Manitowoc County WI Archives History - Schools .....Schleswig No. 5 - Rockville ************************************************ 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 December 30, 2007, 9:33 pm SCHLESWIG NO. 5 —ROCKVILLE Marion Vogel Schleswig district No. 5 is known as the Rockville district because the schoolhouse is located in that village. It is said that before the hamlet of Rockville was settled and named that the school was known as the Theo. Adams school, for unknown reasons. According to the Schleswig 1859 assessment rolls on file in the county treasurer's office, the land in the present district No. 5 belonged to Schleswig district No. 4 which then consisted of the south half of the town of Schleswig. By 1862, district No. 4 was divided into three districts— districts 4, 5, and 7. District No. 5 in 1863 then consisted of sections 21, 22, 27, 28, 33, 34. Since that time, the boundaries have undergone many changes by the processes of attachment and detachment. The present Schleswig Jt. No. 4 was first added to No. 5 when the area around Kiel withdrew from Kiel in 1929, but due to dissatisfaction was again detached from No. 5 and became Schleswig Jt. 4. The first little red schoolhouse for Schleswig No. 5 was erected about 1863. There are no school records prior to 1868, but the records do show that the school must have been in operation before that year. The schoolhouse was of frame construction with three windows on each long side. The building was about 20 x 24 feet. The building was heated by a boxstove and the rest of the equipment was the same as found in other pioneer schools. On August 25, 1879, the voters at the annual school meeting decided to build a 20x20x12 foot addition on to the West end of the first school. The money necessary for such an addition was to be raised by taxes. At a special meeting of the district held on Sept. 1, 1879, at the home of Clerk Wm. Zillmann, bids were taken for the addition which was to have two windows on each long side. The new building plans specified a double floor, the outside of the structure boarded, the roof shingled, and the inside walls constructed of two coats of plaster. When completed, the exterior was to be painted with a bright red coat of paint! Construction had to be completed on or before Sept. 22, 1879. The lowest and successful bidder was Anton Striebel with a bid of $170. In this school the pupils sat on rough planks for seats. The desks were made of boards. Whenever some sheep were butchered in the district, the school was sure to have the wooden blocks used as erasers re-covered with sheepskin. The building was heated by a stove at each end of the schoolroom, but still the children could feel the cold winter winds as they blew through the walls and under the doors. The drinking water in the old wooden bucket would often be frozen during the winter months. The pupils then had to break the ice to get a drink with the dipper used by all. During the recess periods, the older youngsters enjoyed themselves by hiding in holes, called "Jesse James Hideouts", in the basement walls. Playground equipment was unknown then! After the school had served its purpose, it was torn down. A picture of this old school and about 60 children enrolled one year is in the hands of a district resident. The second and present schoolhouse for Schleswig No. 5 was built on the same site as the original school, in 1905, at a cost of $1,800. The new school, about 36 x 36 feet, has an entry-cloakroom, a large classroom, and a full basement. When erected the schoolroom had windows on three sides, but this was corrected about the 1920's when special state aid was given to districts maintaining rural schools up to certain standards. Then the windows in the east wall were removed and adequate window space added to the south and west walls so that the state specifications for schoolroom lighting were met. Library cupboards were built below the south windows at the same time. A storm shed for the entry was a later addition. New blackboards and desks were purchased when the new school was erected. Today the Rockville school has a basement furnace and stoker; electric service, a steel file, a piano, a radio, single adjustable desks, library and work tables, and all of the conveniences of a modern rural school. Indoor lavatories of the flush type and running water were added in the summer of 1947, making this school one of the 22 modern rural schools of the county. The Rockville school has undergone the same growth and decline in enrollment as other county schools have. The town clerks' reports to the county superintendent of schools indicate that as early as 1870 there were 61 pupils attending school. By 1880, the enrollment had gone up to 104 children out of 152 children of school age residing in the district. Thereafter a steady decline was noticed in each of the suceeding five year periods. By 1905, only 40 children were enrolled and that number was common until the 1940's when the attendance averaged about 20 yearly. By 1948 the number of school age children (4-20 years) in the district was only about 60 — a good illustration of the decrease in the size of families. The 1860 Schleswig assessment roll lists these early settlers as owning property in district No. 5: Sam Whitney, Geo. Stark, H. Pingel, David Kasten, John Mattes, Franz Hollenstein, David Laux, Franz Maurer, and Herman Gilbert. The thousands of pupils who have attended the Rockville school have become community leaders in Schleswig as well as throughout the county and state. It is impossible in this article to name all of the many who have become successful in government, business, industry, the professions, and in farming. Schleswig No. 5 has made it a practice to keep its elected school officials for many terms. The county superintendent's records show that William Zillman served as clerk from 1872 to 1898. Others who served on this school board prior to 1906 were Fred Stange, George Mattes, and Charles Racquet. Summer and winter sessions were held in this district prior to 1875. By 1876 Schleswig No. 5 was maintaining an 8 month school term — one of the very few in the county. As late as 1887, A. W. Dassler was hired to teach 7 months of English and 2 months of German school. The salary paid the teachers was average for the town, ranging between $35 and $50 during the later 1800's. One of the very first teachers was Simon S. Sieker who taught this school in 1868 for $40 per month. Other teachers of the Rockville school up to 1906 were: Kate Brennan 1872-3; Susan Danforth 1873-5; P. W. Donohue 1875-6; James Kirwan 1877; F. H. Hillger 1878-9; A. W. Dassler 1889; Clara Salomon 1894-6; Annie Danforth 1897; Kate Cain 1898; John Deehr 1904-5; Mary Holfeltz 1906. Former teachers who became well-known were Co. Supt. A. W. Dassler; Co. Supervising Teacher Anna Pritchard; Co. Supt. E. S. Mueller, and Co. Clerk Albert Tetzlaff. The Rockville school has long been a community center .for the district and town. School programs, meetings for neighborhood organizations, card parties, and other social functions have been held in the building. The school basement serves as the Schleswig town hall. Sheboygan river which meanders through the village of Rockville and the Mill pond above the dam provide recreation and power for the community. The river east of the dam winds its way over a rocky river bed on its way to the lake. The mill and dam at Rockville was rebuilt in 1917 on the site on which stood a small tool shed built in 1862. The Rockville cemetery west of the village is the final resting place of many of the old settlers. Decoration Day services with the village school children participating have been held for years. The glaciated land in the district is rich in gravel deposits found in the drumlins, while the potholes have in many cases became small ponds and lakes. 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/schleswi236gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/wifiles/ File size: 8.5 Kb