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LEE COUNTY LOCAL/FAMILY HISTORY DEPT. * DONNELLSON PUBLIC LIBRARY * 500 PARK AVE. * DONNELLSON, IA * 52625 |
Schools: Fairview
This is another in the series of articles on rural schools in Lee County. Information was gleaned from research and interviews by Carolyn Dischler and Diane Kruse with Stanley and Marilyn Watkins, Jack Lamm and Floyd Hohl. Other resources used were History of Lee County Schools 1830 – 1962 and plat maps.
This article tells of how two schools became one. The Lee County Atlas of 1874 shows a school house in Section 11 of Harrison Township. This was the Rabbit Ridge School believed to be a Quaker school because there was a Quaker Settlement in the Primrose area.
Families were the Cooks, the McMillians, the Carvers, and others. The Atlas of 1874 shows property belonging to all of these families: the Cooks in Sections 10 and 11; the Carvers in Sections 10 and 15; the McMillans in Section 12. It is believed that this school was moved sometime after 1876 to Section 2 and became known as Fairview, as shown on the Atlas of 1897.
In reviewing the abstract, the first mention of the land being “used for school purposes”, an entry dated February 1895 listed Alvin S. Hiatt as the owner. The site was successively owned by George L. Seeley, W. B. Seeley, and Fred K. Watkins. It has remained in the Watkins family ever since with Stanley and Marilyn currently owning the land where the school was located.
The school building was located 2 miles east and 1 ½ miles south of Sharon Church and faced east, sitting back from the road approximately 25 feet on what is now 150th Ave. The vestibule on the front of the building opened to the east and was used as a cloakroom. Three windows were on each side of the school to the north and to the south. Lunch boxes were stored on shelves in the rear of the room. Arrangement of the classroom was typical with the student desks being in rows toward the back of the room with the teacher’s desk and two long recitation benches toward the front. Against the rear wall was a cupboard where books and supplies were stored. A pot-bellied stove was located in the back of the room and was fueled by coal. There were two outhouses behind the school building, one for the girls and one for the boys. These were the bathroom facilities of the times.
Jack was barely five years old when he started school at Fairview in 1942, attending school through the 3rd grade, when he moved on to Donnellson due to the closing of Fairview. He recalls that the Walljasper brothers, Keith, Donald and Leroy also attended. He walked to school 1.3 miles each way his first two years and when he got his bicycle in the third grade he usually rode it to school. Jack recalls several teachers: Mildred Wilson, Jean (Rohdy) Grossman, and Helen Jean (Huff) Stout.
Floyd attended all eight grades at Fairview from 1929 to 1937. He stated his sister, Arleta (Hohl) Rohdy, Robert Hatch, Mary Jane Hatch, and Shorty Roth were in his class the full eight years. He and his sister also walked to school 1.3 miles and lived across the gravel road, which is now J-40, from the Lamms. His first teacher was Mary Newby and the last was Wilma Krehbiel. Floyd’s father served on the school board. Since Floyd had many fond memories of Fairview School he purchased a few of the items when the school closed: the teacher’s desk and chair, the two recitation benches, a student desk and several school books that were his favorites. He also purchased the old coal shed which is no longer standing. In its place is a beautiful area of hollyhocks.
Stanley attended grades 1st through 4th at Fairview and walked about 1 mile his first two years and about 1 ½ miles his second two years. During World War II, Mildred Wilson was the teacher and one day she was surprised at school by her husband’s unannounced return from the military. Stanley recalls classes were dismissed early that day. Jean (Rohdy) Grossman was Stanley’s last teacher.
Among other duties, the teacher carried drinking water from Herman and Anna Schau’s property, which was across the road from the school. There was a well near the school building but it is not known if or when it was ever used. Stanley stated that when he dug up and replaced his current sidewalk, he discovered the well under the old cement. Teachers frequently boarded with the Schau’s due to the home’s close proximity to the school. Either the teacher or Mr. Schau would start the fire in the school’s stove during cold weather prior to the children arriving. It is noted in the rural school history book that Hallie Cecil and Rudy Geesekas also provided the “home away from home” for the teachers and all three mentioned that Vera Hemmings boarded teachers as well.
