OHIO STATEWIDE FILES - Jockey Hollow School A Oneroom School 1850-1935 *************************************************************************** OHGENWEB NOTICE: All distribution rights to this electronic data are reserved by the submitter. Reproduction or re-presentation of copyrighted material will require the permission of the copyright owner. *************************************************************************** File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by Arthur H. Laube Zurlauben@mindspring.com January 30, 1999 *************************************************************************** ***NOTE to Maggie: Remember to picture on index page.*** Jockey Hollow - a One Room School The last generations to attend Jockey Hollow, I would say were very fortunate. They of course had to bear the discomforts of the outdoor privy, and most walked to school over roads that were either muddy or dusty, and sometimes covered with drifted snow. But they learned to take care of each other, they were civil to one another, and as adults they were responsible citizens. Above all else they knew there was a right way and a wrong way. They maybe didn't always stay on the narrow path so well described by John Bunyon in Pilgrim's Progress, but if they strayed they at least knew they were straying. Here are a few of the last students to attend Jockey Hollow, followed by a few of the first students and a few from the intermediate years, and a story or two. In 1924, the farm, which included the small plot of school ground, was owned by John W. CLARK. The fall of that year, Betty Jean CLARK, his eldest child, began school as a near-six-year-old. She continued at Jockey Hollow through the spring of 1929, when the CLARK family moved to nearby Glass Rock. Brother, John Evan CLARK, joined her in the fall of 1927. The two CLARK children were surrounded by a crowd of cousins. One of them, Reynold (Ray) HAZLETT, has joined in these remembrances. Listed in alphabetical order are every student the three of them can remember, without regard as to the exact year they attended: Alden, Edward (Edy), Mary and Lucille AXLINE;* Ferrel BARE; Dora, Fawn and Flossie(twins), Halbert, John, Kenneth, Pansy and Pearl (twins) and Ross CAMPBELL;* Irene COBLE; Gerald, Reynold (Ray), Kenneth, Lillian and Bernard HAZLETT*; Ivan, Floyd and Lawrence MITCHELL; Reynold and Meredith MOHLER; Aurel, Elmer, Sadie, Ruby and four or five other SNOOK; Philip, Fred and Delpha TAYLOR, also Harley, Joe and Jack TAYLOR. Betty Jean's cousins are marked with an*. Everyone was related to everyone. Ray reports that Lawrence MITCHELL is first-cousin to Ray's father, Olin HAZLETT; Lawrence just turned 90 a few days ago. Three teachers were: Florence HARE, Fern LECKRONE and Glorinne HENDERSON. Evan CLARK recalls that he was Glorinne's first student. He was the only one in the first grade when Glorinne came to teach in the fall of 1927. She was the last teacher at Jockey Hollow; they closed it in 1932 and began bussing to Glenford. Olin HAZLETT was one of the first school bus drivers. We had the very great honor of visiting with Glorinne HENDERSON at the 1996 reunion of Glenford High School. This was Betty Jean's 60th high school graduation anniversary. Ninety-year-old Glorinne HENDERSON GORDON remembered her and her aunt, Faye CLARK LECKRONE and she inquired about Faye; they had been in high school together. School in these last years was not much changed from the first years. There were more women teachers, unmarried of course, than men, whereas at first there had been many more men. The same school bell called out across the fields. And if the ringer was to enthusiastic the bell would flip over, as it had always threatened. When that happened an agile older student would climb up into the belfry and disentangle the rope and the bell. Pony races were but one of many excitements that stimulated the young minds of the students in the closing days of the school, just as they had in the first days of Jockey Hollow. In the last years of the school it was the Axline's pony against Robert GORDON'S pony. Clarence AXLINE built a shed on Olie CAMPBELL'S land, across the road from the school, to house a horse or two and a cart. His children came to school in a pony drawn cart. The pony was fed and watered and waited patiently for the return trip home. Robert GORDON kept his pony there also. There was the inevitable badgering, "My pony is faster than yours." Answered by, " 'Tis not." On many a fine day this resulted in a race - down to the bridge and back. As if foreordained, Bob GORDON fell off his pony and broke his elbow. And that may have been the last Jockey Hollow pony race. There was at least one other significant injury in those last years: the boys allowed the girls to have the uncontested use