USA > Massachusetts > Hampshire County > Amherst > The history of the town of Amherst, Massachusetts, pt 1 > Part 33
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Part 1 | Part 2 | Part 3 | Part 4 | Part 5 | Part 6 | Part 7 | Part 8 | Part 9 | Part 10 | Part 11 | Part 12 | Part 13 | Part 14 | Part 15 | Part 16 | Part 17 | Part 18 | Part 19 | Part 20 | Part 21 | Part 22 | Part 23 | Part 24 | Part 25 | Part 26 | Part 27 | Part 28 | Part 29 | Part 30 | Part 31 | Part 32 | Part 33 | Part 34 | Part 35 | Part 36 | Part 37 | Part 38 | Part 39 | Part 40 | Part 41 | Part 42 | Part 43 | Part 44 | Part 45 | Part 46 | Part 47 | Part 48
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The course of study, marked out for the different grades, was, in outline, as follows : Primary schools, reading, spelling, primary arithmetic, arithmetical notation and numeration, introductory geography : intermediate schools, reading, spelling, writing, intellectual and practical arithmetic, modern geography, parts of speech 'and inflections; grammar schools, arithmetic, United States history, English grammar, map drawing, algebra, physical geography, book-keeping, composition and declamation ; high school. algebra, geometry, English analysis, general history, book-keeping, surveying. United States constitution, natural philosophy, rhetoric, astron- omy, chemistry, political economy, moral science, natural history, logic.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF AMHERST, MASS.
Pupils in Latin at the high school were required to pursue only those studies which were necessary for admission to college. Pupils at the high school were divided in three classes. Applicants for admission to advanced grade were examined at the close of the winter session, or of the summer session, of each school, and a certificate was required from the teacher of the school that the pupil was properly prepared for advancement; also, that he or she sustained a good moral character. No children under five years of age were allowed in the public schools. Each teacher was required to keep a record of the scholarship and deportment of every pupil, to be ready for the inspection of the committee at the close of each week.
In the records of the North-west school district for the year 1851, mention is made of a high school. The report of the school committee for 1853 shows that three high schools were maintained in town, one at the center, one at North Amherst and one at South Amherst. The com- mittee advised the building of three houses to accommodate these schools. The course of studies pursued at these schools was in many features similar to the high school course of the present day, with the omission of Latin and Greek. At the annual town-meeting in 1860, when the town voted to grade the schools, it was also voted to establish one high school at the center village. The high school building was erected in 1860, and dedicated Sept. 2, 1861. The school was opened in September, 1861. with Samuel J. Storrs as principal and with 26 pupils in attendance; in December of that year, five more pupils were admitted. In July, 1862, two young men were graduated from the school and entered Amherst College. Mr. Storrs resigned his position as principal in 1862, to enter the Union army ; in the winter term of that year, Charles D. Adams served as principal. The first graduation exercises were held at the end of the school year in 1864, the graduating class consisting of four young ladies and one young gentleman. Charles H. Parkhurst, the noted divine, served as principal of the school from the spring term in 1867 to the end of the school year in 1869. In the winter of 1871-72, a school lyceum was instituted and supported for a time with much enthusiasm ; the library was considerably enlarged at the same time. The income of the " Academy fund," so called, rests in the hands of a board of trustees, and is applied by them, at their discretion, toward the support of the classical depart- ment of the high school. It is generally used to pay for the services of an instructor in the Greek language. During the year 1893, the high school building was altered, repaired and enlarged, at a cost of some $2,500.
In 1867, the town authorized the appointment of a superintendent of schools, at a salary not to exceed $Soo. From time to time the town has
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SCHOOL APPROPRIATIONS.
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employed a superintendent, outside the school committee, with satisfactory results. It is safe to say that the public schools of Amherst were never more prosperous and never accomplished better work than when in , charge of H. L. Read as superintendent. The present superintendent, W. D. Parkinson, began his services in Amherst in 1893 ; since that time the schools have been brought up to a higher standard than for many years preceding. The town of Amherst has been fortunate in securing the services, as members of its school committee from year to year, of persons exceptionally well qualified for the position. Ministers of the gospel, college professors, lawyers, doctors, men prominent in professional and social life, have given of their time and talent for the benefit of the public schools, for compensation which, to say the least, was entirely inad- equate for the services rendered. The town owes a debt of gratitude: to the public-spirited citizens who have done so much in the interest of its educational system. The town has been fortunate, also, in the character . and attainments of the teachers it has employed in its public schools. Many of them were born in Amherst, and gained their education at the schools which in time they came to serve as teachers. It has been cause for regretful comment in the past that other towns and cities have been so quick to recognize the merits of Amherst teachers, and to draw them- away by the temptations of larger salaries and broader fields of labor.
