Brown County, Minnesota - Chapter 11: Educational Interests, 1916

Chapter 11: Educational Interests

In the matter of education the people of Brown county have ever stood abreast of any community in the commonwealth. No sooner had the German colonies that founded the city of New Ulm and braved the dangers and hardships incident to the settlement of what was in the fifties a ' ' howling wilderness/' on the broad prairies and rich but untouched valleys within her borders, made a permanent settlement than they began to plan for a good school system. Years have rolled away and townships have been organized and re-organized numerous times, and finally the present excellent public school district system has come to obtain.

On July 6, 1857, the first four school districts were formed. They were only temporary districts, however, made for the purpose of apportionment. On January 2, 1860, the total number of children in the several districts were as follow: Milford, 89; Linden, 26; Redwood, 47; Madelia, 37; New Ulm, 139; District No. 10, 26; Cottonwood, 104; total, 465. Some of these districts, it will be observed are now situated in other counties than Brown. The amount of school tax at that date was $672, an average amount for each scholar of a fraction more than $1.43. In January, 1862, the number of scholars reported was four hundred and eighty-seven, and total amount of school tax was only $951.07. In January, 1867, an appropriation was made in order to send three suitable persons to the State Normal School at Winona, and pay their expenses while there, the consideration to be that they should agree to teach for three years in the schools of Brown county. In 1882 the reports show that there were sixty-five school districts and the total of scholars enrolled was 2,797.

Pioneer Schools

The first school taught in New Ulm was in a small frame building, in which August Westphal opened a school on December 17, 1857, there being twenty-four scholars in attendance. In the summer of 1858 the school was divided into two classes, Frederick Forster taking charge of one and Mr. Westphal the other class. The first year's expenses for these pioneer schools were paid by the German Land Association. In 1859, the school consisted again of but one class taught by Mr. Forster, this being the first school term taught and paid for by regular taxation. In 1872 an independent school district was created, and by 1882 there were three school buildings, all built of brick. The high school was located in the center of the town, was thirty by seventy-five feet in size, two story in height, with two primary schools, one in the northern and the other in the southern part of town, each one-story buildings, twenty by forty feet in size. The high school building was erected in 1864, at a cost of five thousand dollars, and soon thereafter enlarged. Each of the two other schoolhouses cost a thousand dollars each.

New Ulm four hundred and fifty scholars attending public schools. The Catholic people have always maintained large schools here, an account of which is given in connection with the church history given in this volume.

Milford Schools

The earliest school taught in Milf ord township was at the house of Anton Henle in the spring of 1857, by a Pole, named Pokofski. In the winter of 1859-60, a log school house was built, and educational affairs kept pace with the growth of the township until in 1881 there were five buildings. The tornado of that season destroyed the house in school district No. 9, but it was soon rebuilt.

Cottonwood Schools

Cottonwood township was made a school district in 1860, and numbered No. 1; the first school was taught by Sarah Shaw. Great has been the advancement in schools since that time.

In Home township the earliest school was taught in 1866, by Miss Hattie Wright in a log house put up for that purpose, in the northeastern part of the township ; it was later Included in district No. 13. In 1881 there were seven school houses in the township, the average cost of each was about eight hundred dollars. They had all the furniture (24)

In a claim shanty, in the summer of 1867, Elen Eldred taught the first school in Eden township. By the following winter a log building had been provided for the school. It was erected by public subscription and stood in section 32; subsequently the district bought it, and it was then within what was then district No. 16. It was but a short time before two or three more good schools were started in this township.

Sigel township's first school was taught when the whole township constituted one school district - No. 4 and the date was 1864. In the late seventies there were several good school buildings; the one in district No. 6 was considered the best school building in Brown county, outside of those found at New Ulm. With the passing of years these district schools have had competent instructors and kept up with the usual standard of district schools in Minnesota.

In Leavenworth township the first schools were taught by Mrs. Wylie in 1866, at her own home in section 17. The first school house was built on the subscription plan in 1868 ; it was a log building. In 1881 there were five good school buildings in this township.

Sigel Schools Leavenworth Schools

Maggie Keegan taught the first school in Bashaw township in 1877, in a dwelling house in section 26, in what came to be known as district No. 2. It was hard at first to get enough scholars living near one another in a thinly settled township to cause a schoolhouse tax to be levied. As a rule it required thirteen pupils before the board was allowed to levy a school tax. But as more came in schools were secured, and have been maintained ever since.

In Albin township the first school was taught by Clarissa Ives, in the summer of 1870, in John Tew's granary. At first the whole township was included in one school district, but before 1880 there were three substantial school buildings in the three districts of this township.

In Lake Hanska township the first school was taught after the 1862 Indian outbreak, by Martha Hanson. In 1880 the township had two schools. With the settlement of that part of Brown county, the settlers were in favor of good public schools, though many were Scandinavians they really took more interest and spent more money for schools than their Yankee brothers in some other parts of the county.

In Linden township the earliest school was taaight by Charles Mullen, in 1860, at the house of Peter Thormodson. In the spring of 1862, a log school house was erected belonging to district No. 7. At that time the district comprised both Linden and what is now Lake Hanska townships. This seems to have been among the first, if indeed not the very earliest school taught by a man in the county among the rural districts.

The first school taught in Mulligan township was in the summer of 1877 by Hannah Collins. In 1880 there were three school buildings in this township.

