USA > Michigan > Kent County > Grand Rapids > Grand Rapids and Kent County, Michigan: History and Account of Their Progress from First. Vol. I > Part 53
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406 HISTORY OF KENT COUNTY, MICHIGAN
the site, which is identical with the present Junior High School grounds, was acquired by the district for the very huge sum of $300! The director was authorized to receive "proposals for the erection of a stone school house, two stories in height (without a basement), upon the same plan as drawn by Stephen Wood, and as may be seen at the store of Sinclair & King." On Jan. 8, 1849, the committee accepted the proposition of David Burnett for the building of the school house, which was accordingly erected in the following summer and fall. The stone used in its construction was obtained from the bed of Grand River, and the building, although possessing small claim to architec- tural beauty, was a more substantial and commodious structure than might be supposed when the smallness of the contract price paid for it is considered. The building served well the purpose for which it was designed until 1867, when the growing educational interests of the district demanded better accommodations, and it was pulled down upon the completion of what was long known as the Central High School building. The stone and other building material was sold to various citizens, and the key of the massive door of the old school house is now deposited among the exhibits in the Ryerson Library.
At the annual school meeting, held Sept. 24 of the same year in which the stone school house was built, the district was organized under the union school system, which necessitated the election of four additional trustees, and the following board was chosen : Moderator, Thompson Sinclair ; director, H. K. Rose; assessor, Michael Connol- ly ; trustees, W. G. Henry, John Ball, Zenas G. Winsor, and T. H. Lyon. The first term of school under the new system was begun in the new stone school house, Nov. 12, 1849, under the principalship of E. M. Johnson, of Western New York, who was assisted by Miss Hollister (afterward Mrs. William M. Ferry, of Grand Haven), Miss Elizabeth White (afterward Mrs. Whipple), Miss Almira Hinsdill (afterward Mrs. Jones, of Denver Colo.), and Miss Thirza Moore. Mr. Johnson resigned at the close of the first term and was succeeded Feb. 18, 1850, by the Rev. James Ballard. Mr. Ballard, after holding the position three years, gave place to Edward W. Chesebro, who served until 1857, when he was followed by Prof. E. Danforth. At the annual school meeting of 1859, it was voted to grade the schools and establish a high school, which was done under the direction of Prof. Danforth. The first commencement exercises of the high school were held in Luce's Hall at the close of the school year of 1861-62.
In 1860 the custom of giving prizes in the Grand Rapids public schools was introduced by the Hon. T. D. Gilbert, who left in trust the sum of $2,000, the income from which he directed to be distributed among the boys and girls who acquitted themselves most creditably during the year. The trustees accepted with thanks the generous do- nation of Mr. Gilbert and pledged themselves to carry out the inten- tions of the donor to the best of their ability. But by mutual agree- ment between the Board and Mr. Gilbert the fund was never used, as at first intended, but ha's been applied toward the purchasing of reference books and scientific and other apparatus for the schools, it being de- cided that this disposal of the income from the fund would be more beneficial than the other. Thus was founded what has ever since been known as "The Gilbert Trust Fund."
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In 1861, Mr. Danforth was succeeded by Edwin A. Strong, who had been a contemporary with the former as a teacher. He contin- ued to hold the office of superintendent until he resigned, in 1870, to take a position in the State Normal school at Oswego, N. Y. After a short stay he returned to this city, and as teacher and principal re- mained connected with the high school until 1885, when he resigned to accept a professorship in the State Normal School at Ypsilanti. Mr. Strong brought to the schools a mind of rare culture, richly stored with knowledge gained by a life of study, and a Christian character of peculiar purity and beauty. The influence of such a man upon the schools where he taught, and the community of which he was for so many years an honored member, cannot be measured by words.
