Manitowoc County WI Archives History - Schools .....Kossuth 2 Elm View ************************************************ 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 November 2, 2007, 1:48 am KOSSUTH 2-ELM VIEW Ruth Maertz Kossuth district No. 2 was officially designated the Elm View school in 1918 because of a large elm tree which once stood in the schoolyard. Since the removal of this tree, a row of elm trees along the road has been planted to perpetuate the name. To residents of this and nearby communities, the school is commonly known as the Augustine school because the school site was purchased from the Augustine family. The Kossuth assessment roll shows that this district was set up prior to 1856. It has been a mother district for other districts surrounding it, for in 1898 an area in the southwestern part was detached to become a part of the newly organized Franklin Jt. 6. Again in 1901 an area in the northeastern part of Kossuth district No. 2 was detached to form a large part of the newly created Kossuth Joint 1. Since 1870 the district has also had land detached from it to be added to Franklin Jt. 9, Kossuth 1, and Kossuth 3. The district originally consisted of sections 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9, 16, 17, 18. Now it has only section 8 and parts of sections 5, 6, 7, 9, 16, 17, 18, all in the township of Kossuth. It is believed that there was no school building prior to 1861 but very likely there was some schooling for the children before that time in some building. The first log school was thought to have been built about 1861 on the present site which is in the SW 1/4 of the NE 1/4 of section 7, town of Kossuth. No information is available as to its size or cost. The equipment consisted of rude wooden benches; a teacher's desk, and other furniture common to early schools. The second and present school building was built in 1905 at a cost of $681. The old log school was torn down and the better logs used in the new frame building. Some of the equipment of the old school was retained. Double desks were installed several years after the new school was erected. Since that time new single, adjustable desks have been purchased. Many additions have been made to the frame building since it was first erected. The woodshed, which at one time was located a short distance from the school, was attached to the rear of the school. A bell tower has also been added. A partition was built across the front of the schoolroom to create a cloakroom for the pupils. A built-in library was added to the rear of the room to care for the large number of books found in the school. The room is heated by a large floor furnace as no basement is provided. The windows are placed along the front and long sides of the school. Outdoor toilets are maintained in first class condition. The school, though over sixty years old, has always been kept up to the best possible standards. This district school has experienced the same fluctuation in enrollments as other schools of the county. There are no attendance records for this school prior to 1870, but the town clerk s reports to the superintendent of schools indicate that the small building must have been taxed to its capacity in the years gone by. The enrollment in 1870 was sixty-three, but by 1885 the attendance had gone up to ninety-four. During all of the latter 1800's the number of pupils in school yearly averaged between sixty and eighty. After the districts of Kossuth Jt. 1 and Franklin Jt. 6 were detached from this district, the enrollment dropped to forty pupils. Since 1905 there has been a steady decline so that for the 1946 term of school the attendance was five. The voters at the annual school meeting of July, 1946, decided to suspend the school and transport the children to nearby schools. Kossuth district No. 2 was settled by a mixture of nationalities. The assessment roll of 1857 lists the following as owning land in the original district: Anton Kraynik, Franz Wanek, Martin Kazda, Franz Herman, Joseph Cenefelt, Michael Wellner, Jos. Kellner, J. Augustine, Joseph Wiesner, Con. Sullivan, Jacob Rank, Joseph Cisler, and Peter Rumpel. Today few of these family names are common to the community. The hundreds of sons and daughters of the past residents of the district all became progressive leaders in this and other communities. There is no record of the first school officers of this school. The residents who served on the school board from 1872 were Wencil Chizek 1872; John Duchac 1873-80; Mathias Pech 1880-; Anton Cizek 1893-6. Wencil Sladkey, Frank Worel, Wencil Cizek, Emil Witt, John Swetlik, H. Cizek, and J. J. Augustine served from the years 1897 to 1905. School records available do not show who taught in this district prior to 1872 but we do know that winter and summer terms were common up to about 1875. The average pay for teachers during the latter 1800's was about forty dollars monthly. The texts used after 1870 were the Sanders spellers, the McGuffey and the Sanders readers, Ray's arithmetic, Montieth's geography, and the Phinneas and Kerr's grammar books. Annie Chloupek taught the winter and summer terms of 1872. M. Hale Smith held forth as teacher from 1873 to 1878. Teachers after that date were Emil Prochazka 1888-89; Thos. Burke 1880; James Gill 1894; Chas. Meisnest, later Manitowoc county superintendent of schools, in 1895; John H. Kassa 1896; Peter Gruber 1897; J. E. Connors 1898; Mabel Pankratz 1904; and Elizabeth Halloran in 1905. The names of teachers who taught here after 1905 are listed in the county school annuals. This district has neither scenic nor historical places of interest. A burial plot along the Polivka Corner's road is the final resting place of many of the older settlers of this and surrounding communities. This plot is one-half mile south and one-half mile west of the Elm View school. 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/kossuth2161gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/wifiles/ File size: 6.4 Kb