MEMORIES OF STARRVILLE SCHOOL TEACHING DAYS - Smith County, 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. MEMORIES OF STARRVILLE SCHOOL TEACHING DAYS The Starrville community holds a very unique place in the Moore family memories. I have already written stories for "Chronicles of Smith County" about this relationship. One story, "Starrville, The Second Time Around", highlights the years my sister and I taught in the Starrville School in the 1923-29 period. This account is designed to supplement those memories. My sister, Mae, was born in Starrville on March 10, 1906, while our father was school principal there. I was too young to remember events of those two years we lived in Starrville, but have been told that Papa often let me go to school with him and ring the school bell. No one dreamed that later Mae and I would also teach in the community and ring the same bell. In fact, I taught my first two years in the same school building as did our father. A fine new building was erected before Mae joined me. Now one of John R. and Lola Hill Moore's great- granddaughters is hoping she will be permitted some day to add "the bell" to her collection. Thus far she has expressed no interest in joining the teaching profession, but who knows? My hope is that it may once again hold a place of honor on a school teacher's desk! Some events of those intervening years are described in the story "Papa Rangthe Bell" which was printed in Cronicles, Winter 1977 issue. After leaving Starrville, we lived two years in Denton where Papa received his degree from North Texas State Teachers College. My brother Travis was born October 14, 1908 during our Denton days. Beginning in the fall 1909, Papa served two years each as school superintendent in Whitehouse, where our brother Bruce was born; in Tatum where I started to school; and in Winona, Mae's first school. Tyler became our permanent home in 1915 when Papa became principal of Douglas School. Due to eye trouble, my graduation from Tyler High School was delayed a half year to January 1923. The following September I returned to Starrville with Papa's bell and served as principal for four years. It was my first time to be away from home other than visits with kinfolk. I had not yet been to college and felt totally inadequate despite Papa and Mamma's assurance that I could do it! That was my cue--I knew I had to. I had taken the state examinations after my graduation and had received a permanent certificate which I would use until I completed required courses for a B.A. degree, but this did not occur until a year after I left Starrville. How I wish I had known all the facts about Starrville that Andy Leath and James Wilkins recorded in Chronicles, Summer 1984. It is a gold mine of material--a magnificent collection of historical and genealogical facts, and should be of interest to those whose roots are in and around the pioneer Starrville Community. In a general way I knew that Starrville had once been an important community in Smith County, but I was unaware that sitting before me in history classes-- American and Texas--were descendants of many notables of area history. I would have helped those young students appreciate and learn more about their forebears whose courage and dedication helped to make Starrville the place it was. But unfortunately my mind had mundane, immediate problems. For one thing, there was that old, dilapidated schoolhouse. In typical Moore fashion we went into action: Papa and the boys attacked problems with hammer, saw, putty, glass, and paint. Mamma helped Mae and me with plenty of soapy water, brooms, mops, and dust cloths. In a few days we surveyed the results and agreed--"It will do!"--and it did for two years. Then there was the matter of a place to board. I was most fortunate in that Mrs. Mary Chapman and her sister, Miss Lizzie Stembridge took me in. There were two little girls living with them--one month old granddaughter, Mary Laura, whose mother Nellie Chapman Mackey had just died; and first grader Tincey Bird Chapman, who went to school with me most mornings. Pictures: 1. Old Starrville Schoolhouse. 2. Mrs. Chapman's house (I may be on porch). 3. Mae with Mary Laura Mackey in her arms and Tincey nearby. When I was in college a well-known professional writer said, "As is the principal--so is the school. " Through experience I learned that the people are equally responsible and must share the credit as well as the blame for a school's welfare. Many different people contributed to our successful years with the Starrville School. First was Mr. R. S. Bulter, who for many years was superintendent of Smith County schools. He was a remarkable man--competent, understanding, and most dependable. I found him to be the very essence of patience, a quality most appreciated by young, inexperienced teachers. We all looked forward to his visits for he always had a kind, good word for us. Instead of scolding us for our shortcomings, he found something worthy of praise. Smith County schools always rated high in the state and I'm sure much of the credit should go to Mr. Boulter. (See pictures and story about Mr. Boulter and Mrs. Boulter.) No doubt Mr. Boulter recognized that many of the county teachers had limited professional training and for that reason he planned county-wide conferences for us. There were always outstanding speakers at these meetings, who were usually successful in inspiring us to want to do a superior job. (See program of a conference.) We seemed always to be fortunate in the School Board personnel, a responsible body, individually and as a group the elected representatives of the people. In a way they ran interference between the teachers and the parents and other community people. I never hesitated to discuss matters with them and cannot recall at anytime a board member who did not fulfill his obligations admirably. I have saved two documents from the Board--a copy of my contract signed May 2, 1927 with a brief note from Mr. Joe Lowry, Sr., and a copy of the recommendation they presented to me when I left to return to college, signed April 24, 1929. They are among my treasured possessions. Much of our success can be attributed to the Starrville PTA -- Parent Teachers Association. The parents