The first school expressly for white children on the west side of Grand River was taught by Miss Bond, afterward Mrs. Francis Pres- cott, one of the teachers in the Slater Mission School for Indians. Upon the establishment of a school for white children the settlers placed her in charge in a log school house not far from the bank of the river and a little south of Bridge street. There Miss Bond taught some two dozen pupils, drilling them thoroughly in the three R's and the other elementary branches of the tree of knowledge, from 8 A. M. to 5 P. M., six days in the week for the greater part of a year. She was succeeded by Miss Mary L. Green, who afterward became Mrs. William I. Blakely, and she taught the school the following two sum- mers of 1839 and 1840. This primitive school house served the edu- cational interests of District No. 2 for several years, and later it was succeeded by a small frame building situated a little south of Bridge and east of what is now Scribner avenue. When the population of the district had increased so that still larger accommodations were needed, a larger, one-story frame building was erected on First street, on the site where St. Mary's Catholic Church now stands. Mil- ton S. Littlefield taught in this school for several years. In 1853 the district adopted the Union school organization and the Rev. James Ballard was chosen as the first principal of the newly organized school. In 1854, the frame school house was found inadequate to the growing needs of the district, and Ebenezer Anderson, one of the trustees, was given a contract to erect a new Union school house at the corner of Turner and West Broadway streets. In the following year the new school house was completed. Before the union of the school districts of the city in 1871, two other buildings-the old Tur- ner street and the Jefferson street schools-were erected. W. F. Kent succeeded Mr. Ballard as principal of the school in District No. 2. It was in his administration that the district took advantage of the act of the Legislature, passed in 1859, and graded the school and estab- lished a high school, in which algebra, geometry, and the higher branches of study were taught. From September, 1861, until June, 1865, Prof. J. C. Clark, of Port Jervis, N. Y., acted as principal of the school and was assisted in his labors by his wife, who was principal of the primary department. Before the union of the districts, Prof. Kent served another short term as principal, and Prof. Stewart Mont- gomery, later of Olivet College, was at the head of the schools when the districts were consolidated in 1871.
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HISTORY OF KENT COUNTY, MICHIGAN
District No. 6, or the Coldbrook district, as it was commonly called, included all that part of what is now the city which is north of a line midway between Newberry and Mason streets and east of Grand River, and it also extended one mile and a half north of the city lim- its. Prof. Franklin Everett taught in this district in the winter of 1852-53, and a Miss French taught the school in the following sum- mer. In 1859 the district purchased of C. W. Taylor the present school house site on Leonard street, and Foster Tucker, Judge Da- vis, Edmund Carrier, Seth Holcomb, and Jesse C. Wyckoff were ap- pointed a building committee to push forward the work of erecting a new school house. The contract was let to W. H. Stewart, and on April 24, 1860, the district accepted the school house built by him. The district enjoyed the advantages of the old Union school organiza- tion for some years, and at the annual meeting, Sept. 2, 1867, it was resolved to grade the schools and elect a board of six trustees in ac- cordance with the law of 1859. Among the early teachers in this district were A. J. Tucker and Maria A. Jipson, who taught in 1861 and 1862, and C. W. Borst, who served as principal of the school from 1862 to 1864. Other teachers, before the union of the districts, were Mr. and Mrs. G. H. Bell, Adelaide Tucker, and A. Carrier. Fannie Tucker was principal in 1867.
By an act of the Legislature of Michigan, approved March 15, 1871, it was provided "that the city of Grand Rapids and all contigu- ous territory which shall hereafter be added thereto, shall constitute one school district, and all public schools therein shall be under the direction and control of the Board of Education hereinafter provided for, and shall be free to all residents of said district over the age of five years." In accordance with this statute, at a public meeting called by Mayor L. H. Randall, in the old council chamber in the Ran- dall Block, April 11, 1871, District No. 2, or the West Side district ; District No. 6, or Coldbrook district, and District No. 1 were united, and the first board of education of the city of Grand Rapids was or- ganized from the trustees of the three districts.
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Anson J. Daniels became superintendent upon the consolidation of the three districts, in 1871, and of his services at that important era in the history of the schools, A. L. Chubb, president of the Board of Education, had the following to say in his annual report for 1871-72: "I may not omit mentioning in this report the excellent services of our superintendent. He had a great work before him, and it is but simple justice to say that it has been well and faithfully performed. General harmony and concert of action has been secured, and the ma- chinery of our school system, under the recent consolidation, has been put in successful operation. You have, in a practical way, recog- nized the value of his services. Personally, I desire to acknowledge the many obligations I am under to him for his hearty and ready co-operation in the solution of the many problems incident to the re- cent change in our school system, and which, in the march of progress, must constantly arise." In February, 1885, after more than a decade's service as superintendent of the schools, Mr. Daniels retired, and was succeeded by I. N. Mitchell.
