriptures, as in former times keeping them in unknown tongues, so in these latter times by persuading from the use of tongues, that so at last the true source and meaning of the original might be clouded and corrupted with false glosses of deceivers." So far as making thorough scholars is concerned, it has doubtless had its effect. From time immemorial it was located in School street. The old house was rebuilt in 1812, and in the interim the School occupied "a building in Friend street, called the Spermaceti Works." This second house was demolishe I in 1844, the Horticultural Hall now oc- cupying its site, and the present edifice was erected. We have only room for a list of the masters since the School Committee was instituted, in 1792, and from this date we give all the masters of the Grammar Schools. S Hunt was in office at the close of the last century, and till 1805; S. C. Thatcher succeed him temporarily ; W. Bigelow, of Salem, was in office from 1805 to 1814; B. A. Gould, from 1814 to 1828; F. P. Leverett, from 1823 to 1821 ; C. K. Dillaway, from 1831 to 1836. E. S. Dixwell, 1836.
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PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
ELIOT SCHOOL, NORTH BENNET STREET. Established 1713, Erected 1338, Cost $ 24,072.
W. O. AYRES, Grammar Master ; L. CONANT, Writing Master.
A public school was kept long before the date of the establishment of the Eliot. " Att a generall meeting upon publique notice, the 13th of ye 2nd month, 1635, it was then generally agreed upon yt or brother Phile- mon Permont shal be intreated to become a scholemaster for the teaching & nourtering of children with us," - and on "the 10th of ye 11th mo. 1644, It's ordered that Deare Iland shall be Improved for the maintenance of a Free Schoole for the Towne." Whether " Philemon" was the fore- father of the Eliot school, and whether it flourished with the " seaven pounds per yeer," which James Penn and John Oliver paid for " Deare lland," is not now to be determined. Certain it is, however, it was two different schools, one in " Love Lane," and one in "Robert Sandiman's meeting-house:" In 1792 a new house was built on the site of the present, and the lower room was'" appointed to the writing and the upper to the reading school." This was the first union of two schools in one build- ing. Samuel Cheney and John Tileston, were the masters. It was de. demolished in 1837, and the present house was built, with repairs, altera- tions, and considerable additions in 1850.
Pupils, 406 ; average 366.
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ADAMS SCHOOL.
ADAMS SCHOOL, MASON STREET. Established 1717, Erected 1843, Cost $ 20,000.
SAMUEL BARRET, Grammar Master ; B. WOOD, Sub-Master.
This was formerly two distinct Schools, one in Queen street, now Court, called the Centre Writing School, and the other " in front of the new Court House," - now City Hall, -called the Centre Reading School, gathered in 1789. In 1812 the town ordered this last to be removed, and the Latin School-House, in School street, was rebuilt, and enlarged to ac- commodate all three. The Reading School was afterwards removed to West street, in the same building with the South Writing School, and in 1819, the Writing School followed, the South being removed to Franklin Hall, and the two Centre Schools were united. The old house was rebuilt in 1822, and was occupied by a boys' school, as it has been latterly. For many years this latter building was excessively inconvenient, - the most so of any house in the city, and in 1817 it was demolished, and the pres- ent elegant and commodious edifice erected. It received its name with other schools in 1821. The last reports show 310 pupils, with 263 aver- age attendance. Medals were given at their first institution, in 1792, but the recipients are not recorded. During the siege of Boston, the schools were all intermitted, except one kept by Dupee, and it is said to have held ita sessions in the old house in West street. This, however, is un- certain.
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FRANKLIN SCHOOL, WASHINGTON STREET. Established 1785, Erected 1845, Cost $ 18,394.
