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Tuesday, 17 June 2008 |
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 Staff photo/Kay Louth
Contractors working on a project at Wayne Street United Methodist Church recently uncovered the foundation of the old West School building. Below is a photograph of the building.
By KAY LOUTH
Staff Writer
ST. MARYS — A piece of St. Marys’ history lingers on at the site of the future location of the new United Methodist Church sanctuary on Wayne Street. The brick foundation of one of St. Marys first public schools is currently under excavation at the construction site.
Local historian George Neargarder said the presence of the brick foundation came as a surprise to the excavation crew. Even though the soil was tested, not one of the soil borings struck brick. The old foundation will take at least another week and a half to clear, the project’s construction manager told The Evening Leader.
As the town grew, thanks in part to the Miami and Erie Canal and the population migration it brought, rural areas had enough population to sustain a rural school district. The first one was called Doute School in Noble Township for which residents were taxed $45. Zachariah Ice was contracted to build the school for $39. Its teacher, Mrs. Ellis was paid $10 a month.
In 1853, St. Marys was one of the first towns to organize a public school, which was built on Wayne Street, where the present location of the church’s educational center now stands. It was known as Union School.
The school attracted students from as far away as Piqua. Rapid population growth, driven by the discovery of oil in St. Marys in 1886, quickly led to overcrowding in the more than 30 year old school. In 1887, voters approved financing two new schools. West School was built just south of Union School and opened in 1888 under the direction of C. S. Wheaton. Newspaper accounts state it was a “magnificent brick structure.” East School was built on the site where the Eagles Lodge sits today on Spring Street.
West School had 10 large classrooms and housed elementary and high school students. At that time, it was simply known as St. Marys High School.
According to Board of Education minutes from 1877, the school’s census included 617 students. In 1878, the superintendent was paid $800 a year, a janitor was paid $24 a month and some teachers were paid $35 a month. One of the student policies in 1877 said students were not to bring bows and arrows or other dangerous play things to school.
By the early 20th century, the high school had overtaken most of the building, even though there were several ward schools in the area. Newspaper reports state that the old clock that graced the tower at West School was saved when the building was auctioned off in either 1959 or 1960. The clock languished in the basement of Memorial High School for years before being placed in the clock tower in Memorial Park.
Education in St. Marys underwent five distinct eras starting with Pay Schools from 1823 to 1853. Pay Schools were generally log cabins and were built on donated land.
Since school taxes did not exist in the area, support of the schools was the responsibility of the families who sent their children to the school. Tuition for a 10 to 15 week period was 50 cents a month or $1.50 per quarter.
In these schools, the teacher also served as superintendent, principal and custodian.
There were numerous small schools in existence from 1823 to the time Union School was built. There were schools that were in private residences as well as free-standing schools, including the Enterprise School, Four-Mile School, Barrington School, Hoelscher School and Ferguson School. Prior to World War I, the Board of Education constructed larger elementary schools, one at North Wayne and Indiana Avenue, known as Bunker Hill, and the First Ward School on Armstrong Park at the corner of Hendricks and Derrick streets. In 1923, voters approved financing for Memorial High School. The first graduating class was in 1925.
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Last Updated ( Friday, 20 June 2008 )
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