Under Mr. Mitchell's superintendency the schools received a de- cided impetus in the direction of more advanced methods of educa-
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tion, which originated in the latter part of the Nineteenth Century. His was a vigorous mind, looking always into the future and ever on the alert for whatever seemed to promise better than the past-a mind impatient of using a worn-out system out of reverence to its grey hairs. Under his influence many who had become accustomed to face backward turned themselves about and a vast deal of conserva- tism, which is a good thing when it is not "too much of a good thing," was thus eliminated from the schools. Chiefly through Mr. Mitchell's efforts, a kindergarten was established in 1886, in connection with the schools, and maintained for two years, and kindergarten methods were introduced to a limited extent in the primary grades. In 1886, Mr. Mitchell became superintendent of the schools at Fond du Lac, Wis., and was succeeded here by F. M. Kendall, of Jackson, Mich.
As early as 1875, many interested ones recommended the passage of a law compelling children of certain ages to attend school for a specified time each year. Nothing was done for a number of years, but in 1883 there were so many complaints that a large number of children were not in school who ought to be, that the legislature passed an act providing for the establishment of truancy schools for pupils between the ages of seven and sixteen years. In 1884 an un- graded or truant school was established in Grand Rapids in accord- ance with this statute, and it was opened, Nov. 8, 1884, with an attend- ance of eight pupils. The number increased until the average attend- ance for the first year was thirty.
In 1884, the suggestion was made and acted upon that the Grand Rapids schools prepare an exhibit for the educational department of the International Exhibition to be held at New Orleans, in 1885. An appropriation was made to defray the expenses, and the following exhibit was arranged: The regular examination papers were all col- lected, and the representative work of each grade in each subject, bound uniformly, were forwarded to New Orleans. The work of the preceding year in drawing was also sent, together with a number of wood carvings, done after original designs by the high school pupils. Other features of the exhibit were: two cases of slate work taken from the first and second grade rooms without the foreknowledge of teacher or pupils; several Michigan albums made by the pupils of eighth grade rooms; a collection of photographs of representative school buildings ; microscopical drawings from the class in physiology and zoology ; a complete set of school blanks and forms; a group of relief maps showing the topography of the State, its geological forma- tion and the distribution of pine timber ; a large collection of cards showing the work of the first and second grades in geography, color, form and inventions. This work was done with colored shoe-pegs and small oblong blocks, and was finally presented to the French and Japa- nese commissioners. A diploma of honor was awarded for the general exhibit.
It was early in Mr. Daniels' administration that evening schools were introduced. The first evening schools were opened in the fall of 1872, and have since been maintained every winter as part of the school system, for the benefit of those whose employment prevents attendance at school in the daytime. These schools have been well attended, a large proportion of their pupils being Hollanders who
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wish to learn the English language, and young men and boys em- ployed during the day in furniture factories. A relatively large num- ber of girls also attend these schools. The sessions of the night school, and also of the ungraded school, were held for a number of years in the old stone mansion formerly occupied by the Peninsular Club, at the corner of Pearl street and Ottawa avenue, on the last fragment of Prospect Hill.
F. M. Kendall served as superintendent from 1887 until 1890, and. his successors up to the present time have been as follows: From 1891 to 1898, W. W. Chalmers; 1898 to 1900, F. R. Hathaway ; 1901 to 1906, William H. Elson; 1906 to 1918, William A. Greeson, pres- ent incumbent. The supervising force in 1917 was composed of the superintendent and one assistant. Truancy officers reported about 2,000 cases of special investigations, most of which were due to parental negligence or willfulness. The total school population of the city was 33,347, of whom 18,995 were enrolled in the public schools. The number of teachers employed was 775, and the amount paid in salaries, including the compensation of teachers in the evening and parochial schools and the Junior college, was $622,210.57. The value of the city's school property, as reported by the secretary, was as follows: Grounds, $603,285; buildings, $2,443,500; furniture, books, and general supplies, $365,000; trust funds, $1,500, making a total valuation of $3,413,285.
