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FOUR FRIDAY, APRIL 88, 1889 By PRICE K. HARMON From the Annals of Newberry the first record of any school in New berry was 1806. “In the midst of the Halcyon Grove stood a long, low, cheap, wooden building known as the Newberry Academy. It was about a half mile from the Court House, and just South of the Greenville and Columbia Railroad, and east of the Higgins Ferry Road. The Newberry Academy was built by voluntary sub scriptions and went into operation in 1806. Rev. John C. Foster and Rev. Charles Strong were among the first teachers. It was here Chancellor Job Johnstone, F. B. Hig gins, John Belton O’Neall and Dray ton Nance and many others received their Academical Education. At two different times a Lottery was held for the benefit of the Aca demy. All escheated property was vested in the Trustees. The Academy was incorporated in 1834 with Frederick Nance, John Belton O’Neall, Job Johnstone, Y. G. Harrington, James Fernandes, Thomas Pratt, W. Wilson, Burr Johnstone, and F. B. Higgins as Trustees. A new large two-story wooden building was erected. The A Great Event All of Newberry county has joined hands in celebrating the 150th year of our found' ing April 30th to May 4th. <1 It will be a great event in our history and we pledge our support and cooperation. Lominicks Drug Store “A Good Drug Store” Newberry's Oldest Shoe Repairman It has been our pleasure over £i long span of years to serve the peo^ ' pie of Newberry city and county, It gives us pleasure now to pause and welcome the Big Celebration of 15G years of the history of which we have been privileged to witness a great deal. Newberry has a history of which she may well be proud. Let us all join in making the event one long to be remembered. Reagin’s Shoe Shop first floor was devoted to school purposes, the upper floor was used by the Masons for their meeting place. The first floor was some times used as a Thespian Hall. The great religious revival of 1830 dis organised the Thespian Society and caused its discontinuance; many of the Thespians were converted and joined the church. And as one of the fruits of the revival, the Bap tist church was organized and the house of worshop built. In 1834 the Male Academy was transferred to a building on the lot where now stands the jail. From 1834 to 1839 the old Academy build ing was used as a female school. Miss Boyd was the first teacher, as sisted by Mrs. Saxon as music teacher. In 1839 the Female Aca demy was moved to Dr. Thompson’s place on Pratt Street and the build ing was reconverted to the purposes o(f a Male School under the super vision of Rev. Wiley, an Episcopal minister. Capt. A. P, Pifer, after the Civil War, in 1868-69, taught a success ful male school in the Baptist church annex. In 1870, a new male Academy was built, on a lot on the comer of Har rington and Crenshaw streets.— Taught by the following up to the establishment of the Graded schools in 1889: James C. Hardin,. William M. Brooks, R. H. Clarkson, James P. Kinard, John P. Glasgow, and Miss Willie Cozby. Several years before the Civil War, a brick building, where Dr. Houseal now lives, was built and used as a Female Academy. The following were among those who Caught there: Rev. Wm. Berly, Wm. Hood, Mrs. Susan Anderson, Capt A. P. Pifer and Miss Octavia Gar- lington. Yielding to popular demand over the South, after much discussion pro and con for “free schools” to all the children, a charter was granted on December 23, 1889, for the Newberry Graded Schools, and the following September the schools were opened with the following Board of Trus tees: J. F. J. Caldwell, Geo. B. Cromer, W. H. Wallace, Jas. K. P. Goggans, J. S. Cozby, Geo. S. Mow er, L. M. Speers, N. B. Mazyck, Alan Johnstone, Sr., Wm. E. Pelham, and Jas. K. Gilder. The district was made coterminus with the city limits. The first year the school was held in a one story brick house in the rear of the Crotweli Hotel (now Wiseman Hotel) and in the Old Fe male Academy Building, where Dr. Houseal lives now. In 1890 tbe Boundary street school was erected on the comer of Bound ary and Coates streets. The lot to gether with the residence upon it cost $2,000 the building, $13,000, heating system, $2,000, and furni ture, $1,000. The population at this time was about 3000. The Newberry Mills had a school on O’Neall street, a frame structure which had been built for a Union church for the different denomina tions. The officials erected the Present West End School building in 1900 at a cost of about $6,000. This school later was taken over as a part of the Graded School system. The Hoge School on South Cald well street was for colored people, which was donated to them by some northern friends and in some time about 1896 was turned over to the Graded School Trustees. The first superintendent of the Graded schools was J. Fleming Brown, serving only one year. In 1890 Frank Evans was elected and served until 