|
EDUCATION THROUGH
THE YEARS
Education throughout the years seems to have been one of the greatest
concerns of the people and around our school our community life has
always centered. The first school in the township of Burns was held in
an unoccupied log cabin built by Amos Foster on Section 22, about two
and one half miles from Byron, later known as the Chaffee School. The
first teacher was William Chaffee, followed by Andrew Huggins, who
taught during the winter of 1838-39. The following summer several
schools were taught in the township although the Districts were not
organized until 1843. The first officers were: Freeborn Joselyn,
moderator, and Joseph Joselyn, director. Three months of school were
held in the winter and four in the summer, each pupil being required to
furnish one half cord of wood. The Town Board of School Inspectors met
in the spring of 1840 and divided the entire township into districts
with the exception of the Indian Reservation which was located in parts
of Sections 5, 6, 7, & 8 in the Northwest part of the township. In 1842
the board met and apportioned the primary money as follows: District No.
3 (Byron) $8.64, District No. 5 (Chaffee) $6.72 and District No. 4
(Green) $2.88.
On November 14, 1842 a school meeting was called to meet at the Robert
Crawford home, but because Mr. Crawford did not live in the District 1,
for the benefit of which the meeting was being held, it had to be
changed. On May 6, 1843 the school board addressed Mr. Crawford as
follows: “Mr. Robert Crawford, you are hereby commanded to notify every
qualified voter in District No. 2, either personally, or by leaving a
written notice at his residence, that a school meeting will be held at
the house of Ramah Cole on the 18th at one o’clock in the afternoon”.
Soon afterward a log house was built and used until 1856 when the old
Cole School was built at the corner of Durand and Cole Roads.
In September, 1848 District No. 1 voted to raise $75.00 to build a
school which was completed the next year and later became known as the
Haviland School. This building was later moved to Byron and became an
annex to the Byron High School.
The Barnum District No. 8 was organized in 1854 and the school located
on the northwest corner of Byron and Braden Roads.
Our local school history dates back to 1845 when the first building was
erected at a cost of $200 and located on property on the northwest
corner of Maple and Church streets. The first regular school meeting in
the village was held December 6, 1843 in the Byron Hotel. Previous to
this date there had been several terms of school taught in the homes of
the villagers.
In 1865 a Union School costing $3500 and a primary building on the
north side costing $800 was constructed on the northeast corner of Maple
and Ann Streets. Both these buildings were sold and moved away in 1899,
making way for a new brick structure. Work was started in the spring,
grade pupils finished their school year in other buildings. Some classes
were held in a store building, some in the ballroom of the Byron Hotel,
a part of which is now the home of L.W. VanAlstine. Others were taught
in the Byron Opera House, now the site of 220 Hamilton. The Opera
House, later destroyed by fire, had been remodeled and enlarged from the
old Presbyterian Church.
B
Byron High Union School 1865-1899 Records show
some ninth and tenth grade subjects being taught soon after 1879.
|
Byron School Graduates, 1890
L to R – Clarence Welch, Edith Savage, Harmon
Boice,
Emma Runyan, Willis Laurie and Mr. French, Principal. |
Byron School Girls
Top Row, L to R – Pearl Tubbs, Eva Laurie,
Louise Sayers, Teacher
2nd Row, L to R – Erma Gale, Belle Cummin, Mabel Tubbs,
Stella Telling
3rd Row, L to R – Agne (Birdie) Ruggles, Mable Savage, Edna
Chaffee, Daisy Goff and Allie Cargill |
|
Byron School Graduates, 1891
Back Row, L to R – Frank Laurie, Cora Savage,
George Bishop, Elsie Lord, Clara Lewis and Elmer Ellsworth.
Front Row, L to R – Minnie Bishop, Ida Allen, Mr. French,
Principal, Carrie Allen and Ora Barker. |
Class of 1898
Graduating Class of Byron High School(10 grades)
1898 held in the Opera House. The stage with a basement under it
had been added to the south end of the Presbyterian Church.
L to R – Frank Royce, L. Nora Boice, Mr. George
Stedman, Principal, Flora Bennett and Stella Telling. |
The old Haviland School from north of Byron which was moved to Byron
after the consolidation and used for a first
grade room with Alice Stoner Griffin as the teacher. Later it became a
storage place for the horse drawn busses until they were disposed of.
Again it became a classroom, then was moved back on the playground and
used for tool storage. By 1944-45 our school had grown to such a
capacity that it became necessary to have more room, so again the old
Haviland School took another ride – this time to be remodeled and
another room its size added to it to form the annex north of the main
building. It was used for kindergarten and third grades, then as the
band headquarters.
