Manitowoc County WI Archives History - Schools .....Two Rivers 2 - Tannery ************************************************ 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 January 15, 2008, 3:08 am TWO RIVERS 2 — TANNERY Leon Strouf Two Rivers school district No. 2 has always been known as the Tannery, school because it has been and is now located in the old Two Rivers tannery area. The tanning industry was located on the shores of the East Twin River which flows through the district. The first Tannery school district set up in the 1850's included a much greater area than it does today for until 1896 the district was composed of sections 13-14-23-24 and 25 in R. 24E and sections 16-17-18-19-20-21-28-29 and 30 in R. 25 E. In 1896, disagreement between the land owners of the eastern and western areas of the district as to the location of the school caused the people of the eastern part of district No. 2 to withdraw and set up a separate school district to be known as Two Rivers school district No. 1. As early as 1851, when Cyrus Whitcomb built his first tannery just east of the present Tannery bridge, a school was set up in the shanty attached to the boarding house. That shanty is said to have served the community until 1873. One can well imagine the pioneer equipment and furniture used in such a school building, but it sufficed to give the children of the tannery workers the type of education necessary for that early, period. There are no written records available regarding this first school. In 1873, a new frame school building was erected at an estimated cost of $300 on the present site located on the Tannery road on or near the section line between sections 24 and 25. The structure was 24 x 38 feet and one story in height. It had windows on three sides and was without a cloakroom. No information was given about the furniture, equipment, and interesting facts about the building proper. The old schoolhouse must have been very crowded at times because records show that when F. C. Christiansen taught this school in 1884 there were 108 pupils enrolled. In fact an enrollment of about 100 yearly was common up to 1880 according to the town clerk's reports on file in the county superintendent of school's office. On the night of April 26, 1896, the second school for the district burned to the ground. Plans were made immediately to replace the burnt structure with a brick building about 24 x 38 feet in size and without a basement. The school had an entrance which led directly into the schoolroom. From there the girls and boys passed to their respective cloakrooms placed on both sides of the entrance way. The cloakrooms were lighted by a window placed in the entrance side, while the classroom was and is still lighted by three windows placed along each of the long sides. The furniture consisted of double desks and seats, a teacher's desk, some chairs, and cupboards for library and textbooks. A bell tower atop the front of the school houses the large school bell which calls the youngsters to their classes. In order that school keep in step with the trend of school improvements, the district in the later 1920's began a program of modernization. In 1927 a basement was put under the building to house the heating and ventilating plant, a fuel room, and a play storage room. Several years later another small addition was added to the rear of the basement to house the indoor toilets. One cloakroom was removed and made a part of the classroom, while the one on the northwest corner was made into a basement stairway. The wraps and lunch pails of the youngsters are stored in the basement on neat racks and shelves. The schoolroom itself has been improved by the addition of electric lights, tables and chairs in place of desks for the primary grades, open book shelves along the east wall of the classroom, a steel, filing case, single desks and seats, and Nuwood covering for the walls and ceiling. An addition of a small room to the front of the basement has been utilized to house a water pressure pumping system, so that the school is supplied with running water. The exterior of the building has changed little except that a storm shed has been added to the entrance. The spacious playground has several pieces of playground equipment. In the 1940's, a program of grounds improvement was begun by planting trees and shrubbery. At present the Tannery school is a modern school except for natural lighting and a few other minor improvements necessary. The school enrollment reflects to a remarkable degree the growth and decline of the tanning industry in the district. By 1870, there was a total of 106 pupils attending for the two sessions of school. The school census for that year lists 138 children of school age residing in the district. By 1880, when single terms of school were held, the county records show that 96 pupils were enrolled, but the census list for that year indicates that 209 children of school age resided in the community. That seemed to be the peak of the school population and for the tanning industry, for by 1890 we find only 93 children of school age and 50 pupils attending school. After the district was split up the school population dropped to about 45 with the school enrollment down to 23 for the year 1900. Only 7 pupils were enrolled in 1926, but by 1943 forty-two pupils were again in attendance. The present enrollment averages about 25 out of a school census of about 100 children of school age. In 1945-46 only seven pupils came from farm families. The rest came from homes where the fathers work in Two Rivers. The proximity of Two Rivers 2 to the city of Two Rivers causes many of the community children to attend the parochial schools there and has caused the rise in school population since homes, are now being built in the district and outside of the Two Rivers city school district. The first settlers, acocrding to records dating back to 1856, were J. L. Fobes, D. H. Meade, Adam Sechrist, Fred Ahrndt, B. Whitcomb, Robert and John Magee, August Arnemann, John Rahmlow, G. Fischer, Robert Suettinger, P. Gagnon, and Joseph Shambeau. Other family names which date back to early days of the district are Raatz, Beeck, Ahrens, Geimer, and Steinhauer. Many of these family names are still common to the community. District residents who served on the schoolboard prior to 1906 were D. H. Meade, Jacob Sechrist, Gottlieb Fischer, Peter Gagnon, N. Horner, August Arnemann, Charles Ahrndt, Herman Arnemann, and William Rahmlow. The longest service record was held by Herman Arnemann who served from 1899 to 1944. Two Rivers district No. 2 hired male teachers almost every year until 1900. Many of them became persons of note in county, state, and national affairs. There is no record of teachers before 1870. Those after that year were John Nagle 1871-72; Ida Robinson 1873 S.; S. W. Faville 1873 W; Chas. Webster 1874-6; Thos. Walsh 1877; James Stitt 1878-9; H. C. Walsh 1880-82; Fred Christiansen 1884-85; C. H. Currens 1887; Robert Witte 1893-5; J. Shambeau 1896; Henry Koch 1897-8; and Sophia Jens 1904-05. This district maintained summer and winter terms up to about 1874 which were of longer duration than the county average. This was one of the few county schools having a continuous ten month school term as early as 1874. In fact, ten month terms were common for this district up to 1900. The early school months were 22 days in length. After 1900 and until 1938, female teachers were employed. The district clerk's record book has this interesting resolution adopted by the voters in 1871: "Resolved that school be kept for ten months by a male teacher, and said teacher to receive the sum of $65 monthly. The said teacher to teach the term of ten months without a vacation, and even if he prove to be a "donkey" there shall be no change". John Nagle, the teacher, signed that contract! The county records show that the district always paid the highest wages in the county for the best teachers, for Nagle became county superintendent of schools; Thos. Walsh, a U. S. Senator; and Fred Christiansen, county superintendent and county training school principal. Today only the name "Tannery School" .suggests to the younger generation the fact that the early tanning industry and the pioneer village along the river south of the schoolhouse existed at one time. Hunters and fishermen walking along the river bank can still find occasional pieces of tan bark and remnants of the sheds, piers, and wharves. The piers and wharves were loading and unloading places for sailing boats which brought in hides and took out the tanned leather. East of the river and back of the Geimer farmyard, there is a pioneer cemetery, the final resting place of many of the early residents. The plot is still being used as the burial place for some of the older residents. The cemetery is under the care of the Evangelical church members. It is said that the records for this burial plot are in the hands of Julis Mandel living in the Rangeline district. Today the school district is slowly becoming a suburban area of the city of Two Rivers. 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/tworiver244gms.txt This file has been created by a form at http://www.genrecords.org/wifiles/ File size: 9.7 Kb