1895, when he resigned to accept the Superintendency of the Spai-tanburg Graded schools. W. H. Wallace succeeded Mr. Evans as superintendent and resigned in 1900 to accept the editorship of the Greenville Daily News. In 1890 the enrollment in the white schools was 369, and in 1899- 1900 it was 611. The teachers in 1899 were: Mrs. O. E. Fair, Miss Rachel B. McMaster, Miss Mary L. Burton, Miss Nellie G. McFall, Miss Maggie W. Daniel, Miss Carrie Aull, Miss M. E. Dominick, Miss Eloise Welch. Burr H. Johnstone was elected superintendent in 1900 and served for several years, being succeeded by W. A. Stuckey, who during his administration did much to encour age the parents to send their child ren to school. Boundary street be coming overcrowded, the trustees purchased the lovely old home of Judge Y. J. Pope and mads it over into a very comfortable school build ing, opening for classes in Septem ber 1908 or 1909, and within a year these buildings were filled to capa- cRy and plans were made to have a separate building for the high school department. And in 1910 a bond issue was voted and a brick building of six large classrooms and an auditorium was built. Henry Lee ’ Dean was elected sup erintendent for the 1910-11 session and for three years was head of the schools. In 1913 Ernest Anderson succeed ed Mr. Dean. At this time Domes tic Science, Botany, and German was added to the curriculum. And the same year the trustees of Helena district arranged to send the child ren of that district to the city schools, and have continue^ to do so. In October 1915, the trustees add ed the Mollohon school to the city system. Dr. Jas. P. Kinard was elected superitendent for 1916-17 and at the end of his first year resigned to accept the chair of Psychology and Education at Winthrop college. In the summer of 1917, Prof. O. B. Cannon, who was head of the Math Department at Newberry College, was prevailed upon to accept the super intendency and for almost 22 years he has filled that position most ef ficiently. During superintendent Cannon’s administration, the Oakland school was added to the city system. In 1921 to relieve the over-crowded conditions the taxpayers voted a bond issue of $60,000.00 and almost doubled the size of Speers Street, Boundary Street, and the old High school buildings. The Hoge school lot and building was sold and in 1922, Drayton Street school, a nice brick building was constructed for the negroes, and since that time 3 additional units have been added to it, the last of which is nearing com pletion. R. F. Gladden has been principal of Drayton for a number of years and he has proven himself to be a most valuable and capable head of this school. With boys and girls coming to high school as never before and the times after the World War calling for a richer and more varied curri culum, more room was needed and again in 1926 the fine people of Newberry voted another bond issue this time $260,000 to erect a new high school building, one that the people of Newberry are proud of. This building has been in use since January 1928. Ten years later with over 600 boys and girls enrolled, ad ditional room is being provided for, with Federal Aid and Bonds left from the issue of 1926 at a cost of approximately $24,000.00. Principals of the High School since 1911 are: J. B. O’Neall Hollo way, C. F. Wertz, Wallace Pryor, L. K. Hagood, J. M. Bedenbaugh, Mr. Fairey, J. L. Keitt, Sr., and Price K. Harmon. COUNTY AUDITOR PINCKNEY N. ABRAMS PROBATE JUDGE NEAL W. WORKMAN Those who have served faithfully as Trustees at sometime since 1900 are: Otto Klettner, J. H. Wicker, Dr. Van Smith, W. A. McSwain, J. M. Davis, W. S Langford, L. W. Floyd, Arthur Kibler, J. L. Keitt, Sr., Dr. W. G. Mayer, J. Y. McFall, Roy Sum mer and P. D. Johnson. The remainder of this article has to do with the schools as they are today, fifty years since the people of Newberry decided to have “Free Schools” for all the girls and boys in School District Numer One. The Newberry Public Schools Sys tem consists of seven schools for the white children and one negro school. The white schools are Mollohon, Oakland, West End, Speers Street, Boundary Street, Junior High and the Newberry High School. The Drayton Street School for negroes includes both elementary and high school departments with an enroll ment of 700. The graduates of the high school now receive State High School Diplomas. Vocational Edu cation is the most important and popular course in the negro school. The Mollohon, Oakland and West End schools are located on the property of the Kendall Mills and Newberry Cotton Mills respectively, and are conveniently located to care for the small children of these com munities. Only the children of the first four grades are taught in these schools. The local officials of these corporations are loyal supporters of the public schools of Newberry. Miss Sarah Caldwell, principal; Mrs. J. F. Browne, Mrs. W. E. Pelham, Miss Marguerite