Manitowoc County WI Archives History - Schools .....Meeme Jt. 3 - Osman ************************************************ 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 4, 2007, 7:37 pm MEEME JT. 3 — OSMAN Lucinda Dill The Osman School is located near the village of Osman. It is located near the northeast corner of the NE 1/4 of section 11, Range 22 E. The district is now joint with the towns of Newton and Liberty. The land on which the school is located once belonged to Eleanor Peppard. This site she leased to the district for two dollars for a period of fifty years. About 1900 the Peppards sold their farm to Millers, and at about that time too the district bought the school site from Miller. Since that time the district made three more purchases from the Miller family to add to the original school site. Since the district was first formed, several changes in its boundaries have been made. In 1903 the district became joint with Newton by adding most of the SW 1/4 of the SW 1/4 of section 31, township of Newton. In 1917 the district became joint with Liberty by adding the SW 1/4 of section 35, township of Liberty. Not only did the district have property added to the original boundary, but it lost some also. In 1915 the W 1/2 of the NE 1/4 of section 10, township of Meeme became a part of Meeme District No. 2. In 1909, the north half of the NE 1/4 of section 4, township of Meeme was taken into the Liberty 4 district; making that district joint with Meeme. The district had its first meeting in 1851 at the home of H. Mulholland. The first school was held in the John Stuart home. The building is now the home of Arno Kraemer. John Stuart was the first teacher and was paid fifty cents for the term for the use of his house for a school. The first term of school began in June and lasted for three months. The first log school house was erected in 1853 by members of the district who helped cut and haul the logs. The building was 16 x 22 x 8 feet and was completed by May, 1853. It was located on the present school site. At first the building had only crude benches and no blackboards, but in 1855 benches, desks, and blackboards were supplied. The second schoolhouse, a frame structure located on the same site, was built in 1858. The building committee consisted of Anton and Peter Walterbach and M. Gallogly. District members hauled the lumber for a building 32x24x12 feet. The lumber cost $71.25, and the shingles $13.82. The school was furnished and ready for use by 1859. In 1863, a stone foundation was put under the building. In 1868, window shutters and maps were purchased. New seats and a dug well were added in 1878. At the annual district meeting in 1883 the voters decided to build a new school but at the next annual meeting in 1884 they decided to repair the old building. The schoolhouse was then repaired and two new lavatories were built. In 1893 a new woodshed was built. The plan was made by Michael Egan, James Ryan, and John Holfeltz and they were paid fifty cents apiece for their planning. In 1903 the school-house was moved slightly for some unknown reason. A new well was drilled in 1912. A year later the school was reshingled. This schoolhouse was sold after the third building was built to John Hoban who is using it for a granary. The third and present school was built in 1920. This brick veneer structure cost $16,000, had a full basement, basement furnace, indoor toilets, and electric lights. The lights were added in 1939. In 1933, when Highway 42 was relocated, the school was moved slightly to the east. It cost $6,625 to move and have certain changes made. These changes included moving the indoor toilets and the library room, building a new basement, and re-setting the furnace. The Osman school has always been a one-room school. During the 1890's, the enrollment was between 70 and 100 pupils. The average enrollment in recent years has been about 20 pupils. The decrease in enrollment in recent years is due to smaller families and to the building of the parochial school in the village of Osman in 1925. Some of the graduates of the Osman school who became local and county leaders were Michael Kirwan who became Circuit Judge; James Kirwan, Circuit Judge of Calumet County; Jos. Connell, the first highway commissioner of Manitowoc County and income assessor; John Nagle, who became county superintendent of schools; Peter Burns, a Chicago doctor; Luke Burns, a lawyer; Jos. Peppard, who became principal of a school in Milwaukee; the McMahons, and many others of whom there are no definite records. Some of the noted "teacher" families were the Sullivans, Schneiders, Hobans, Carys, Egans, Hayes's, Fitzgeralds, Conwa'ys, Holfeltzes, Pinters, and the Millers. The first district clerk was M. Mulholland, and the first director was John Stuart. Some of the other early officers were H. Mulholland, Patrick McEnering; Dennis Nagle, Anton Walterbach, Michael Gallogly, and Patrick McMahon. The first officers were paid one dollar per year. In 1907 their salaries were raised to five dollars yearly. John Stuart, the first teacher, received fourteen dollars per month for three months. Some of the teachers after him were William Goodwin, Patrick O'Shea, H. Mulholland, John Cary, Patrick Nagle, Mary Richardson, James Kirwan, Katie Dempsey, Peter Burns, Verona O'Grady, J. W. Hogan, Katie Egan, Julia Hayes, Katie Hayes, Nell Cary, Tom Walsh, Teresa Hobah, Lizzie Peppard, Nellie Brady, Katie Finnegan, M. H. Garry, Elizabeth Fitzgerald, Mary Conway, Lizzie Schneider, and C. J. Moldenhauer. The demand for Irish teachers is very apparent. Some of the subjects taught in the early years were orthography, reading, grammar, geography, and United States history. Many pupils from the surrounding districts came to the Osman school to get the required subjects necessary to acquire a teaching certificate. The early settlers banded together to form a society which is still the subject of conversation for old-timers. This was the Temperance Society sponsored by the "Old Irish Society". They had a hall in Osman which was known as Temperance Hall. Christmas programs and St. Patrick's Day parties were held in it. It also served as a meeting place for the society. This hall was later moved from its original site, and it is now used as a barn. 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/meemejt3191gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/wifiles/ File size: 6.9 Kb