The items of school appropriations and expenditures will be considered in another chapter, where they will be presented in tabulated form. The. town has ever been generous in providing funds for carrying on the work of education. With the growth of the town, and the increase in school population, there has been more than proportionate growth in the sums expended upon the public schools. For the school year ending in 1862, when the grading of the pupils was accomplished and 764 pupils were admitted to the various schools, the amount of the school appropriations. was but $3,200. In 1894, with a total enrollment of 815 pupils, the school appropriation was $13,600, and this was increased by a special appropria- tion for repairs and by receipts from various sources to over $14,500. It is true that it costs more to conduct a public school to-day than it did thirty-five years ago ; books and supplies must be furnished by the town which were formerly purchased by the pupils, the schools must be better equipped in every way, the buildings better cared for, and transportation afforded for scholars living in the more remote parts of the town. But it is also true that the public is willing to spend more money for educational purposes than it was a generation ago, and the demand is for better rather than for cheaper schools. In the committee's report for the school year ending in 135, the statement is made that the best female teachers could be
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF AMHERST, MASS.
procured in winter for $2 1 per month, including board, while the best malt. teachers commanded a salary of from $35 to $40 per month, including board. The town from motives of economy, has made it a practice to employ female teachers in nearly all its schools, and with generally satis- factory results.
With the grading of the schools came greater uniformity in the length of term and vacations. In 1861-62, the committee arranged, for the primary schools, three terms of 11 weeks each; for the intermediate schools, three terms of 12 weeks each; for the grammar schools, two terms, one of 12, the other of 14 weeks. By statute law the high school must be in session 36 weeks. In 1878, the primary schools were in session 32 weeks, the intermediate schools 33 weeks, the grammar schools 34 weeks. Other matters of interest are gathered from the school reports. In 1861, there were eight school districts in town, designated as follows : No. I, at the Center ; No. 2, East Middle ; No. 3, South Middle; No. 4. "City ; " No. 5, North Amherst ; No. 6, South-west ; No. 7, Mill Valley: No. 8, South-east. The report for the school year ending in 1860 gives the following as the number of pupils in each district : No. 1, 149 : No. 2, 147; No. 3, 56; No. 4. 71 ; No. 5, 107 ; No. 6, 31 ; No. 7, 38 : No. 8, 50 ; total, 649. In 1861, the town voted that the school appropri- ation should be divided as heretofore, one-third equally to the eight districts. the remaining two-thirds in proportion to the number of scholars in each dis- trict. In 1869, an ungraded school was maintained during the winter months for the benefit of those unable to attend the public schools at other seasons of the year. In 1872, it was voted by the school board " That hereafter the only corporal punishment to be inflicted upon pupils of the schools shall be by a rattan or ruler upon the hand, and that no other corporal punish- ment shall be allowed." In 1878, a uniform length was adopted for the daily sessions, of three hours in the forenoon and two and one-half hours in the afternoon, all schools opening at 9 A. M. In 1880, the following terms were fixed upon for tuition in Amherst schools of pupils resident in other towns: High school, $10 per term ; grammar schools, $5 ; interme- diate, $4; primary, $3. In 1881, the provisions of the state law in regard to the vaccination of scholars were enforced. In 1884, music was first taught in the schools, and books and supplies were purchased by the town for use of the pupils. In 1885, systematic instruction was first given in regard to the effects of the use of alcohol on the human system. In 1887, the first appropriation, $300, was made for the transportation of pupils from the "ends" of the town to the high school. In 1888, the plan was adopted of holding but one session daily at the high school, from 8-30 A. M. to I P. M.
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MOUNT PLEASANT INSTITUTE-1827.
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AMHERST, LOOKING FROM PELHAM-1850.
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MOUNT PLEASANT INSTITUTE.