in this group theoreticlly represented all other parents, but in no sense of the word did they stand in the way of any other teacher-parent relationships. We were a small school and I'm sure parents did not hesitate to confer with the teachers in a person-to-person relationship. The PTA officers many times assumed responsibilities that released teachers for the main job of teaching the children. (See list of names of some PTA members.) The Starrville patrons and other citizens were people that their ancestors who settled there in the mid-1800's would have been justifiably proud of. On the whole, they I were genteel, cultured, and intelligent. They were cooperative with the teachers and deeply interested in their children's scholastic achievement. Some of them no doubt sacrificed to keep the children in school. They showed remarkable willingness to participate in school affairs such as plays, carnivals, box suppers and other efforts to raise I, money for the school. In the early days they raised money to extend the school year from four to five or six months. They always supported the basketball games and other sports . Many parents supported and encouraged their children's participation in the county demonstration clubs sponsored by the county agencies. The school personnel gratefully accepted the cooperation of Mr. Elbert Gentry, county agent who worked with the boys on their farm projects. Miss Nettie Shultz, sponsored the girls' participation in sewing, canning and other farm-related projects. It seemed at times that everyone wanted to help out; their contributions varied, sometimes directly, again indirectly behind the scenes. Altogether, the many efforts resulted in a superior school system for Starrville in its time in the community. (I. Pictures of County Agents--Mr. Gentry and Miss Shultz, etc. 2. List of "People Who Made Contributions.") Four different teachers taught with me at Starrville. They were competent, dedicated, and cooperative young women. I believe we were all teaching with certificates conferred by the State Department of Education based on written examinations. Several of us were working on degrees. Mrs. Mary Gary taught the primary grades during my first year at Starrville. She was married to Lawrence Gary, son of one of Starrville' s pioneer families. She was followed by Miss Jewell Freeman who married Carlton King also son of a Starrville family. Miss Mabel White was the daughter of a Red Springs family. Miss Erma Huffines completed the spring term of 1929 when Miss Mae Moore resigned to return to Stephen F. Austin State Teachers College to complete requirements for her degree. Miss Mae Moore, my sister, received her degree in the summer of 1929, and that fall began teaching at Bonner School in Tyler. Through the following years she taught in Port Arthur, Livingston (where her husband was superintendent), Dallas, Marshall, James S. Hogg Junior High School in Tyler, and Stephen F. Austin State Teachers College. She continued her college work at Texas Technological College, The University of Texas at Austin, and Teachers College, Columbia University in New York. She married James R. Campbell also an educator on May 2, 1939. They have both retired and now live in Tyler. After I resigned at Starrville in May 1929, I went to Texas Technological College in Lubbock where I received a B.A. degree in August 1930. Columbia University conferred my masters degree in 1934. I completed all course work for my doctorate at Columbia in 1937; my degree was conferred in May 1952 from The University of Texas at Austin. I took summer courses at Stamford University, and the University of California at Los Angeles and Berkeley. My teaching career after leaving Starrville included Amarillo and Tyler. The Texas Education Agency and The University of Texas at Austin. Several summers were spent in teaching at the University of Colorado at Boulder and the University of Wisconsin at Madison. I retired from The University of Texas in 1969 and returned to Tyler in September 1978. I married Dr. George Earl Freeland, Educator and Author on June I, 1937, in New York City. He died June 25, 1944 in Sacramento, California. After we moved into the new building in the fall of 1927 we had a much greater incentive to upgrade the curriculum. We added Spanish and Algebra; I could handle Spanish easily for I had a good background in languages. Algebra was a different matter; I probably spent more time in daily preparation than did any student. On the whole we followed a rather typical, traditional program; there was practically no provisions for individual differences in interest or ability. Everyone was expected to learn the same content and from the same type of material--a textbook. Our greatest need was for a good library. I continued to bring books from Tyler and the pupils shared their books from home, but the need remained in Starrville as in most all schools at the time. I shall always be proud of our efforts to encourage pupils to attend school regularly, to complete the offerings at Starrville, and then to continue their education in an accredited high school. One of our chief inducements was to introduce special graduation activities, including a Sunday afternoon baccalaureate service and an evening graduation ceremony. It hadn't been long since I had experienced such events personally, so I expect I imitated my Tyler High School programs. We invited the very best available people to help us celebrate the occasions: ministers, speakers, musicians, and even the printers. I, personally, gave a five dollar gold piece to the Valedictorian, Odie Nichols. (Permissable in those days--and worth more than it would be today, I believe.) One of the regrets of my professional career is that I did not take an active role in encouraging Odie to continue his education. He was a bright young man and would, I believe, have made a mark in the world! I am including copies of the two graduation events--the spring of 1928 and the following year 1929. Over a period of forty six years I taught and observed many pupils at different levels and Starrville remains the most memorable of all. Perhaps this is partly because it was my first experience and the memories are clearly etched on my mind.