HIGH SCHOOLS
The first action toward the establishment of a high school in Grand Rapids was taken at the annual school meeting, Sept. 26, 1859, under Act No. 161 of the Session Laws of 1859, entitled: "An Act to establish Graded and High Schools." On motion of D. S. Leavitt, the Board was instructed to establish a high school in the district during the current year. Similar action was taken in regard to the West Side schools, but no graduating classes were organized there, the pupils seemingly preferring to finish their courses of study and receive their diplomas at the high school in No. 1 district. District No. 6, known as the Coldbrook District, did not grade its schools until 1867, and no effort was made there to establish a high school.
In 1871, Senator Byron D. Ball secured the passage of an act by the State legislature under which the establishment of a central high school in Grand Rapids was made possible, and the board was given power to erect the necessary buildings, employ teachers, etc. This school was opened in (or rather was a continuation of the former high school) in the First district school building at the corner of Lyon street and Barclay avenue. In 1892, the building now used by the Junior High School was erected and the school was removed there. In 1909 work was begun on the $400,000 building on the present site, on the north side of Fountain street, near Prospect avenue, and this was completed and ready for occupancy, Feb. 1, 1911. Notwithstand- ing that this fine new building was in course of construction, it was well understood that it would be inadequate for the rapidly growing city, and agitation was commenced for high schools on the west side and in the south end. In response to the demand, in 1910 an addi- tion was built to the Union school building on the west side, at the
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southwest corner of Fourth street and Turner avenue. This is now known as the Union High School. In 1913 it was decided to establish a high school in the south end, and accordingly, in 1914, a fine build- ing was erected on the south side of Hall street, between Salem and Jefferson avenues, and this is now designated as the South High School. In the last annual report of the Board of Education mention is made of a fourth high school now seriously being considered. It will be located in the orthern part of the city and will probably be called the Creston High School. According to this same report the three Grand Rapids high schools and the Junior High School em- ployed 128 teachers and had 2,894 pupils enrolled. All three of the high schools are on the accredited high school list of the University of Michigan.
MANUAL TRAINING
The first movement toward the introduction of manual training in the Grand Rapids public schools was on April 28, 1891, when the Board of Trade adopted a resolution urging the Board of Education to make some provision for teaching manual training in the school budget for 1892. The Board of Education failed to make any ap- propriation, however, and in 1896 Superintendent Chalmers ended his report with these significant words: "Manual training has come to be engrafted on our public school system. It has come to stay. It has come to harmonize the physical and intellectual; it has come to make productive all teaching and development, at whatever stage of growth the learner may withdraw from school; it has come to unite the intellectual to the highest physical sense." In October, 1900, the city council approved an appropriation of $5,000 for manual training and it was introduced during the school year into the Fifth, Sixth, and Seventh grades. The classes were started, Jan. 2, 1901, in charge of a director and six assistants, of whom one taught carpentry and joinery, one taught cooking, two knife work, and two sewing. Its introduction marked an event in popular education. George S. Waite was the first supervisor of manual training, beginning his duties in January, 1901. At the close of the school year he resigned and was succeeded by Vinnedge M. Russell. Since then manual training has been a permanent part of the city's school system, being cared for in the upper grades and the high school, with the addition of new appar- atus and new departments as the needs have required.
NORMAL TRAINING SCHOOL
In 1871, a training school for teachers was established in Primary No. 3 (afterward Fountain Street school), in which persons who wished to enter the schools as teachers were drilled in the work be- fore being placed in charge of rooms. This training school was kept up until 1878, when the Board of Education adopted a cadet system, by which each year several cadet teachers were employed at $200 per annum, each of whom was assigned to some teacher whom she assisted, and by whom she was instructed. In 1891, another training school was opened in the Jefferson Street school and was continued until 1894, when it was transferred to Wealthy Avenue school and. continued until June, 1900, when it closed, the establishment of State normal schools rendering the further continuance of the city training school unnecessary.