Of the many private educational institutions which have been main- tained in Amherst, the most noted, aside from Amherst Academy, was the Mount Pleasant Classical Institution. Nowhere within the length and breadth of the Connecticut Valley could be found such an ideal location for an institute of learning as is furnished by Mount Pleasant. A com- manding eminence, a little way out from the center village of Amherst, surrounded by a noble grove of oaks and chestnuts, it affords a compre- hensive view of the valleys to east and west, a range of scenery covering historic ground. in itself a memory and inspiration. In January, 1827, Chauncey Colton and Francis Fellowes, graduates of Amherst College in the class of 1826, issued a prospectus for a classical school which they proposed to establish in Amherst. Mr. Colton was a native .of Long- meadow, and was born Aug. 30, 1800; Mr. Fellowes was born at Montville, Conn., Nov. 20, 1803. The buildings of the institution, capacious in size and of greater architectural pretention than was custom- ary at the time, were erected in 1826 and 1827. The classes were organized June 1, 1827, and the chapel dedicated the following Sabbath. From a catalog issued in January, 1828, the following facts are derived.
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In addition to the principals, seven instructors were employed, the course of instruction embracing the following departments : Modern Linguages, intellectual and moral philosophy, elementary English and commercial study, belles lettres and oratory, Latin and Greek languages, ancient and modern Greek, mathematics, natural philosophy and drawing. The number of pupils was 68, a majority coming from New England, six from the Southern states, two from Greece and one from France. Their ages ranged from four to sixteen years. The second name upon the roll is that of Henry Ward Beecher. The expressed aim of the institution was : " to combine the highest advantages of public and private education by a Liberal and necessarily expensive provision of instruction in the various departments of Ancient and Modern Learning, Commercial Theory, etc .- by a regular and systematic course of physical culture in the Gymnasium, and that moral and religious influence which contributes to fit man for the. high purposes of existence." The government of the institution was strictly putental in character. From the whole body of students a "Class of Honor " was chosen, consisting only of those who were distinguished by unexceptionable deportinent, a just sense of right and unimpeached moral cottage. From this body, an offender against the rules of the institution " Is, at the discretion of the principals and according to the nature of the whence. allowed to select a jury of twelve to sit in judgment upon his case. In this " jury of twelve" it is easy to discern the germ of the Amherst College Senate and " student self-government."
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF AMHERST, MASS.
The whole number of students was divided into five sections, over each of which was placed a " Praefect," whose duty it was to notice any departure from established laws of correct deportment and render weekly reports to the instructors. The morning bell for rising rang, in summer, at 4-30 A. M. and a half-hour was allowed for the toilet. At 5 the pupils assembled on the muster-grounds and spent an hour in gymnastic exercises and games. From 6 to 7 o'clock the time was spent in the class-room ; at 7 breakfast was served, after which came morning devotions in the chapel and exercises upon the play-grounds until 8. From 8 to 12 the time was spent in recitation and study. From 12 to I came gymnastic exercises in the grove, and dinner was served at 1-30. The time from the dinner hour until 2-30 was devoted to recreation, from 2-30 to 6-30 to study and recita- tion, from 6-30 to 7-30 in gymnastic exercises and recreation. At 7-30 supper was served, after which evening worship was attended in the chapel. At 8 the smaller boys retired, the older ones studying until 9, when all retired.
The annual charges were fixed at $250, "one-half payable semi- annually in advance." These charges included tuition, board, room, furniture, fuel, lights, mending and washing. For apparel, books, station- ery, etc., the parent or guardian was expected to place a reasonable sum for expenditure in the hands of the principal. There were two vacations each year, one of two weeks from April 1, the other of three weeks from the first Thursday in August. Students might remain at the institution during the vacations, or travel with some of the instructors. The annual examinations, lasting from six to ten days, began on May 20. The pupils were not allowed, save in special cases, to leave the institution unless accompanied by one of the instructors. They wore a simple uniform. At the end of the catalog are letters of commendation for the institution signed by T. H. Gallaudet, principal of the American Asylum for the education of the deaf and dumb, Rev. Lyman Beecher, D. D., and Heman Humphrey, D. D., president of Amherst College. Under a special law passed by the General Court, Feb. 16, 1831, Francis Fellowes, Joel W. Newton and Martin Thayer were incorporated as the proprietors of the Mount Pleasant Classical Institution, "for the advancement of the pur- poses of education and instruction in the liberal sciences and arts." They were authorized to hold real estate not exceeding $50,000 in value, and personal estate to the amount of $30,000.
For five years the institution prospered and then, for some unexplained reason, was discontinued. The buildings were unoccupied for a time, and then were disconnected, the central structure remaining in its present location, while the buildings at the sides were removed to other parts of
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THE FEMALE SEMINARY.
the village. One of the " wings" was located on Pleasant street, where Dickinson's block now stands, where it served as a tenement-house, and from the multiplicity and motley character of its tenants won the name of the " Bee Hive." It was torn down sometime during the '6os. Two other sections of the buildings are yet standing, on Northampton street. In 1846, the Mount Pleasant Institute was re-established, as a boarding school for boys, by Rev. John A. Nash. It was successfully conducted by him for eight years, when it passed under the control of his son, Henry C. Nash, who, assisted by his son, William K., has conducted it since. The school has enjoyed something more than a local reputation, many of its pupils coming from foreign countries.
