SCHOOLS of the BOUNDARY Susan Dahlo Published exclusively for the Kettle River Museum November 5, 2008 1 The following record of all the rural schools in the Boundary area has been a research project of Sus a n Dahlo and is an ongoing p r o j e c t. I acknowledge with gratitude the invaluable knowledge, r e s e a r c h , w o r k and generosity of Alice Glanville who compiled this information into a book called “Schools of the Boundary 1891- 1991” in 1991. SCHOOLS OF THE BOUNDARY 2 Established Page Kettle River 1891 15 Boundary Creek (later Midway) 1894 20 Anarchist Mountain 1896 31 Greenwood 1896 40 Camp McKinney 1897 49 Grand Forks 1897 53 Rock Mountain 1897 65 Cascade 1899 73 Phoenix 1899 77 Kettle River North 1899 84 Columbia 1899 88 Deadwood 1900 89 Eholt 1900 93 Rock Creek 1900 95 Anaconda 1901 108 Boundary Falls 1901 110 Ingram Mountain 1905 116 Bridesville 1907 124 Carson 1908 129 Myncaster 1909 131 Rock Creek (Lower) 1910 Kettle Valley 161 Fife 1911 181 Berrydale 1911 185 Gilpin 1912 187 Hilltop 1913 180 Sand Creek 1913 190 Christina Lake 1915 192 Coltern 1916 195 Christian Valley 1917 196 Brown Creek 1919 203 Rhone 1920 206 Westbridge 1920 216 Norwegian Creek 1921 222 Kerr Creek 1923 226 Paulsen 1923 227 Rock Creek (Upper) 1925 228 Beaverdell 1925 238 Carmi 1938 236 Wal1ace Mountain 1939 237 Crouse Creek 1944 239 Fish Lake 1950 240 Doukhobors in School 242 3 Outlook 1917 245 Spencer 1920 246 Fruitova 1928 248 Cascade built 1899 26'x42' Kettle River North provided by residents Deadwood built 1900 23'x27' Eholt provided by residents Rock Creek provided by residents Anaconda built 1901 27' x33' Boundary Falls built 1905 26'x 40' on one acre 1898-1899 Common Schools: Anarchist Mountain Kettle River Grand Forks Greenwood Assisted Schools: Camp McKinney Cascade City Kettle River North Assisted School: This meant that the government provided the teachers' salaries and the community looked after the construction of the building and tended to the maintenance and repair. New School Buildings: Cascade City Greenwood Additions: Grand Forks 4 This map was in Alice Glanville’s “Schools of the Boundary”. It indicates where all the schools of the area were located. SCHOOLS OF THE BOUNDARY 5 The last decade of the Nineteenth Century was an exciting time for the Boundary District with settlers coming into this pioneer land. These settlers did more than till the land, hew the forest, and unearth the minerals, they brought with them certain values and ideals that became the foundation of our society. One of these values, the importance of education for their children, resulted in the establishment of schools. In the Boundary, from 1891 on, forty one-room schools were in operation at various times, as well as larger schools at Grand Forks, Greenwood, and Phoenix. These schools, with a limited contact with the outside world, were the centre of the community, strongly interwoven into the lives of the people. Because of the geographical nature of the Boundary country, schools were opened that could not be permanent. The mining camp or the farm community which formed the nucleus for the school would change. In mining camps, such as Camp McKinney and Paulson, when the mines could no longer fulfill their original promise, the people would move. As P.H. Sheffield stated in the 1924-25 Annual School Report: "In my opinion, a pioneer school of this sort established in a cheaply constructed building justifies its existence even if it remains open only a few years." In other places, such as Greenwood or Beaverdell, the mines proved more steady and the little school continued or grew as did the settlement. In the farming communities, the one room school constantly struggled to keep open. As the young children in the families grew up, others were not always there to replace them. So many rural children started school at four or five years old in order to keep the school open. Most of these first school buildings have since disappeared. Some schools burned down, many were torn down and some were moved to other locations. Some were replaced with buildings which were more in keeping with a growing and prosperous community. Before the memories become too dim or fade away entirely, it is interesting to look back at the schools and the school system. No schools existed in the Boundary until 1891. In fact British Columbia did not have a Minister of Education until 1891. In 1891 over half the children in British Columbia received no formal education. In the Grande Prairie area, however, the settlers were busy making plans for a school. The first School District was organized on May 14, 1891 and the first school, the Kettle River School, was opened in the fall of 1892. The one-room schoolhouse actually represented a radical, modernizing shift in education. Historically, rich people paid to