Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
Official Newspaper of Eddy County since 1883
With the inclusion of the Hulbert (Dodd's) Schoolhouse, the Eddy County Museum has a variety of school-themed artifacts on display, like this handbell and the 120-year- old teacher's desk it rests upon.
This water pail and dipper reportedly comes from a one-room country school, and was how teachers would ensure that students had access to potable water throughout the day.
Students often used handheld slates and chalk for math and phonics. This worked well in the early days when classrooms were small. In schools today, some of these chalkboards still remain, though are rarely used. Dry erase boards and smart boards have nearly eliminated the need for chalk. This tin of Dovercliff Dustless chalk was manufactured by The American Crayon Company, Sandusky, Ohio/New York and donated to the Eddy County Museum by the Johnson family in 1984. The museum also houses a small slate that measures 5-by-7 inches and was donated by Elsie Kerr.
Students and staff of New Rockford Public School pose for a group photo. Circa 1905.
A lot of folks have school on their mind these days. With so many changes, it is difficult to know what to expect. However, if we take a look at history- even with our small district and surrounding areas, it becomes apparent that change has always been a part of the education system.
New Rockford's first schoolhouse was erected in 1883, and May Crist was the first teacher for the three-month term which began on June 1. According to the centennial book "A Century of Sowers," the first session was in 1885, and 36 pupils were enrolled. Munster School was also established in 1883. The first teacher's salary for teaching 120 days of school was $240.
One-room country schools began to pop up throughout the county, usually based on growing township populations. As settlement increased, so did the school population. For example, the enrollment at the Paradise School counted eight schoolchildren, a number which doubled within 15 years.
Early school houses were small, and all students congregated in one room. For the most part, schools offered up to an eighth-grade education. These schoolhouses were staffed by one teacher, who was typically an unmarried woman who had finished high school. Studies primarily focused on reading, writing and arithmetic. In addition to instruction, teachers were responsible for maintaining the schoolhouse as well as running the wood stove for heat.
One such schoolhouse is onsite at the Eddy County Museum. The Hulbert Schoolhouse (also known as the Dodd's School) was established in 1902 in Superior Township. Several artifacts came to the museum after the school closed in 1965, including the original teacher's desk which measures 2-by-4 feet, is 30 inches deep and has five drawers. It is housed in the schoolhouse, and atop it rests a bronze handbell, which was thought to have been used by Lenore Neuhardt.
A collection of three black and white photographs in the museum's collection offer a look into the daily life at Dodd's School. The first photo shows children in an elephant costume. The second shows six children waving flags, and a third shows two boys seated on the step holding stuffed animals. These photographs date to 1917-18 when Antonia Van Lith was the teacher.
In 1899, New Rockford Public School was built and served the community from 1900-1955. The school held its first full high school graduation in 1910 when Roger Mattson and Menga Haas both finished the 12th grade.
The Depression left North Dakota schools with a teacher shortage. As a result, students struggled to learn from underqualified teachers. Over the next decades, North Dakota instituted higher qualifications for teachers, but school consolidation also was seen as an important part of the process of improving North Dakota's educational system. School administrators and scholars assumed that rural one-room schools were the "weakest link in the education system" and that town schools were too small to "carry out an efficient well-rounded program of education."
In the late 1950s there was growing discussion statewide about consolidating small schools into larger districts. With viable transportation options, students could be bused, even in the winter to attend school.
New Rockford enrollment swelled to the point that classes overflowed into unconventional teaching areas such as the basement of the gym. By the 1960s enrollment numbers soared to 700. Elementary students were taught at the West Side School (the current 4th Corp building) and High School students completed their studies at Central School.
As we know, times change. By the early 1980s enrollment dropped along with the population. In 1982, enrollment decreased to 408 students, leading to the closure of the West Side School.
Further discussion in the early 2000s led to another consolidation, this time of the Sheyenne and New Rockford schools.
Today, we have the New Rockford-Sheyenne School district that serves nearly all of Eddy County and has an estimated enrollment of just over 300 students.
