HomeMy WebLinkAboutClinton News-Record, 1976-06-24, Page 65•
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CLINTON NEWS,RHCORD, THURSDAY, JUNE 241-, 197& -GE t i ft
Old S.S No; Santey. re °nee ions of fold,: mice, toilets
'WV** Parker
Iwuid rem's* it I did ant
te1140t4 of SS NO. $ Startle)! as 1
remember it. ft. was in 1941
during the .time -of a shortage
teachers that I began teacigng in
the junior room. Mrs.
Andrews, a recently returned
Presbyterian missionary's wife
froM japan, was principal.
Mrs. Andrews found the jab
much too heavy and with borne
commitments, resigned that
December. Mr. John Bates of
Brussel was the new principal. In
later years he becarae Inspector
of Haliburton, and still later until
his retirement, supervisor of
schools at Lindsay. The salaries
were $700 and $800.
The school was beginning to
show signs of deterioration. One
very severe cold spell in January
1942, -school Was closed down.
Children wore winter clothes in
school I can remember teaching
with ski boots and ski pants on.
The heat from the furnace to the
upper room was carried through
a hugh circular pipe passing right
through the centre of the room.
The trustees had this taken out
and two heat pipes passing up the
outside walls were installed. Coal
and wood were used as the fuel.
Entrance to the furnace room
was by a trap-dOor in the floor at
the front of the junior room.
Later, an entrance was made
4from outside or inside under the
steps to the senior room. On the
shelf (earthen) extending to the
outside foundation in the
basement the early registers of
the school were fount'. The
caretaker at the time told me
they were to be used as paper to
start the fire. Up to thin.
someone had not cared. Later I
remember searching them for
records to obtain birth cer-
tificates.
• At the same time as theheating
system was improved, a false
wainscotting was built along the
inside wall of the junior room.
The space was filled with
sawdust to prevent drafts.
An upper storey was put on and
two huge tie rods had been put
through the centre of the junior
room from the west wall to the
east wall. This was done because
of the increased weight. In the
Late 40's a slight bulge began to
show in the west wall of the senior
room so three large cement
abutments were built between
the downstair windows on the"
west side. I well remember the
remarks of Mr. Gairdner, the
Inspector. on his first visit after
the erection of the abutments:
"Well Mrs. Parker you won't)
slide to the west". I replied - "no.;
but there are three other ways". I
During the P.T. periods in the
senior 'room. dust sifted down
through the cracks in the ceiling.
Mice were common visitors in
the classroom.
There were four rows of desks - !
one row of single seats and three
of double. A platform was built
across the front of the room. The
blackboardtat one time were
painted oft the walls. During the
'40's. composite boards were
installed and still later a few slate
ones. The windows were open,
with no screens. One warm day
while I was teaching a grammar
lesson to grade 5. a huge face and
paws appeared on the window
sill. Our first thought was that it
Church
of the foolish Martyrs
Rejoices
In the role it was privileged to
play in the spiritual life of
Bayfield every summer since
MO.
Congratulates
most sincerely the town on the
Centennial of°, its in,
corporation.
Wishes
God's present and future
blessing on its regular and
floating citizenry. '
Voireavp
might be Little- Red Riding
Hood's wolf from the swamp. It
turned out to be Steven Scot-
chmer's big Great Dane,
Thunder.
A second-hand steel fire esetme .
was purchased and put from the
senior room to the groun.d. There
was the day when a fire did start
in the well of a register coming
from the senior room. After the
pupils were out and someone sent
to put in the fire alarm._ the
teachers returned to pour_ water
down the register. One remark
from one of the firemen was
"Why didn't you let the D.... thing
burn down"?
The water was brought in pails
from an outside hand pump into
the classroom for drinking and
washing. Later a canister with a
tap was purchased. Washing of
hands was done in a hand basin
and the water thrown outside.
The toilets in the downstair hall
and just outside the pallor room
door were chemical, the odour of
which ori a hot day in June or a
hot day in September after
summer clean-out was high.
The old back room stood idle.
Occasionally on a wet day, the
back door was opened and the
children were allowed to play_ out
of the rain.
The events that stand out in my
mind were entrance exams -
when a presiding officer came in
for three days and pupils from
neighbouring schools came to
write exams, admitting them to
high school. There was Arbour
Day, days of preparation for
Christmas Concerts to be held in
the Town Hall. the Musical
Festivals held in Goderich, and
the Bayfield Agricultural Fair.
• In August 1955, things began to
happen. The footings. foundation
and septic tank for the new school
Were put in. Then one morning ;
late in September, as if by magic,
a huge truck pulled into the yard ,
and by late afternoon, the walls'
and partitions 'of the new school '
were up. Each day. from o
vantage point in the senior room,'
we saw the new school taking ,
shape. Then on Nov. 14. 1955 we
left the old school.
A few weeks ago I discussed the
demolition of the school with
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Laird Schilbe, who had con-
tracted to take it down. He told
me that the building was in good
shape, being three bricks thick,
but the foundation was
wcOmnitig causing the walls to
curve. He estimated that there
were approximately 60.000 bricks
in the building. 35,000 of which he
cleaned. Some were. sold tO in.
dividuals• Most of the bricks and
Or timbers were used in the
construction of a house he built in
atiderich, and so the old schoo'
lives on.
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4 ^
The Thompson grist mill stood In Bayfield around 1942.
1876.
191%i6
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