educate their children, and churches provided schools for select poor children. The idea of free schooling for all children was controversial at best. Wealthy people balked to think of their children attending school alongside paupers. British Columbia's education system came from Ontario. In the 1820's, Bishop John Strachan started the formal educational system in Canada, and it grew under the able management of a Methodist minister, Reverend Doctor Egerton Ryerson in the 1840's. In 1859, John Jessop, a graduate of 6 Ryerson's Normal School and strong advocate of this public system, left his teaching position in Ontario and headed west with the idea of striking it rich in the goldfields of British Columbia. Instead of striking it rich in the goldfields, his legacy was more widespread, long-lasting and rewarding. He was instrumental in designing the Public School Act of 1872 which established the pattern for today's public education system. John Jessop, with his concept of non-denominational, tax supported public education set the broad guidelines of our school system. The Public School Act was passed in 1872, a year after the first government of British Columbia was formed, and John Jessop was appointed as Superintendent of Education. Among his duties he was “to deliver, in each School District, at least once a year, a public lecture on some subject connected with the objects, principles and means of practical education and to do all in his power to persuade and animate parents, guardians, trustees and teachers to improve the character and efficiency of the Public Schools, and to secure the sound education of the young generally." On his inspection travels, he used whatever transportation was available, going by steamer, stage, horseback, and canoe to schools throughout the province. The Public School Act of 1872 provided for the election of a local board of three school trustees. They were responsible for maintaining the school property and accounting for the school money, paying the teacher and providing supplies. A new School Act in 1897 gave the local school boards the right to hire and fire their own teachers. For the 40 one room schools in the Boundary there were 40 school boards, each responsible for its own school. This system for managing schools was basically the one that prevailed from the opening of the first school until the consolidation of schools in 1946. By amendment to the School Act in 1901, provision was made for the creation of additional city school districts. In consequence of this, the thirteen cities of Kootenay and Yale were erected into city school districts, as follows: Columbia, Grand Forks, Greenwood, Kamloops, Kaslo, Nelson, Phoenix, Revelstoke, Rossland, Sandon, Slocan City, Trail and Vernon. The Government grant to city districts depended entirely upon the average daily attendance of pupils, so the Department of Education knew that it was in the best financial interests of the cities to insist on attendance of the students at school. In launching the cities on their new career with part of the financial burden of their schools to bear, the Provincial Government granted generous aid towards purchase of sites and construction of additional buildings needed. The cities of Grand Forks, Greenwood, Nelson, Revelstoke and Rossland were thus very materially aided. Britannica, 11th edition of 1910 From the : "The educational system of British Columbia differs slightly from that of other provinces of Canada. There are three classes of schools; common, graded and high, all maintained by the government and all free and un-denominational. There is only one college in the province, the "McGill University College of British Columbia" at Vancouver, which is one of the colleges of McGill University, whose chief seat is at Montreal. The schools are controlled by trustees selected by the ratepayers of each school district, and there is a superintendent of education acting under the provincial secretary." 7 Most of the teachers in the very early years were conscientious and dedicated people, but they lacked training and experience. Prior to 1901, standards, training and qualifications for teachers were almost non Women of British Columbia existent. In the book, , Jan Gould writes: “By 1873, Jessop and the Board of Education had prepared examinations to assess teacher's abilities. Two standards were applied, one for male teachers and one for women teachers. The examinations included topics such as English Grammar, Bookkeeping Double Entry, Education and the Art of Teaching, History and English Literature, Vocal Music, Natural Philosophy, Mensuration (Measurement), Animal and Vegetable Physiology, and Euclid. For men, the averages were based on their marks in all subjects; for women, the averages were based on all except the mathematical subjects.