Manitowoc County WI Archives History - Schools .....Cooperstown 3 - Hickory Grove ************************************************ Copyright. All rights reserved. http://www.usgwarchives.net/copyright.htm http://www.usgwarchives.net/wi/wifiles.htm ************************************************ File contributed for use in USGenWeb Archives by: Joy Fisher sdgenweb@yahoo.com October 27, 2007, 4:46 pm COOPERSTOWN 3 —HICKORY GROVE Olivia Kaderabek Cooperstown District No. 3 was given the name Hickory Grove school in 1918 because the school site had many fine hickory trees surrounding it. The school is now located a few rods east of the SW corner of the SW 1/4 of section 8 in Cooperstown. Prior to the official naming of the school, the district was sometimes known to Manitowoc county residents as the Lark school since it is only a short distance southeast of that old hamlet. To the Cooperstown residents this is often referred to as the Frelich school because of the many Frelich families living in the district. The qualified voters of this, district met for the first time in September 25, 1856, at one o'clock P. M. in a log house situated near the St. John's Evangelical Church, located a half mile south of the present school site, or located on the SE corner of the NE 1/4 of section 18. At this first meeting the voters elected Director John Touhey, Treasurer Henrich Schneider, and Clerk John R. Weber. The first board meeting was held on January 11, 1857. On May 21, 1857, the officers executed a warranty deed between Dillman Werthenback and his wife Elizabeth and School District No. 3, Cooperstown for a school site recorded as "part of the SE corner of the SE 1/4 of section 18, Cooperstown". John Raetz, the county register of deeds of Manitowoc county, recorded this deed on December 12th, 1859. This site was used until 1879. No information about the first schoolhouse is available. Evidently it was a log building as was common of schools of that early date. At an annual meeting held on December 30, 1872, it was agreed to "lay" a tax of one dollar per eighty acres for the upkeep of the school. It was also agreed at that meeting that six months of school be maintained — three in summer and three in winter. The winter term commenced the first of November, 1872, and the summer term the first of May, 1873. At each annual meeting the voters decided who was to furnish wood. In one year Thos. Hogan was paid ten dollars to deliver good and sound wood, to be cut so as to burn "comfortably" in the stove. Fred Schneider purchased two benches for the school in 1874 for $2.12. On November 25, 1876, two desks were purchased for $2.50. At a special meeting held September 30, 1878, the voters voted to erect a new building. On October 5, 1878, Charles Shutts was paid, twenty-five dollars for the site of the new school which was to be built near the center of the district. The site was the one used at the present time. Building plans were made by Thos. Hogan, Herman Trapp, and August Wilke. Contractor Albert Krieser was authorized to build a structure 20x30xl2 feet. It had six windows — three on each long side, and one panel door with a German lock. The walls were of hewn cedar and black ash logs, seven to eight inches thick. The shingled structure was plastered between the logs with lime and sand. Painted shutters were on the windows. A plastered chimney three feet wide at the top was used. A stone wall three feet high served as the foundation of the structure. Planed mopboards were used all around the interior. Contractor Krieser completed the building on January 1, 1879, and received $153 for his services. The record indicates that he also received the lumber, logs, glass, and sash of the old log school. Two wooden blackboards were used in the new structure. Frank Kennedy, Sr. made fire every school day, while Rudolf Busse was paid two dollars yearly for cleaning the building. In 1880, William Sidal agreed to whitewash and clean the school for $2.25. No well was provided before 1900, because in 1898 John Maas, Sr. was paid five dollars for the use of his well. The third schoolhouse for this district was built in 1920. It is a modern brick-veneered building housing a large classroom, two cloakrooms, a library alcove, and two small rooms used for a teacher's room and for a storage space. A full basement includes indoor lavatories, furnace and ventilating systems, and a good-sized play room. The school has electric service and has the latest and most modern equipment and is one of the best kept schools of the county. No record of the number of pupils enrolled in the first school is available. The town clerks' reports to the county superintendent from 1870 on show that the attendance of children of school age averaged about eighty per year during the 1800's. The highest enrollment of 105 occurred in 1870. Since 1900 there has been a steady decline in attendance, reaching the low of twelve in 1939. The decrease has occurred because of smaller families, larger farms, and other rural factors. The many pupils, who have gone to this district school since its organization, have made good in their chosen fields. The settlers were a mixture of Irish, Germans, and Bohemians as the names will indicate. In recent years the Schneider, Reedy, Keehan, Maas, Frelich, Herold, Kane, and Kapinos families have produced many outstanding county teachers. The names of the first school officers are recorded on the warranty deed made in 1857 which now is in the hands of the present clerk. The record books in the county superintendent of schools office shows that Dan Noonan served as clerk from 1872 to 1879. Albert Krieser served in 1895-6, while Frank Frelich was first electedin 1896 and served for ten years. The names of the teachers who taught in this district before 1872 are unknown. The average salary per month in the 1800's was thirty dollars a month. While the school term was divided into winter and summer sessions, male teachers for the winter and female teachers for the summer was the rule. Teachers of whom there are records from 1872 to 1906 were: Wm. A. Wilson 1872; Hugh Kane 1873; Mich. Mulloy 1874 and 1876; Katie Donahue 1875; Hanah Garry 1877-78; Celia Fitzmaurice 1879; Emma Eggert 1895; Wm. Engel 1896-97; Anna Bradley 1898; and Mamie Keehan 1904-05. The school clerks records show that in addition to the above named teachers, the following also taught in the district: A; J. Bleser, Patrick Mulloy, T. J. Walsh, Charles Healy, Sara Kennedy, Lawrence Murphy, Maggie Mullins, and William Earles. The texts used during the last century were Sanders' spellers, readers, geography, and grammar; Thompson's arithmetic; Ray's arithmetic; Swinton's spellers and readers; and Mitchell's geography. The schoolhouse has always served as a community center for the district residents. School fairs, Christmas programs, debates about Woman Suffrage, and meetings to consider community subjects have been common. Meetings to discuss the advantages and disadvantages of cheese factories and condenseries were held in recent years. A cheese factory operated by Jos. Herold and a blacksmith shop owned by John Maas, Sr. were located near the school. The former is still in operation. The school has received its mail from the postoffices of Rosecrans, Cooperstown, Stark, Lark, Kellnersville, and finally from Maribel. The first four named postoffices are no longer in existence. Additional Comments: Extracted from: 1848 - 1948 CENTENNIAL HISTORY of the Manitowoc County School Districts and Public School System EDITED BY JOS. J. RAPPEL, COUNTY SUPERINTENDENT OF SCHOOLS 1948 File at: http://files.usgwarchives.net/wi/manitowoc/history/schools/cooperst81gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/wifiles/ File size: 7.8 Kb