The first institution established at Amherst, expressly designed for the higher education of females, was the " Amherst Female Seminary," which began its work in 1832. But little information can be obtained in regard to this school, which seems to have been prosperous in its day. From a catalog published in 1835, it is learned that the whole number of pupils in attendance during the year was 191. Of these, many were resident in Amherst ; some came from other towns in Massachusetts, from Connecti- cut, New Hampshire, Vermont, Georgia and Alabama, and one from Michigan " Territory." The school was held in Mack's Hall, in the upper part of the building occupying the site where Cook's block now stands. The principal was Miss Hannah White, an intimate friend of Mary Lyon. The teachers were the Misses Mary Proctor, Harriet Partridge, Mary A. White, Elizabeth Stone, Sarah J. Kimberly and Anne C. Payson. The executive committee of the institution consisted of Luke Sweetser, Charles Adams and Lucius Boltwood, Esq. Miss White was succeeded as principal by Mrs. Washburn. The seminary was incorporated by an act of the General Court passed April 8, 1836. The incorporators were Heman Humphrey, Edward Hitchcock, Solomon Pitkin and others. They were authorized to hold real estate to the amount of $10,000, and personal estate to the sanie amount, "to be devoted exclusively to the purposes of «ducation." The seminary was a day school, having no accommodations for boarding pupils. It continued in successful operation until February, 1838, when the building in which it was held was destroyed by fire.
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In 1827: Miss J. Draper kept a boarding-school in Amherst for young ladies. In 1845, Samuel N. White conducted a " select school for young ladies and gentlemen," at North Amherst. Mr. White was at a later date principal of Amherst Academy. The General Court, by a special act passed in 1854, incorporated Lemuel Porter, Amory Gale and E. A. Cum- mings as the " Ladies Collegiate Institute " to be established in the town of Amherst. They were authorized to hold real and personal estate to a
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF AMHERST, MASS.
value not exceeding $150,000. There is no further record concerning this ambitious project, and Amherst College yet awaits its " annex." In 1855, the Misses F. J. and A. E. Emerson conducted a school for young ladies at their home in the old "Strong house." From 1855 to 1868, Hon. R. B. Hubbard conducted a boys' boarding-school in the house on Lincoln avenue now occupied by Rev. J. E. Tuttle. Mr. Hubbard had served for three years as principal of the Mount Pleasant Institute and had devoted much of his life to educational work. His school was ably conducted and was held in high repute. Among his pupils who gained distinction in after life was Eugene Field, poet and journalist, recently deceased. In 1856, Miss Brewster kept a school in the second story of the academy building. This school was fitted to accommodate from 20 to 25 pupils, and instruction was given in the elementary and higher English studies and in Latin. In 1860, Rev. George Cooke conducted a young ladies' institute in the " Sellon house," now occupied by the Alpha Delta Phi fraternity. A three years' course of instruction was offered, and the proprietor announced that no expense would be spared to secure the most able instructors.
As early as 1847, a project was formed for establishing an agricultural school at Amherst. In 1848, the General Court passed a special act incor- porating Edward Hitchcock, William B. Calhoun and Samuel L. Hinckley by the name of the Massachusetts Agricultural Institute. They were authorized to hold real and personal estate to the amount of $50,000, for the purpose of establishing in some one of the towns lying on the banks of the Connecticut river an agricultural school and experimental farm, the object of which should be instruction in agricultural science and improve- ment in all the arts connected with the practice of farming. Edward Hitchcock, president of Amherst College, was deeply interested in the subject of agricultural education. His scientific studies had given him a thorough acquaintance with the geology of the Connecticut Valley, its rocks and soils. Scientific agriculture was at the time almost unknown in America, and presented problems which he considered worthy his careful attention: The " Massachusetts Agricultural Institute " had nothing but corporate existence. but it prepared the way for the Agricultural College. In 1850, President Hitchcock was appointed a member of a board of five commissioners, whose duty it was to consider the expediency of establishing agricultural schools or colleges in the Commonwealth. The same year he traveled extensively in Europe, visiting and inspecting many agricultural institution in England, Ireland, Scotland, Germany, Switzerland and France. The results of his investigations were embodied in a report submitted to the General Court in 1851. In 1855, John A. Nash announced through the columns of the Hampshire and Franklin Express, that arrangements
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OTHER PRIVATE SCHOOLS.