of the school yard while they repaired to a field across the road for a soft-ball game. Rocks marked the bases. On a close call at second, Jack TAYLOR slipped and cracked his elbow on the rock-marker. We were thinking of the fearful pain those kids felt, and of the young teacher out there in the country, miles from a doctor. What examples of courage and resourcefulness were set by that young teacher and the older students! Other outdoor games were not quite so dangerous: May I? Prisoners Base. By far the most popular was Andy Over! For this latter game, the students chose sides, one half on one side and the other half on the other side of the school building. A strong thrower called "Andy over" and tossed a ball over the roof of the school house. If it was caught by the other side, that person could go around the school and attempt to hit one of the opponents. If successful the one hit had to leave that group and join the other group. During the noon hour on a rainy day, Tic-tac-toe at the black board was the most popular indoor game. And there were chores to be done. Usually these were privileges granted to the best students. For one, the ever popular cleaning of the erasers. Banging the chalk filled erasers against a tree provided very satisfying clouds of white dust. A water crock with a spigot was the pride of the school and the all time favorite chore was bringing cool, clear water from Olie CAMPBELL'S spring. Which takes us to some earlier generations. In 1860, the Perry County Board of Education reported that there were eight one-room schools in Hopewell Township. Jockey Hollow school on Abraham BOWSER'S 109-acre sheep farm in Section 12, Hopewell Township, Perry County, Ohio, was known to be numbered as #1. It was no doubt built as a result of the recent law (1853) which was the basis for Ohio's educational system for the rest of that century. For instance: the law guaranteed a free education (eight-years and later 12), provision was made for raising money by taxation, teacher's requirements were better defined, and county libraries were funded. Jockey Hollow started with the lower grades and as children advanced into the higher grades these were added. There were ultimately eight-grades. About 1855, Abraham's 12-year-old son, John, began in the first grade. Abraham's brother, Henry, was his next door neighbor to the east. Henry's 12-year-old Louisa, 10-year-old Susannah and 9-year-old Edward were all there. Now we advance toward the turn of the century, and we know these CLARKS who lived 3/4 of a mile to the east all graduated from Jockey Hollow: They were descendants of John Milton CLARK and two Plank cousins, first with Mary A., and second with Susannah PLANK. Mary A.'s daughter, Mary E. CLARK, born: 1855. In 1879 she married John B. DUSENBERRY and moved out of the Jockey Hollow School district. Susannah Plank and John Milton CLARK'S children all attended Jockey hollow: Elmer Ellsworth CLARK m Allie Lorena CAMPBELL (she was from near by Section 6, Madison Twp. Clara Leota CLARK Born: m.1866 Robert Rob S. CAMPBELL Mary A. CLARK Born: 1869 (May have married a Sny(I)der) Emma CLARK Born: 1875 James WALSER Meta CLARK Born: 1881 Elmer WALSER ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Elmer Ellsworth CLARK and Allie Lorena CAMPBELL's children are some of the students mentioned above in the introduction, Charles Wilbur CLARK Born: 1887 m Lettie H. PYLE - moved away. Rena May CLARK Born: 1890 m Olin HAZLETT They are the parents of those HAZLETT children named in the introduction. John Wesley CLARK born: 1896 m Ada Miriam ORR. Their first children were Betty Jean and John Evan, both went to Jockey Hollow. They had two other children Anna Louise and William Holmes.. Elsie Marie CLARK b 1800 m. Claude KING moved away. Faye Mildred CLARK Born: 1907 m Edgar LECKRONE moved away. (Faye is our only surviving Aunt) ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ (Ray reports, "They had a little pony and cart that they rode in to school;" Christmas at Jockey Hollow (A Story by John Evan Clark) The 1927 celebration of the birthday of Jesus the Christ, was memorable in a very special way. The Christmas tree, as usual filled one end of the schoolroom. It had a beauty that few readers will ever have seen. Candles on every limb provided a spectacular lighting effect. But now the attention of children and parents is fixed upon Santa. He is giving out popcorn balls to each child who had been good all year. And they all have been very, very good! Amazing! As Santa stoops over to get another supply of gifts from his bag, his coat bulges out in the rear and touches one of the candles. Santa goes out the window quicker than he ever came down a chimney. The story has a happy ending with Santa cooling off his derriere in a convenient snow drift.