Dr. Alma Freeland: Douglas School, 1915-1951 - Smith Co, TX Contributed by Dr. Alma Moore Freeland Submitted by East Texas Genealogical Society P. O. Box 6967, Tyler, TX 75711 Copyright. All rights reserved. http://usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm ***************************************************************** Memories of School Days in Tyler and Some Smith County Schools 1898-1951 By Alma Moore Freeland (1904-1991) A copy of this book is in the Tyler Public Library. Permission has been given by Jerry Moore, nephew, to publish articles from this book in the Smith County TXGenWeb Archives. DOUGLAS SCHOOL - TYLER, TEXAS 1915-1951 In the spring of 1915, Professor J. R. Moore accepted the offer from the Tyler Public School Board to complete the term of the principal who had resigned and to take over in the fall as regular principal of the Douglas School. Little did he realize at that time that he and one or more members of his family would be associated with that school for the next thirty-six years. When school closed in Winona, Mamma took us to Troup; Papa found a place to board in Tyler and joined us each weekend. We looked forward all week to his visit. Friday afternoons found us four Moore children bathed, dressed in our clean everyday clothes, sitting on the front porch. Each of us wanted to be the first to hear the lonesome train whistle about a mile away at Troup, or to catch the first glimpse of Papa as he turned the corner in the long lane leading to our house. I know how tired he must have been as he trudged along the sandy road, his coat thrown over his shoulder and in one hand a suitcase of clothes to be washed the next day down at the well. We were most curious about a big mysterious brown bag he always brought with him. Mamma would stand in the doorway behind us, going frequently back to the wood-burning cookstove where no doubt she had one of her delicious chicken pies in the oven! Despite the almost unbearable heat, Mamma always managed to look neat and trim in her starched gingham dress and apron. On Sunday afternoons Papa would return to Tyler, and our vigil would begin again. Now the brown bag? We learned that it was a custom then for the children in a different classroom each week to give the teachers a "shower." Papa liked to tease us, and would delay as long as possible taking out the delicious oranges, apples, grapes, bananas and other fruit. It was such a treat for US. In late August we moved to Tyler; it was to be our final out of town move. Of course we returned to our little Troup haven several summers, but it was never again the same. We had new interests and new friends. I think even Mamma, who adored her Troup home, came to agree, as I have, With Thomas Wolfe, "You can't go home again." I for one wanted to be in Tyler for I had discovered the Carnegie Library with all its fascinating books. One tender moment comes to mind. Mamma knew how important such things were to me. We were getting ready to leave for Troup. Standing at the ironing board with my right hand pushing the iron over the garment, my left hand was holding a book I was trying to finish before we left the next day. Suddenly Mamma took the iron, pushed me aside, and said--"Read your book." Our first home in Tyler was located on the northeast corner of South Fleishel and East Front Streets. It, along with three other houses we lived in on Front Street, was destroyed in the early 1950's when the City widened the street. We didn't rent the house very long; the o wner, Mr. Watkins in his buggy, called on us by daylight on payday. Mamma was indignant; she prided herself on paying just debts promptly and she began to look for another place to live. She found it just down the street one block away; we called it the Funderburgh place and lived there several years. Our neighbors were so wonderful that several years later we bought a corner lot across the street and built Mamma's dream house--402 Saunders and Front Streets. The Burtons, Funderburghs, Starrs and other neighbors played a big part in our family. Morris Burton, who lives in Tyler now, was the "whiz kid" of the neighborhood; he was so knowledgeable that we all stood in awe of him--and maybe still do! Early one Monday morning in September 1915, Papa left our new home and walked the two miles through the Cotton Belt Shops to take up his duties as Principal of Douglas School. It was a new experience for Mae and me; for the first time he would not be our principal--we were to enroll at Bonner School two blocks away. The boys were not yet old enough to go to school. When Travis reached school age, there was no room for him at Bonner and he was permitted to go with Papa each morning. He was fortunate in that his first grade teacher was Miss Bonna Whitaker who later married Mr. Sam Goodman, an outstanding Tyler businessman. Our first Thanksgiving in Tyler was spent at the Watkins place. Papa went with several of his colleagues to San Antonio to attend his first meeting of the Texas State Teachers Association. It is likely that some pressure from the administration was used to encourage their attendance for I'm sure our family budget was strained at the time. Mamma tried to make it a happy season for us; she cooked a delicious dinner--pork roast with dressing (a great substitute for turkey or chicken), candied sweet potatoes, turnips and pumpkin pie. It was a lonely time for her and, unfortunately, not the last Thanksgiving we spent alone for TSTA met annually at that time and Papa always attended. Mae and I joined him later on. Eventually it became apparent that Papa's transportation problem had to be solved. The daily walk to and from Douglas