Some of the students rode bikes to school when the weather permitted. Floyd recalls hedge trees grew along the roadway causing the road to drift full of snow in the winter. When the weather was extremely cold and snowy, his father would take the children to school on a sled pulled by a team of horses, sometimes driving the sled over the fences where the snow had drifted as it was so frozen that neither the horses or sled would break through. After Fairview closed, Stanley recalls the first school bus in the area circa 1946 had a wooden body and was driven by Ray Bauter.
Each morning, the teacher raised the United States flag and the students and teacher recited the Pledge of Allegiance. Frequently, scripture was read prior to classes before beginning for the day; the subjects studied were traditional for the rural schools of that era.
The students enjoyed playing a variety of games during recess. Andy Over a.k.a. Annie, Annie Over was surely the most popular game, as it is almost always the first one former students mention. Other
games the students played were Mother May I?, Hide and Seek and, of course, baseball. Another favorite game was Fox and Geese, which was played in the wintertime when there was snow on the ground. When it was rainy and the children couldn’t go outside for recess, they often played Fruit Basket Upset. There were several swings on the playground, which the children enjoyed during warmer weather. Stanley stated that the school swing set was located where their present kitchen and dining room are today and he still has the rod from the set.
During Christmas each year, Santa Claus would stop by to visit either during the Christmas program or while classes were in session. A wire stretched across the classroom in front of the teacher’s desk where a curtain could be hung and used as a partition during school programs. The Watkins remembered that the hooks and the wire were still intact when they bought the building. Students gave the teacher a present for Christmas and exchanged Valentines with each other and the teacher on Valentines Day. Pie socials and box suppers were held as a means to raise funds for supplies and projects. A picnic was held on the last day of school and the afternoon was spent playing baseball to celebrate the beginning of summer break.
When the school closed in 1945, the land reverted back to its original owner Fred Watkins (Stanley’s grandfather) for $1.00; he purchased the school building separately and used it to store grain. In 1955 when Stanley and Marilyn inherited the property, they converted the school into a dwelling. They had lived in the home one winter when Stanley was drafted in 1956. He served his country for two years and upon his return, they moved back into their home for an additional nine years.
They sanded and varnished the floors leaving the original floors intact except for the kitchen and bathroom which was covered with vinyl; there were two small bedrooms which had the original plaster; a small bath, a kitchen, and a 20’X 24’ room was added to the back of the original building. All the original windows remained intact except the south windows which were replaced with a large picture window; the windows on the north side were shared between the bath and the kitchen. The vestibule was moved from the front of the building to the rear where they kept their deep freeze; the original step was kept to enter the home.
The Watkins sold the building to Carl and Connie Conrad in 1969. Kenny Kramer of Franklin moved the building to the northeast corner of the intersection of Pilot Grove Road and 155th Street where it stands today. The roof and attic were removed and extensive remodeling done. Today, it is a brick home with several additions. Each addition has a peaked roof with the main portion of the house being taller than the others; that portion is the old school house.
Ruth Anton Piercy contributed the following interesting article to the book on rural schools concerning her teaching at Fairview School in 1926: "Fairview School was located in Harrison Township, one mile west and 3/4 mile south of the little town of La Crew, IA. Sixteen pupils were enrolled that year and all eight grades were taught. Her salary was $68 per month for the months that school was in session. The double desks and seats were the same ones in which her father, Jacob Anton, and his school mates sat when they attended Fairview School about 1880-1886. Mrs. Piercy later purchased one of the desks and seats for her home. Mrs. Piercy has many fond memories of her year at Fairview. Her pupils were from the following families: the Davidsons, Cecils, Watkins, Landes, Hatches, Schaus and Lamms. "
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