Byron High School, 1914
First Record of a Four Year High School Course Being Offered.
This brick structure consisted of two classrooms and two cloak rooms on
the first floor for the first six grades, and two classrooms (one for
the 7th and 8th grades, one for the high school) an office, a small
Chemistry lab and a supply and telephone booth on the second floor. The
basement consisted of a furnace room and playroom with a dirt floor. The
morning, noon and recess bell was rung from the north cloakroom by means
of a heavy rope.
The first record of a four year high school course being offered was in
1914. Although no 11th or 12th grade
subjects were credited to pupils, there were forty eight enrolled in the
upper four grades. Five full time teachers were employed with salaries
ranging from $50 to that of the Superintendent which was $82 per month.
At this time total enrollment was 101. Credits for eleventh and twelfth
grade subjects were given for the first time in 1915.
An old gentleman by the name of Kels Campbell was janitor for many
years, preceded by a John Wormley and Harm Newman and followed by Peter
Mills, Bert Miller, Charles MacKay, Hubert Dutil, Howard Boillat, Lloyd
Root, Bert Pearson and Walt Maylum.
Byron School
Class of 1918
Back Row, L to R – Pearl Clark Anibal, C.L. Lahring, Ruby Clark
Green, Eva Meier Perry, Clifton Stroud and Dorothy Crawford Putt.
Front Row, L to R – Clara Schweikert Jarrett, Bessie Potter Nichols,
Fern Jennings Roth, Muriel Ball Webster and Ruth Barnes Hoover.
During the years 1919-1921, A.T. Hagerman was employed as Superintendent
at an annual salary of $1800. Through him the consolidation of Districts
1-3-5-8 was introduced. A mass meeting was held at the M.E. Church, a
dinner served and many people from the surrounding communities listened
to a speaker from Lansing as he talked on the advantages of
consolidation.
 In
1921 consolidation of the above districts was completed and the district
bonded for $25,000 to build an addition on to the three story brick
structure. The job was let to Oswald and Stahl from Alma, Michigan. Work
was begun at 6:00 in the morning and ended at 6:00 at night with the
exception of Saturday when they quit at noon so some of the men could
get home for the weekend. The common laborer received forty cents an
hour while the carpenters and brick layers received a little more. Great
was the excitement around school while the building was going on and
most of
Byron High School, built in
1899, consolidated in 1921 and east addition built
in 1923. Demolished in the fall of 1966. Old building
left is the Haviland School.
the spare time at noon was spent watching the men at work and wondering
just what it would look like when completed. The entrance to the high
school rooms was by the fire escape and through a window. The youngsters
who lived in town went home when not in class to make room for those who
came in on the busses and had to remain the entire day. Sewing classes
were held in the basement of the Methodist Church.
When the building was finished in 1923 there was an assembly room and
commercial room on the second floor, two new classrooms on the first
floor, two Home Economics rooms in the basement and the old play-lunch
room became the boy’s manual training room or shop.
In the spring of 1924 the different classes and rooms chose a portion of
the school grounds to seed, care for, and beautify. When the grading was
completed the grounds were dragged by Forest Arthur, Garland Ball and
Fred Hibbard, who brought their teams and dragged, in with the clay,
loads of black dirt. The grounds were then seeded, rolled and watered by
the students. All the rooms sold magazines to earn the fifty dollars
they had agreed to contribute toward the shrubbery. Plans for planting
were studied and submitted by each group; the pupils having the best
plan supervised their section. A committee composed of John Dyer, Fred
Hibbard and Garland Ball were chosen to accompany Mr. Burt, the
superintendent, to purchase shrubs from the Genesee County Nursery. A
half day was taken for the planting of the shrubs which consisted of:
five dozen Japanese Barberry, two dozen Spirea, one dozen Honeysuckle,
one half Dozen Snowberry and four Boston Ivy. Nature did her part by
furnishing a cool wet spring; the shrubs grew well and rapidly and still
remained to beautify the old brick school until it was torn down in 1966
to make way for the new elementary building.