Bums, Mrs. W. E. Turner, are the teachers at Mollo hon. Mrs. R. C. Boylston, principal; Mrs. G. G. Sale, Mrs. Corrie H. -Fridy, and Miss Helen Nichols are the teachers in the Oakland school. Mrs. F. R. Fellers, principal; Mrs. Josie P. McAlhaney, Mrs. Maude E. Sanders, and Miss Daisy Cannon are the teachers at West End school. The Boundary Street and Speers Street schools are located so as to be convenient to smaller children of the two sections of the city. The children from the first through the fifth grades are taught there. Miss Gertrude Reeder, principal; Mrs. Neal W. Workman, Miss Lila Sum mer Miss Eleanor Ballentine, Miss Annie Bynum, Miss Juanita Hitt, and Miss Corrie Lei Havird are the teachers at Boundary Street school. Miss Ethel Jones, principal; Miss Annie Abrams, Mrs. Beale H. Cromer, Miss Rosabel Thompson, Mrs. E. E. Stuck, and Mrs. J. C. Peery are the teachers at Speers Street school. The sixth and seventh grade pu pils are in the Junior High school (formerly the High School building). Mrs. E. B. Setzler, principal; Mrs. T. P. Johnson, Mrs. Georgia H. Wel- bom, Miss Elise Peterson, Ellis L. Stockman, Mrs. Elizabeth R. Gra ham, Miss Georgia Porter, Miss Clara Bowers, Mrs. H. H. Hedgepath, Mrs. W. C. Brown, Jr., are the teachers at the Junior High school. Miss Bertha Gallman is full time librarian. Miss Rose Hamm is full time Supervisor of Public School Music in the primary and elementary schools. The teacher tenure in the Newber ry schools is possibly longer than in other cities of like size in South Carolina, which enables the teachers to fully know the parents and home conditions of the children under their care. There is an average enrollment of 1000 pupils in the first seven grades and the average attendance has al ways been very high. O. B. Cannon has been superin tendent of the Newberry system for the past 21 years and under his supervision and administration, the system has grown physically and most efficiently in educating the boys and girls in sound and fundamental principals of learning. The administration and the facul ty believe in holding fast to funda- mehtal principles of the “Old School” and gradually accepting and putting into practice any sound edu cational principle of the most “pro gressive school”. There are now in the curriculum of the high school 17 different sub jects: Algebra, Art, Bookkeeping, Biology, Business Science, Chemistry, Citizenship and Occupations, Com mercial Law, English, French, Geometry, General Science, Home Economics (two years required of all girls: sewing, cooking, and home making), History (World and Ameri can required of all pupils), Current History, Latin, Manual Training (metal and woodwork), Mechanical Drawing, and Physics. There are few schools in South Carolina that send as large per cent, of their graduates to college as does Newberry. Out of the class of 1938 of 100, there are 64 attending college. The graduates have always done fine work in the various colleges of the Southern Association, of which Newberry high school has been a member since 1924. The reports sent out each year by the Associa tion indicates a very low percentage of failures in the Freshman class of these colleges; 2.6 percent being the highest percentage of failures since 1926. For those who do not plan to go to college, Newberry High school offers training in Manual Training, Home Economics, Commercial Subjects, and are planning to add other vocational courses which will further provide for the needs of the boys and girls in filling their places as citizens of the community. The High school enrollment in 1924 was 241, with 10 teachers, while the enrollment for the present session is 617 with 22 teachers and a full time Librarian. The first graduates to receive State High School diplomas were in 1919 when seven graduated at that time. This year there are 126 in the Senior class. In the academic contests of the High School League of South Caro lina, the Newberry students have received many honors. In athletics, the “Bulldogs” have a nacord to be proud of. Harry Hedgepath is coach, and has made a fine record moulding some good baseball, basketball, and football teams. Miss Annie Lee Young has been very successful as coach for the girls in basketball. Softball and Tenmia is becoming popular under the coaching of Mr. S. E. Whitten and Mr. Carl ’Ringer, respectively. The one slogan or motto in all ath letics in the Newberry High School is “Win or lose, play the game fair, be a good sport”. The athletic field is one of the best in the state and has a concrete (Continued on page six) STOKES’ Drug Store Lower Main Street Is Co-operating To Make The Sesqui-centennial Celebration A Bright Chapter In The History of Our County. Come to Newberry April 30-May 4. A Royal Welcome Awaits All of you From All of Us. STOKES’ Drug Store . UNITED STATES POSTOFFICE, NEWBERRY, S. C, Best Wishes to the ‘Sesqui’ Committee for a Celebration we will Be Proud Of WHITE FANT