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KINDERGARTENS
In 1886, the kindergarten system of instruction was introduced in the Grand Rapids schools and was maintained to a limited extent for two years in the primary grades. After a lapse, a kindergarten was established in the annex on the grounds of the Grandville Avenue school, in April, 1889, and Mrs. C. D. Bourke, a teacher of experience in that work, was placed in charge. The demand for admittance was at once greater than the school could accomodate and two kinder- gartens were in operation throughout the following year. In 1891 that system of education had become so important a factor in the schools of the city that teachers of all grades were desirous, of under- standing the fundamental idea of the system, and Superintendent Chal- mers in his report recommended making it a part of the public school system. The Grand Rapids Kindergarten Association was organized, March 31, 1891, with a "charter list" of thirteen members. The ob- ject of the organization at that time was "to advance the cause of kindergartens and aid the growth of public sentiment in favor of kindergartens in our public schools." One of the first efforts of the association was the organization of a class of students for preliminary work in Kindergarten Normal training, supervised and conducted by Mrs. Clarence D. Bourke, then director of the kindergarten department of Grandville Avenue public school. Thirteen young women enrolled for this study of Froebel methods. In the Spring of 1891 a number of public meetings were held, assisted by the young women of the training class. In June, 1891, the association called to the city Mrs. Lucretia Willard Treat, of Chicago. A kindergarten of fifty children was organized and conducted during July and August, and Mrs. Treat also conducted classes for teachers. Such was the beginning of the Grand Rapids Kindergarten Association, which has become an insti- tution with a national reputation. Mrs. Treat, who was its moving spirit for many years, died Feb. 16, 1904, but her work has been suc- cessfully carried on until the present time by Miss Clara Wheeler. The Kindergarten grew rapidly in public favor and now constitutes an important part of Grand Rapids' public school system.
PUBLIC LIBRARY
This institution, now a valuable adjunct not only to the public schools but the citizens of Grand Rapids in general, was the out- growth of the Grand Rapids Lyceum Association and was started in 1843. The nucleus was a chest of books discovered in the attic of some school house and brought hither by a young lawyer. Some additions were made from time to time, chiefly by private gifts, until its catalogue showed two or three hundred volumes, mostly small, and miscellaneous in character. About 1850, by a formal vote, the association turned them over to the Mechanics' Mutual Protection lodge, and this organization added to the library somewhat, both by purchase and from contributions. When this society dissolved, in 1859, the library, with its other property, was distributed among the individual members. In the early part of 1858, a movement looking toward the establishment of a public library was set on foot. On Feb. 24, the first meeting of the association-or rather a meeting
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called for the purpose of organizing the association-was held in Luce's Hall, Rev. Dr. F. H. Cuming presiding. At another meeting on May 5 the association was formed, a constitution adopted, and the following officers were elected: William J. Welles, president ; Henry Martin, first vice-president ; Eben Smith, Jr., second vice-president ; John King Dunn, corresponding secretary ; Thomas C. Boughton, re- cording secretary ; Norris T. Butler, treasurer ; S. B. McCray, William Hovey, F. B. Gilbert, P. J. G. Hodenpyl, Charles H. Taylor, George H. Hess and Harvey Gaylord, managers. The association was an in- corporated stock company and began work with ninety-six members and fifty-one stockholders, a library of 771 volumes of selected works, and $769.14 in the treasury. The association continued in existence, with something of a hard struggle, for about three years. In October, 1861, through the decline of the proceeds of the lecture platform and some other causes, the association got in debt and was obliged to mortgage its library and fixtures for the security of a debt of $250. The membership fees were not sufficient to meet the running ex- penses and the members became discouraged. In December, 1861, the proposition was made to transfer the books of the library to the Board of Education of District No. 1, and they were removed to the Central School building and consolidated with the Public School Library. A small library of less than one hundred volumes had been collected by the district at an early date and was kept in the garret of the old stone schoolhouse. This library had received several con- siderable additions, among others the property of an organization known as the City Library, and with this acquisition numbered some 2,000 volumes. A room in the tower of the Central school house was occupied by the consolidated library, and owing to this location the circulation of the books was not general among citizens.
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