In Burnstown township the first school was taught by Miss Marian Hall, in the school house built in district No, 41. The school at Springfield village was mentioned thus in 1882: " There is one school building, two stories high, costing twenty-eight hundred dollars. Two teachers are employed and the number of pupils is eighty."

The Sleep Eye Schools

While business has been uppermost, for the most part, in the minds of business men in Sleepy Eye, they have not lost sight of the advantages gained by keeping pace with all that is good and progressive in educational affairs. The public schools of the city have not only been up to the standard, but have usually led off in advanced methods. When through legislative enactment provision was made for establishing industrial departments in the high schools of the state, it was at once realized that the Sleepy Eye school building, built some dozen or more years before that date, was of sufficient size and arrangement to accommodate such an innovation, and the city was among the earliest in Minnesota to establish such new school departments.

Again, in the matter of agriculture and its being scientifically taught in the schools, no school has done more along that line and actually benefited the farmer and his sons and daughters, than the department found in the public schools of Sleepy Eye. Animal husbandry and field crop growth have each claimed their share and that to the betterment of both pupil and parent. The agricultural instructor spends one-fourth of his time in going out among the farmers, offering suggestions.

In the domestic science department, also one sees the latest facilities. Here the school is furnished all sorts of materials for cooking and testing foods. Home management, nursing, house sanitation and all these branches are handled with good results.

A state teachers 9 training department has also been recently added and is under the supervision of a competent instructor. All in all, the public school building at Sleepy Eye is a bee hive, where no drones are reared in laziness,

School Buildings Of New Ulm

The following shows the date of building and cost of the present school houses in the city of New Ulm : Emerson building, in 1900, cost $18,452; high school building, erected in 1914, cost $77,594; Lincoln building, erected in 1913, cost $13,776; Washington building, built in 1907, cost $14,698; East Primary building, erected in 1892, cost $3,770. These figures represent the contract prices.

Public School Statistics For 1915 High And Graded Schools

New Ulm, with an enrollment of 877; days of school year, 190; wages of males, per month, $133; of females, $59; number of departments, 24; number of teachers, 25.

Sleepy Eye, enrollment, 410 ; days in school year, 180 ; average wages paid males, $144 ; females, $68 ; number departments, 14; number of teachers, 15.

Springfield, enrollment, 345 ; days in school year, 180 ; number of departments, 13 ; number of teachers, 14 ; wages paid males, $138 ; females, $63.

Dr. Martin Luther College

New Ulm is the seat of a college of the Evangelical Lutheran Synod of Minnesota, known as the Dr. Martin Luther College. This institution was founded in 1884. Primarily, it was intended more especially to teach theology and fit for the ministry young men of the Evangelical Lutheran church, but by a reorganization which took place in September, 1893, Wisconsin, Michigan, Dakota and other states were admitted and the plans somewhat changed. Especial attention was then paid to the training not only for the ministry, but for teachers in Lutheran parochial school work. Under the former arrangements, many young men came from Germany here, the same desiring to do efficient work in the Evangelical Lutheran church in the United States. The first faculty was composed of Prof. O. Hoyer, president ; Prof. Ad. F. Reim and Prof. G. Burk.

The corner-stone of the first college building was laid on June 25, 1884, and on November 10, the same year, the building was dedicated and its doors opened for the reception of students. Hundreds of young men have graduated from this institution since then, and gone out into various walks of life to make their knowledge and influence tell for the betterment of mankind.

Among the faculty who have served faithfully and well may be recalled the names of Profs. J. Schaller, president and director for nineteen years; A. Ackermann, president and director; A. F. Reim, O. Montgomery, G. Burk, J. E. Sperling, Fr. Reuter, J. Meyer, E. R. Bliefernicht and the present faculty head, Professor Ackermann.

On the twenty-fifth anniversary of the founding of this college, in June, 1909, a " Silver Jubilee" was held and prominent men of the church, from various cities in the synod were present and made addresses. It was also at that date when a vote was taken to decide whether the college should remain at New Ulm, or be removed to another city. The popularity of the New Ulm institution was seen when the votes were counted, for they stood as follows: For New Ulm, ninety-two; for Hutchinson, nine; for St. Paul, one, and for Minneapolis, one.

The college is finely located on the hills to the west of the city, proper, the campus is within a natural and beautifully timbered park, to which man has added the finishing touches, by creating walks, driveways and erecting many pretty buildings and terracing the sloping hillside. It is now known as one of the city's permanent educational institutions. Besides being a good school for the higher studies demanded in this age, it is also a good proposition in way of business for New Ulm. Those who associate themselves with this college soon adapt themselves to the general interests of the community. This is to Brown county what the Gustavus Adolphus College at St. Peter is to Nicollet county, next east of this county. Both are doing a splendid work in their lines, the one being supported largely by the German people, while the other is a Swedish institution.

There are now (spring of 1916) one hundred students in attendance. The officers and faculty of the institution are: A. Ackermann, president, teaches religion, psychology and history; G. Burk teaches English, language, music; A. F. Reim, mathematics, natural science and civil government; O. Montgomery, arithmetic, English, geoggraphy, drawing, penmanship, history; J. E. Sperling, methods, school practice ; Professor Wagner, Latin, Greek ; F. Reuter, music; E. R. Bliefernicht, German and history; H. Mosel, German, Latin and geography.