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Continued from the previous page The Nameless, Texas one-room schoolhouse, southwest of Leander, opened in 1909
and taught its final class in 1945. The building was completely restored in 2009.
required surgery as an adult as a result of
breaking his nose when he ran into another Freda Ditzler’s husband Charlie attend- that was built in 1858 and served as a
boy while running around the corner of the ed this one-room school in Gettysburg, hospital during the Battle of Gettysburg.
school playing andy over. PA. It was later purchased by President It was a school building for 97 years.
Eisenhower. Barbara and John Eisen- President Eisenhower later bought the
In most every school, there was a hower lived there with their family. It farm where the school was located, and it
Christmas program that required a lot later housed members of the Secret was remodeled to become the home of John
of advanced preparation. There would be Service. and Barbara Eisenhower and their family.
plays, songs and recitations. Ann Stratman Later, it housed secret service.
(N30) remembers a gift exchange when the BUILDINGS OF HISTORICAL Some old schools have been renovated and
biggest, meanest kid in school had drawn SIGNIFICANCE used as community buildings. In fact, there
her name. Her older brothers teased her is one in our area. As you drive east on
there would be no gift for her, but there What was the future of country schools? Highway 29 toward Taylor, you go through
was, and, to her delight, it was a set of They changed with the times, and as more Jonah. The community center there on the
children’s story books. She loved books, resources became available, some added left used to be a school! Grace Bulgerin’s
and these were all hers! electricity and even running water with husband attended this school.
inside bathrooms! Unfortunately, though, Larry Dixon (N03) leaves us with this
QUALITY OF EDUCATION as the rural population diminished, schools thought-provoking question, “With all the
were closed for lack of pupils, a sad day, changes we have seen since 1936, what’s
Unfortunately, many of the boys stayed and students had to change to city schools. next?”
at home to work on the farm after eighth
grade. In fact, in a time before WWI, my What happened to the buildings Contributors thanks:
father was expected, as the oldest son, themselves? They have deteriorated and Connie Aldrich, Phil Brubaker, Grace
to stay home after the fourth grade. He most are now non-existent. The site of my Bulgerin, Delmar Burkett, Freda Ditzler,
could read and knew his numbers, and the school is still owned by the county but is Larry Dixon, Lenor Doering-Brawner,
feeling was that was enough! He and other now a vacant plot. Conrad Feller, Jo Ann Galbreath, Roger
farmers we knew stayed self-educated by Groh, Arnold Hall, Jack Hall, Dr. L.
reading books and studying the atlas. Several of our residents’ schools have Dean Hempelmann, Robert Johnston,
become places of historic significance. Mike Lavka, Pam Ludlow, Chub Meeker,
My parents worried about my siblings Freda Ditzler’s (N64) husband, Charlie, Barbara Meyers, Sherry Mock, Darlene
and I going to a one-room country school, attended a school in Gettysburg, PA Moseley., Marilyn Palzkill, Milton Ritter,
but time has shown it to be an advantage, Bill Stauss, Ann Stratman, Sondra
possibly because of more individual Sumner, Sherry Thomas, Darrell West,
attention, students listening to older Jane Wirth, Robert Zagrodzky, Freda
students recite, as well as the teachers Ditzler,Sandy Hall, Dean Hempelmann
often letting older students work with
younger ones. Remember, too, there was ONLINE: SCTEXAS.ORG
motivation to prepare for those math and
spelling bees with a chance to show off
to the community! When I went to city
school starting in the sixth grade, I had
never had another student in my grade
and was amazed at two whole rooms of
sixth graders, but I had listened to others
recite and already knew most everything
that was taught through the eighth
grade! Arnold Hall (N18) commented, “An
education system which, on the surface,
seemed humble, for some of us culminated
in college degrees and rewarding careers.
The quality of the teachers turned out to
be much more important than the quality
of the building.”
500 | SUNRAYS SEPTEMBER 2017
