The History Center on Main Street

It is also intreresting that the young teachers often did not go very far from home. Many returned to teach their former school mates in their own school or taught in the adjacent district. Even though they lived close to home, they usually stayed at the home of a family very close to the school. See the 1880 Joe Holly Diary where he took his daughters to the Oldroyd and Burton Hill Schools early Monday morning and picked them up Friday afternoons, and also see the 1870 Sadie Monroe Diary where she taught at the Hulslander School and stayed with her relatives next door to it even though her own house was within sight but further down the road. 

Most of these young teachers were women, and most taught only for a year to three years. Once they married, both custom and hiring practices prevented their further employment. In some cases, they married secretly to keep their jobs and kept working until their first pregnancy "gave them away." When marriage was revealed, dismissal was immediate except in rare cases. 

I would also like any school pictures you may have in your possession, including the identification of individuals where possible. Items listed on this Table of Contents page that are not already linked are in process and will be available as soon as possible.