plus frequent trips to the superintendent's office on West Front Street took too much energy and time. So we bought our first automobile, a Model-T Ford Number 347. It was a memorable day; never was there a car as treasured and protected--so often cleaned and polished! It literally changed our lives. No longer did Papa have walk through the shops each morning or make the long trip through town. He had only to crank the car, hop in and bump along the dusty, potholed streets--East Front to South Broadway, thence to the brick-paved Courthouse Square, out North Broadway to East Bow and to the Douglas School yard. We were almost jealous of Travis who got to ride in the new car every day when he started to school at Douglas. Mamma enjoyed it too, for it enabled her to make frequent trips to Troup, Omen and Whitehouse. The happy days at the Funderburgh place came to an end when Papa was advised to live in the district where he taught. We bought our first home in Tyler--a lovely house on East Queen Street, a few blocks from Douglas. Mae and the boys could walk to school, but I was not so lucky. It was almost three miles to Tyler High School, and I had to walk most of the way down the railroad track. Again we had fine neighbors--the Rices, Daniells and Eubanks. Later on Bland Eubanks and Ora Rice both taught with Papa at Roberts School. But across the street from our house it was a different matter! Transients of the lowest level moved in and out weekly. It was simply too much for Mamma; we soon sold the place and purchased a house on East Laurence in East Tyler next door to Professor W. V. Boone and family. He was principal of Bonner and a former classmate of Papa's from Troup. Each morning Papa deposited Mae, Travis and Bruce at Bonner; I rode on with him to high school. I found the three-mile walk home in the afternoons not too bad after I learned to study Latin verbs along the way. I can recall only one special incident at the Queen Street house. It happened one day when the family went to Troup and left me to cook supper. Cornbread was on the menu and I needed an egg from the henhouse. We had a fine jersey cow but only Papa could handle her. She was at the far end of the lot, and I decided I could slip in and out before she saw me. As I emerged from the henhouse the cow was standing at the door. I wanted to distract her and threw out an armful of hay. A couple of hours later when the family returned, the fire had gone out in the cookstove, the food was half done, there was no cornbread, and Alma was still in the henhouse. The cow, who by that time had consumed about a bale of hay, stood at the door. I agreed with Mamma it was time to move; the trouble was the jersey cow was to go with us. My father was always extremely proud of Douglas School--the parents, teachers, children and community in general. He recognized that together they had built a strong program. As an observer I was inclined to agree with him; I was even more convinced after joining the faculty as a substitute for teachers on leave in January of 1925, and again in the spring of 1931. 1 was certainly grateful to the Parent Teachers Association when that group presented me with a beautiful strand of Delta pearls on my graduation from Tyler High School in January 1923. 1 still wear them with pride. From examination of recollections, newspaper and other types of publicity, and conferences with former students and teachers, I find many concrete examples of how individuals and groups worked together to improve the physical, academic, cultural, and emotional growth of the learners in Douglas School in the early years. I am amazed at the extent to which many parents and teachers worked and sacrificed to provide a good school. Some examples follow: Today it would be difficult to imagine a situation where almost every able-bodied adult in a community would come Saturday to join the teachers and children on the school grounds to help remove the rubble of a recently demolished schoolhouse. But that is exactly what happened several times at Douglas and other Tyler Ward schools in 1917. Attired in work clothes, sturdy shoes, gloves, broad brimmed straw hats and sunbonnets, young and old alike filled their buckets, tubs and other containers and carried the debris to designated places. The cleaned spaces became the future playgrounds; the new buildings were already located on the old play areas. Of course considerable money was saved by the school board, but that in the long run was unimportant when compared to the feeling of accomplishment of those who said: "We did it--this school is ours." Then there was the time Douglas School wanted a piano. Nobody thought of requesting funds from the school board; such an item didn't come under the head of "bare essentials." Instead everyone pitched in, staged a program, and used the money for a down payment on a good second-hand instrument. No one noticed it really needed tuning; its discordant sounds were usually wiped out by the high, sweet voices of the joyful young singers! The teachers once prepared a program and used the proceeds for a new victrola. Everyone enjoyed the city-wide contests, debates, declamation, athletic contests and parades. The floats were designed and decorated by parents, teachers, and children. On May 5, 1925 Douglas won the the first prize for its float Progress in America, in parade. Among Douglas' several entries in the May Festival on that date was the Fan Drill which I, along with eighty girls from the intermediate grades, had practiced on for weeks. The girls were in dainty costumes and flourished their fans in unison along with their leader. The city-wide program was presented to mark