Manitowoc County WI Archives History - Schools .....Franklin Jt. 9 - Kellnersville ************************************************ 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 31, 2007, 3:52 pm FRANKLIN JT. 9 — KELLNERSVILLE Rose Y. Sleger Franklin Jt. district No. 9 has always been known as the Kellnersville school since it is located one mile west of the village of Kellnersville. Some of the early residents called it the McCarthy school because the site was purchased from the McCarthy family. Since the first school was painted white, the Bohemians often referred to it as the "Bila Skola" which meant white school. Town records kept by town clerk Jos. Menchal show that Franklin No. 9 was set up on May 10, 1858. The district was originally a part of Franklin No. 8 and Franklin No. 14. As closely as records could be checked, it was found that this district became joint district No. 9 about in 1868 when parts of sections 6, 7, 18 in Kossuth were added to the original district. In later years a small piece of land in the town of Cooperstown was added to Franklin Jt. 9. Thus the Kellnersville district now is joint with Kossuth and Cooperstown. When Franklin Jt. 6 was organized in 1898, this district lost a large area of land to the southeast. Long before the first school was built, older residents gathered one night a week at someone's home to learn to read and write the Bohemian language. Such gatherings were under the leadership of men like Harous and Klacal. The first log school-house was supposed to have been built about 1858 on the present school grounds which is located on the southwest corner of section 1, Franklin. The one-half acre plot was purchased from John McCarthy. In 1912 and in 1929 additional half-acres were purchased each time. The first schoolhouse, a frame structure, was built by Charles Pinger for $450 in 1872. It contained one room with three windows on each of the long sides. In 1903, an additional eight or ten feet was added on to the front of the school for cloakrooms and to house the pump at a cost of $430. It then was a building about 25x50 feet having no basement. The exact location of the old school can be determined by noticing the placement of the old pump. The building had double seats, chairs, blackboards, and other*equipment common to early schools. After almost seventy years of service, the old school was sold and torn down. It was replaced in 1929 by a modern brick structure 37 x 54 feet. It houses a full basement with fuel, furnace, and playrooms. Indoor toilets were installed but were later replaced by outdoor ones because of the difficulty of heating the school. The first floor of the structure has a hall, two cloakrooms, a large, airy, well-lighted classrooms, a library room, a supply room, and a kitchen. The school is modernly equipped with the latest single type desks, files, radio, electric lights and service, and plenty of bulletin and blackboard space. The grass-covered schoolyard has shade trees and playground equipment. The school, the equipment, and the yard reflect the pride that the district takes in its educational institution. According to the town clerk's reports to the county superintendent of schools, the little white school house at Kellnersville must have bulged with pupils in the 1870's. The reports show that in 1870 there were 109 children enrolled, while in 1875 a total of 115 pupils attended school. By 1880 the attendance had dropped to 79. Thereafter there was a fluctuation in attendance until by 1910 about forty pupils were in school. The establishment of the parochial school at Kellnersville, as well as other rural factors, brought about this decline. The enrollment for the past few years has averaged about fifteen pupils. Early settlers in this district were the Keehans, O'Briens, Breys, Muenches, Brunner, Stokes, Swobodas, Burkes, Gralls, Menchals, Hyneks, Shandas, Hewitts, Pankratz, Kellners, Milbauers, McCarthys, Herricks, Seidls, Deckers, Hruskas, Potucheks, Hamacheks, Feits, Chizeks, Friemuths, Cherneys, Shimeks, and Ledvinas. The success which former Kellnersville pupils have made for themselves in agriculture, business, and the professions reads like a "Who's Who" for Manitowoc county. Some of the more well-known are as follows: Teachers: Lawrence, Mayme, Ida, Rose, and Jerome Ledvina, Emma Freimuth, Mildred Cherney, Marie Augustine, Martha Seidl, Jos. Hurka, Raymond and Hannah: McCarthy, and Edw. Saur. Lawyers: Lawrence and Jerome Ledvina. Government: Judge Jerome Ledvina; Jos. Ledvina, former clerk of circuit court; Charles Hynek, Manitowoc Rapids town clerk; John Pinger, Franklin town assessor; Charles Muench, rural mail carrier; Joseph A. Kellner, sheriff; Lawrence Ledvina, assemblyman; and Jos. Menchal, Franklin town clerk. Business: Michael Kellner, John Kellner, Robert Guttmann, Edward Kohlbeck, Edward Ledvina, Jos. Muench, Louis Sleger, Victor Yohanek, Edward Lorrigan, John Shanda, Charles Hynek, the Shimeks, the Martin sisters, Sam Pick, now of Milwaukee, Walter and Emil Stokes, and Charles Cherney. Religion: Rev. Jacob Decker, Rev. Shimek and Sister Flora Seidl. Doctors: Dr. Lydian Guttmann, Dr. Edward Kohop, and Dr. Victor Kellner. Contractors: Matt and James Mleziva, Anton Cherney, Anton Hynek, Frank Chizek, and Edward Ledvina. No record of the school officers prior to 1872 is available. Some of the citizens who served from that date to 1906 were George Reindl, James Maloney, John Shanda, Michael Kellner, Sr., Michael Keehan, Charles Pinger, Joseph Cherney, Frank Stokes, Frank Muench, Sr., Jos. Hurka, Math. Keehan, and Wencil Hynek. The last named officer served continuously for twenty-four years from 1907 to 1931. The records do not show that a summer and winter session of school was held after 1872. Men teachers seemed to have been preferred and so a higher salary scale was maintained than in some of the surrounding schools. Teachers teaching after 1870 were: Peter Carrigan 1871-74; John E. Garry 1874; M. N. Smith 1875; David Solar 1876-78; Thos. Burke 1878-80; James Burke 1880; P. J. Taugher 1881; John Hewitt 1882-85; Hannah McCarthy 1885-89; Julia McKeough 1889-90; Lizzie Meany 1890-3; Elma Lawrence 1893-6; Katie Doolan 1896; L. W. Ledvina 1897-99; C. J. Mulcahy 1899-1900; Anna Muench 1900-02; Mrs. Hannah Lorrigan 1902-05; John. Connors 1905-06; and 1907-08; and Lawrence Morrissey 1906-07. The teacher in the first school stressed the mastery of the "three R's", although history and geography were taught. Learning the A, B, C's was a regular routine. Some of the common classics were taught to the older students. Regular spell-downs were held with the children lining up in two long rows to see which side would win. Town spelling contests were held usually about the first Friday in May. In the first school the pupils sat on a long, red recitation bench. Many times the rain and snow pelted into the old school. The old box stove did not give off enough heat to prevent the lunches from freezing in the pails. Kellnersville was not always known by that name. Before 1873, the post office was called Prag in memory of Prague, the capital of Bohemia. One of the first businessmen in this district was Michael Kellner who owned a grist mill, a store, and hotel, and a postoffice. A sawmill operated by Frank Chizek is now torn down. Saloons were operated by Charles Stokes, Jos. Kellner, and Wachals. Adam Jirkovic operated a cheese factory. Blacksmith shops were owned by Joseph Marshek and Charles Muench. Lawrence Ledvina, Sr. was the village shoemaker. St. Joseph's Catholic Church and school were established almost with the beginning of the village. 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/franklin129gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/wifiles/ File size: 8.3 Kb