had been made in connection with Amherst College for instruction in agriculture and kindred sciences of young men not permanently connected with the college, but who might resort to it, for longer or shorter periods at pleasure, for this specific purpose. This instruction was to be given only during the fall and winter terms. It included lectures on geology and physiology, by President Hitchcock: on mechanical philosophy, hydro- statics, hydraulics, pneumatics, electricity and magnetism. by Prof. E. S. Snell ; on organic and inorganic chemistry, by Prof. W. S. Clark, the latter, in after years, president of the Agricultural College. In the summer of 1828, the New England Inquirer published for several weeks the announce- ment of a law-school to be opened in Amherst by Samuel Fowler Dickinson.
Of schools established at a later date, and still maintained, are those conducted by Mrs. W. F. Stearns, Miss V. W. Buffum, Mrs. R. G. Williams, Rev. E. C. Winslow and Mrs. W. D. Herrick. Mrs. Stearns' home school for young ladies was established in September, 1877 ; Mrs. Stearns has acted as principal since its beginning. There is no age limit required of pupils for entrance. The pupils are given a liberal education but are not fitted for college. The school is well and favorably known throughout a wide section and draws its pupils from many states. In the fall of 1883, Mrs. Emma Owen Buffum established a preparatory school for young ladies in the house of Rev. George Lyman on North Prospect St. She met with such success that in the summer of 1885 she leased the Sweetser place on Lessey street and opened the Oak Grove school for young ladies. Mrs. Buffum died Feb. 7, 1887, and was succeeded, in the conduct of the school, by Miss Vryling W. Buffum. The school has an established reputation, its graduates being received at Smith, Wellesley or Vassar College, on certificate. Mrs. R. G. Williams family school was established in 1885. Its first principal was Rev. R. G. Williams. Rev. E. C. Winslow opened a boading school at " Amoena Hall" in the fall of 1895. For several years Mrs. W. D. Herrick has successfully conducted a school for invalid children and those backward in their studies. The first kindergar- ten in Amherst was established by Miss E. M. Munsell in 1879, in the house occupied by the Misses Cowles. Later on money was raised by subscription and a building erected for the use of the school on ground owned by Amherst College at the corner of Northampton and Parsons streets. Miss E. M. Munsell later established another kindergarten at her home on Amity Street.
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HISTORY OF THE TOWN OF AMHERST, MASS.
CHAPTER XXXV.
AGRICULTURE IN AMHERST .- FARM PRODUCTS .- THE FIRST AGRICUL- TURAL SOCIETY .- CATTLE SHOWS FROM 1846 TO 1850 .- EAST HAMPSHIRE AGRICULTURAL SOCIETY .-- DISSENSIONS AMONG THE MEMBERS .- HAMPSHIRE PARK AND HALL .-- CREAMERY ASSOCI- ATIONS.
Amherst is, as it has ever been, essentially an agricultural community. For more than a century after its first settlement no other interest came in active competition with the culture of the soil. For the past fifty years Amherst has become better known to the world as a college community, an educational center, yet its prosperity rests with those who labor in the fields. Agriculture in Amherst dates from the time when its lands were the " common feeding place " for the cattle owned by Hadley farmers. For many years these lands were accounted of little value save for pasturage. From some motive, never fully explained, the early settlers of Hampshire county, as of many other sections of New England, built their homes on the rocky hillsides and cultivated the sterile soil of the uplands, while the rich bottom-lands were frequently neglected. The soil of Amherst was fertile, not so productive as the meadows of Old Hadley, but yielding far better return to the labor of the husbandman than the fields of Pelham, Prescott, or Shutesbury. Farming in olden times was conducted as a means of livelihood, with little thought and little hope on the part of the laborer of acquiring wealth. The farmer raised the grain and vegetables and meat that provided himself and family with food, and any surplus was sold or exchanged for other simple necessities of life. Engaged in such occupations, the people of a community would be neither very rich or very poor. There was little display of wealth, and, on the other hand, but little real poverty. Scientific agriculture was but a possibility of the future. The same acres were tilled and crops of similar kind were raised by father, son, and grandson, down through succeeding generations. Farming con- sisted largely of manual labor ; the countless number of labor-saving appliances now in use had existence then, if at all, only in the brains of their inventors.
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