the formal dedication of the new athletic field. Nearly three thousand school participants were in the parade, and thousands of spectators lined the streets. According to the Courier Times "the parade drove home to the minds of school patrons the high standards being maintained in the Tyler Public Schools." A published note of appreciation from Professor G. 0. Clough, the superintendent at that time, pleased all of us who had tried our best to do a good job. I had joined the faculty of Douglas School in January, and the May Festival helped me to forget a less pleasant experience that spring. Although I had already taught a year as principal of the S tarrville School, this was my first time to teach in Tyler. I had little college background, and felt a bit self-conscious for I was the principal's daughter; but most of all I despised any kind of athletics. To spend all day on a windy, sandy or otherwise uncomfortable playground trying to manage a hundred primary or a dolescent pupils in organized calisthenics was not a pleasant or memorable experience for me. One day when I spotted the real troublemakers, I lashed out in no uncertain terms, unaware that the principal was observing me. He made no attempt to interfere or to assist me; he said simply, "Miss Moore, may I see you in the office?" Throughout the conference he maintained his role as principal of Douglas School who felt genuine concern for a young, inexperienced teacher. But I never forgot his advice during the next fifty years, "When you lose your temper, you lose your pupils." My second teaching experience at Douglas was five yeras later in the spring of 1931. In the meantime I had acquired a B.A. degree from Texas Tech and three more years teaching experience. When I came home for the Christmas holidays I found my mother terminally ill, so I decided to resign my position as language arts teacher i n the Margaret Wills School in Amarillo and take over the responsibilities at home. I had settled down into a sort of routine when again an offer came to complete the year for a teacher on leave of absence. The teaching assignment included instruction in intermediate grade language arts at Douglas in the forenoon, and art instruction at Marsh School in the afternoons. My first problem was settled when my Aunt Tiry, who lived in Whitehouse, agreed to take care of Mamma during the week. Papa, who was then principal of Roberts Junior High School, offered to take me to Douglas each morning. After that I was on my own--by that I mean my own two feet! I ate my sack lunch while I walked the mile to Marsh. Incidentally, anybody who allows only thirty minutes for an art period ought to be penalized--that one should try to do it! To say I was frustrated is an understatement. By the time we had distributed the materials and given directions, only a few minutes were left for drawing or painting. After school and I had cleaned up the mess, I started home on the high heels I had teetered around in all day. Those must have been some of my most stupid days; style was very important to me then, and it didn't occur to me to take along an extra pair of shoes for walking and standing. I finally learned, but not until I had to consult the "foot doctor" in my last teaching days. One day when I was beginning to enjoy my Douglas classes I realized there were a lot of visitors from the "powers-that-be." In the course of a few days I saw sitting at the back of my classroom: Mr. J. M. Hodges, superintendent of Tyler Schools; Mrs. Hazel Ownes and Miss Pearl Robertson, supervisors; Mr. F. M. Mathis, principal of Bonner and Gary; and of course my princiapl at Douglas and Marsh, Mr. L. R. Herring. I attributed my unusual nervousness to the fact that I was always hungry; I was trying to lose some of those pounds collected in Amarillo. The mystery was solved when Mr. Hodges called me to his office and said: "Miss Alma, the School Board and I would like for you to accept a new position as Assistant Principal to Mr. Mathis at Bonner School . . . beginning in the fall." Naturally, I was awed at the prospect of serving as assistant to Mr. Mathis, whom I had known for years as a family friend and as Papa's colleague. - My father kept assuring me that I had nothing to worry about, that I had already served as principal of Starrville School for four years. He failed to point out that Bonner was at least five times as big as Starrville, a little rural school. Furthermore, he suggested that Mr. Mathis as principal would naturally assume most of the responsibilities. Well, he didn't, and I did! In the long run that turned out to be a real blessing, for I was forced to learn every single aspect of the principal's role; consequently I was ready to assume full responsibility for Bonner School in the fall of 1932; a position I am told was unique in the history of Tyler Public Schools up to that time. I was Tyler's first full-time woman principal at the elementary school level. If it were not a fact it would be difficult for one to believe that I worked at Douglas a third time as a substitute. At the time Mr. Edward Potter was principal but he was on leave of absence and serving in the Armed Services during World War II. I was assistant superintendent in charge of Elementary and Junior High School Instruction, and of course available to serve wherever my superintendant needed me. It was a hectic but happy period; I was expected to work at Douglas each morning and try to act as a supervisor in the afternoons. Douglas School was then located in a new building and attractive location. The faculty was so cooperative and each teacher seemed to want to help; there are many happy memories of those days.