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CHAPTER VI.
EDUCATIONAL.
The first school district organized in Douglas county was on May 4, 1885, by E. E. Brown, superintendent of public instruction. It was District No. 1, and was in the California settlement, north of where is now located Hartline, and consisted of all of township 27, except sections 6, 7, 18, 19, 30 and 31. August 4, 1886, the boundaries were changed as follows:
Beginning at the northeast corner of Douglas county, running west on county line to range 29, thence south on range line to township 27, thence east one mile to county line, thence north to place of beginning. Of this district, A. Davis was clerk, David Wilson and John O'Neil directors.
District No. 2 was created also on May 4, 1885, Frank Day, clerk, A. Rusho, I. P. Schock and J. H. Smith, directors. The first school building erected in the county was put up in district No. 2, in 1885, and the first school taught in the county was conducted there. The term began September 5, 1885, and closed January I, 1886. The whole number of scholars was fifteen boys and ten girls, with an average attendance of 18.
The first public school taught west of the coulees and the second in the county opened December 7, 1885, and closed February 26, 1886. R. S. Steiner, still a resident of Waterville, was the teacher. Following are the names of the pupils who attended this school: Albert Bonwell, Bertha Bonwell, Francis Bonwell, James Bonwell. Willie Gorman, Albert Miles, Fred Miles, George Miles, Lulu Miles, Stella Miles, Edward Owens, John Owens, James Owens, Robert Owens, Rachael Owens, Clara Kommer, Ida Kommer and Karl Kommer.
The third district was created August 4, 1886, on the north side of Badger Mountain. The clerk was' R. Miles and Robert Bonwell, Ole Ruud and D. W. Martin were directors. May 3, 1886, the fourth district was created with J. O. Wallace, clerk, James Simons, David Soper and Amel Johnson, directors.
No. 5, the Waterville district, was created May 4, 1886. F. M. Alexander was clerk, W. M. Wixson, H. N. Wilcox and J. C. Brownfield, were the directors. November 29, 1888, the Big Bend Empire said:
Next Monday, December 2, 1888, the boys and girls of Waterville will take their books and slates and, assisted by Miss Hattie Fuller, (afterward Mrs. L. E. Kellogg), as teacher, will organize the first public school of Waterville.
This was the pioneer school of Waterville and there were twenty-three pupils enrolled the first day. The attendance was increased in one month to forty pupils and many were turned away on account of lack of accommodations.
The first Douglas County Teachers' Institute was held at Waterville on Monday, Tuesday and Wednesday, November 11, 12 and 13, 1889, under the direction of County Superintendent C. C. Ladd. This initial institute of Douglas county teachers was in every way a success and one that will be remembered by all who participated in the same. The teachers
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present were: E. M. Bogart, C. E. Bateman, Mrs. S. Bateman, Eva E. Brown, Cora Brown, J. J.
Brownfield, R. H. Brownfield. J. V. Crisp, O. W. Ernst, Mrs. Clara Fitch, George L. Fitch, Georgiana Day, H. G. W. Hendricks, Eva Howland, Mrs. L. E. Kellogg, Will Leman, Fannie Minton, Mrs. Julia Morris, Mrs. A. Rogers, A. C. Porter, O. D. Porter, P. E. Berry, Phoebe Titchenal, Clara Wright. Kate Williams.
In the fall of 1889 Waterville began the erection of a $3,000 school house, quite an institution for the town at that time. James H. Kincaid was the moving spirit in this enterprise, he contributing $500 in cash and a site for the building. A special tax was voted by the residents of the district to complete the amount. At this period the school directors were F. M. Scheble, A. L. Rogers and P. G. Van Alstine.
A report of the condition of the schools of Douglas county was not made by any of the county superintendents until 1890. From the report of that year we learn that there were 966 children in the county between the ages of five and twenty-one years. Of these 665 were enrolled as students in the public schools and the average attendance was 490. There were 28 districts in the county, but only 11 school houses — one log building and 10 frame structures. The total value of all school property was estimated by the school superintendent at $8,302. Thirty-three teachers were employed during the year. The average monthly salary of male teachers was $43 and that of female teachers, $38.50.
From this humble beginning the schools of Douglas county have made a wonderful advancement and no county in the state can boast of better schools than Douglas. From the superintendent's report from 1903 we learned that the towns containing more than one district were Waterville, Coulee City, Bridgeport, Wilsoncreek and Hartline. The number of children of from 5 to 21 years of age were 3,053. Of these there were enrolled in public schools 2,448. The average daily attendance was 1,493. There were no departments maintained in the county during the year 1898. The whole number of teachers employed during the year were 133. The average monthly salary was, males, $50.21: females, $50.49. The number of pupils taking the first year's course were 624: second, 315; fourth, 367; fifth, 505; sixth, 193; seventh, 140; eighth, 124; ninth, 10: tenth, 14; eleventh, 10; twelfth, 4. There were 13 in attendance on private schools. The number of school houses in the county were, log, 3; frame, 59; brick, 1, and the total seating capacity of these structures was 2,083. The total value of this property was $58,467. The number of districts in the county had increased to 76. There was one graded school and one high school at Waterville. The number of temporary certificates issued during this year were 48. Teachers having Territorial certificates were 2; normal department State University, 1; elementary certificates from normal schools, 1; first grade certificates, 7; second grade 50, and third grade, 20.
In preceding chapters it has been shown that at the time of the organization of Douglas county early in 1884, the population was anything but dense. Many of these early settlers were single men or men who had come to seek a home in the new county, leaving their families behind until their homes should have been prepared. On account of these conditions the years 1883 and 1884 did not witness the establishment of a single school in any portion of Douglas county. By 1885, however, active preparations were made for the organization of schools in two settlements, one east of Grand Coulee and the other in the Badger Mountain country. Vera Brown was superintendent of schools and May 4, 1885, she created Districts No. 1 and 2.
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