S. L. GOULD, Master ; S. A. M. CUSHING, Principal Assistant.
This, like the Eliot and Adams, was formerly two distinct schools, - the South Writing and the South Reading Schools. The former was lo- cated in Mason street, and the latter in Nassau street. In 1819. the for- mer was established at "Franklin Hall," over the Nassau Street School; they were united as two departments of the same school. and were named the same year. In 1826 a new house was erected on Washington street, the site of the present, after considerable difficulty in locating it, and the schools removed from Common street. It was injured by fire in 1833. In the great fire of 1844, it was totally destroyed, and the present edifice was erected on the same spot, and on the plan of the Brimmer and Otis. Its Grammar Masters have been Elisha Ticknor, Samuel Payson, Foster Wa- terman, Asa Bullard, S. Payson, Ebenezer Bailey, William J. Adams, William Clough, R G. Parker, Barnuin Field, who died on the - of May, and was succeeded by Mr. Gould, two weeks after. Its Writing Masters were John Vinal, Rufus Webb, Otis Pierce, and Nathan Merrill, who re- signed in 1813. It was then placed on the single-headed plan, with two female assistants, with increased salaries, instead of a Sub-Master. Mas .. ter Webb was a noted and worthy man, with much " pride of office," and left a legacy to the school, to buy books for indigent pupils. It is a girls' school, with 561 pupils. 431 average attendance. The old school, in Nassau street, was established in April, 1735.
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MAYHEW SCHOOL.
MAYHEW SCHOOL HAWKINS STREET.
Established 1802, Erected 1817, Cost $ 35,792.59.
SAMUEL SWAN, Master ; WINSLOW BATTLES, Sub-Master.
In 1803 a number of citizens of West Boston petitioned for a new school, and a piece of land was bought for it of Mr. Lyman, at the corner of Chardon and Hawking street, so " as at the same time to accommodate those who are near the centre of the town," and the old house was the re- sult, which was opened to accommodate the two schools in April of the same year, although considerable dissatisfaction at first existed as to its location. It was named for Rev. Jonathan Mayhew, in 1821. This is now a boys' school, as it was at first, and " Master Holt " will be renem- bered for a long day by very many men still living. It has, however, at some periods of its existence been a mixed school, and many mothers of its present pupils were its scholars. The first house is now standing, but was converted into a stable in 1847, and the present building was finished the same year. The Grammar Masters have been Cyrus Perkins, Hall J. Kelly, John Frost, R. G. Parker, William Clough, Moses W. Walker, W. D. Swan. Its Writing Masters were Benjamin Holt, Benjamin Callen- der, Aaron Davis Capen, and John D. Philbrick. At the organization of the Quincy School, Mr. Philbrick was transferred to that, and the May- hew was reorganized on the one-headed plan, as it is at present. Pupils, 403, average attendance 330.
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PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
HAWES SCHOOL, SOUTH BOSTON.
Established 1811, Erected 1523, Cost $ 5,89.29.
JOHN A. HARRIS, Master ; CHARLES A. MORRILL, Sub-Master.
Previous to May, 1807, about three years after the annexation of South Boston -- before a part of Dorchester - to the town, no school existed in the place, other than private. In this year a petition was circulated, and it appearing that the people paid $ 1,000 taxes, and yet had no public school privileges, the town voted $ 300 for the purpose of sustaining "a woman's school," on condition that the appointment of teachers should be with the general School Committee. This was paid several years, but the Committee did not immediately take the school under their supervis. ion. A house was built on some public land where no street was laid out, at a cost of $ 400, and this remained as the School House of South Boston, until the present house was erected on land given by Mr. John Hawes. The first house was built by a Mr. Everett, under the direction of Mr. Woodard, and some questions as to ownership arose in 1823. Its teach. ers were at first in part supported by subscription ; in 1821, the teacher was " put on the same footing as the ushers," and in 1333, the Master was made equal to others. It was not known on the records, as the " Hawes," until 1827. It had but one male teacher, or master, until 1835, when Mr. Harris was elected Writing Master. Its Masters previous were Z. Wood, L. Capen, B. Field, J. Lincoln, M. W. Walker, J. Harrington, Jr. Mr. H. became the Grammar Master, was succeeded by Mr. Crafts, and the school remained with two departments until January, 1848.
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SMITH SCHOOL.
SMITH SCHOOL, BELKNAP STREET.
Established 1812, Erected 1834, Cost $ 7,485.61.
THOMAS PAUL, Master ; JAMES C. JOHNSON, Music Teacher.
This school is for colored children of both sexes. A school for Africans was commenced by themselves, in 1793, the Selectmen having first grant- ed permission, and was kept in the house of Primus Hall. The yellow fever broke it up, and three years afterwards it was revived by Rev. Drs. Morse of Charlestown, Kirkland of Harvard College, Channing, and Low- ell, and Rev. Mr. Emerson of Boston. They provided for its entire sup- port two years. It was then proposed to have the colored people hire a building, and a carpenter's shop was selected adjoining to the old church. and this continued three years. The site of the meeting-house was then Selected, aud purchased by subscription, and the African Baptist Church erected a house, of which the school occupied the basement. The room was completed in 1803, and immediately occupied by the school, and the reverend gentlemen mentioned supported the school, with aid from sub- scriptions, uutil 1812, when the town first took notice of it, granting $ 200 annually. In 1815, Abiel Smith, Esq., died, and left a legacy of about $ 5,000, the income of which is to be appropriated " for the free in- struction of colored children in reading, writing, and arithmetic." The present house was built in 18:33 - 35, and on the 10th of February, 1835, the school was named for its benefactor. Pupils 65 ; average 37.
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PUBLIC SCHOOLS.
BOYLSTON SCHOOL, FORT HILL. Established 1819, Erected 1818, Cost $ 13,313.73.
J. C. DORE, Grammar Master ; C. KIMBALL, Writing Master.
The Boylston School was named by vote of the town, - the first in the city, - at the time it was gathered. The present building in Washington Place, Fort Hill, was finished in 1819, and the schools took possession of it on the 20th of April, under John Stickney, Master of the Reading School, and Ebenezer E. Finch, of the Writing School. For two or three years a " Monitorial School," under Mr. William B. Fowle, was kept in the building, with what success we are not aware, but in 1922 he resigned
his office, and the school was discontinued. Charles Fox succeeded Mr. Stickney, and was succeeded in 1814 by Thomas Baker, then usher in the Mayhew, who resigned in 1819, and was succeeded by Mr. Dore. Fred- erick Emerson, Esq., now of the School Committee, followed Mr. Finch, and when the Writing Master's office was abolished, in 1830, he left the ser- vice ; and on its restoration, in 1833, Abel Wheeler, the usher in the school, was elected Writing Master, succeeded by Aaron B. Hoyt, and he by Mr. Kimball, in 1840. The institution of this school was the occasion of uniting the two departments into one school, throughout the city, and the house was then thought to be without a parallel, although in 1848 it was by far the poorest house in the city, and in 1819 was completely remod- elled. It is very finely located on Washington Place, opposite the Square.
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BOWDOIN SCHOOL.
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BOWDOIN SCHOOL, MYRTLE STREET. Established 1821, Erected 1848, Cost $ 44,950.14.
A. ANDREWS, Grammar Master ; J. ROBINSON, Writing Master.
This house contains one large hall in the third story, with two rooms for recitation, and another smaller apartment for the use of the Gram- mar Master; two large rooms, connected by sliding doors; two recitation rooms, and one room for the Writing Master, in the second story ; two large rooms, with a recitation room to each one on the first floor. The school is for girls only. The building is furnished with desks and chairs of the most approved style. It has 560 seats for pupils. The school, af- ter having been at the Masonic Temple nearly a year, took possession of the new building on Myrtle street, on the 15th of May, 1946. On this occasion addresses were made by Mayor Quincy, President Quincy, Pro- fessor Parsons, and Simpson Reed, and G. B. Emerson, Esqs. It was first established in Derne street, on the site now occupied by the reservoir, and was taken down to make room for that structure, in June, 1817. Both sexes, for about ten years after its first establishment, attended its instruction. The first Masters were Warren Peirce, and John H. Belcher. Mr. Peirce died near the close of the first year, and was succeeded by Mr. Andrews, in June, 1922, who was previously principal of a private school in Charlestown. Mr. Belcher was succeeded by Mr. Robinson.
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