For the first time the school was placed on the accredited list in June
1924 and enrollment gradually increased. Pupils paying tuition increased
from 9 in 1924 to 34 in 1928. This increase in tuition amounted to
nearly $1900. The first State Aid money was received in August 1924, a
sum of $3000, which we were to receive annually. The smith Hughes Law
for Federal Aid in Agriculture and Home Economics made it possible for
the school to receive the sum of $1285.48 in 1928, while the primary
money amounted to around $3000. The cost of maintaining the school for
this year was approximately $24,000. Nearly $4000 was spent on permanent
improvements such as tables, laboratory equipment and books, and about
$900 was invested in musical instruments. Enrollment had reached 226 of
whom 136 pupils came from the country and 90 from the village. Tuition
was $75 a year. After consolidation credit was first offered for Music,
Typing and extra-curricular activities and Manual Arts and Home
Economics had been introduced followed by a four year vocational
agricultural course. Many of the farm boys specialized in certified
beans or potatoes or in registered corn, hogs, cattle or poultry.
In 1925 Byron school had the enviable record of being first in the state
in high yields of spuds raised by students on potato projects. The state
record of 300 bushel per acre was broken by the production of better
than 350 bushels by three boys, Stanley Ball, Roy Neathammer and Vernon
Pratt. The Poland China hog project numbered eight registered sows and
one boar. A sow was furnished to each boy who undertook the project
without any cost to him and from the first litter of pigs he turned two
of them over to the school and kept the remainder for himself. Most of
the increase was disposed of to the local farmers.
Another accomplishment under the leadership of Mr. Burt, who headed the
Byron School during a very successful period of expansion from 1923-1930
was the local school fair sponsored by the Agricultural and Home
Economics departments. This attracted considerable interest in the
community. The adjacent schools were urged to participate. A trophy cup,
furnished by the business men of the town, was given to the school
winning the most points in the exhibits. Poultry specialists, the
Livingston County Agent and speakers from the State Department and
College assisted in making this an interesting as well as an instructive
event for the whole community. The district schools each furnished a
part of the program for the evening and a ten dollar prize was offered
to the school putting on the best number. This gave the surrounding area
children an opportunity to participate in larger groups and helped to
acquaint them with the Byron School. Pupils took charge of the fair,
arranging exhibits, publicizing, announcing programs and introducing
speakers, each selecting a part for which to be responsible. The expense
was met largely through the sale of candy, popcorn and hot dogs sold by
the student body. Rules and regulations were set up and sent to each of
the district schools and to all the patrons in the community. After a
period of four or five successful years the fair gradually gave way to
other events, later to be revived by the P.T.A. as a hobby show which
created enthusiasm for a couple of years.
The eighth grade banquet was another event that had its beginning in
1925 and was carried on for several years. Invitations were made by the
Byron eighth graders and sent to the eighth graders and their teachers
in the country schools asking them to be guests at the Byron School
usually the first Friday after the county 8th grade examinations. A
ballgame and track events were held in the afternoon with the banquet
and program in the evening. Pupils were shown through the building, and
simple experiments were performed which helped to create a desire for a
high school education. The Home Ec. Girls served the banquet and the
local eighth grade furnished the program.
For several years an eighth grade graduation was held and each year the
eighth grade produced a play for the public. The high school plays were
given in the Old Fisher Building. Here likewise basketball games and
other social events were held. The proceeds from the plays were used to
purchase something for the school, as a gift, in memory of that year’s
class. Later the town hall was used for all school activities until the
high school gymnasium was erected. Money derived from plays came to be
added to the class treasury to help defray the expenses of the senior
trips, which were generally taken through the East just before school
was out in the spring or immediately after graduation. A school bus,
class sponsor or one or two teachers, a bus driver and a mechanic
accompanied the group. They took much of their food, prepared most of
their meals and stayed in tents.
In 1924 after some discussion between pupils and teachers it was decided
to have a government by the pupils (first student council). One member
was chosen from each of grades 7-8-9-10 and two from the 11th and 12th.
The secretary was elected by the council. A constitution was drawn up by
a committee and later accepted by the student body after having been
read to the assembly three times and having been posted for five days.
Later the council formulated a code of ethics which was adopted and
followed for several years.
The demand for a school nurse grew out of the necessity of a physical
inspection program. In 1926 the Board of Education employed a part time
nurse, through the Michigan T.B. Association at a cost of $150 a year
for a one day per month service. Vision and hearing tests were given,
also physical inspection which included dental, adenoids, tonsils,
glands, skin, eyes, throat and hair. The results were recorded on the
accumulative records by three high school girls who helped the nurse
each month. Each child in the first six grades was weighed monthly. All
found more than 5 pounds underweight were given special information
about food and rest and in some cases the home and mother visited. Each
child was measured in September and January and his normal weight
calculated. For each defect found the home was visited to try and
determine the underlying cause. Parents were advised to contact their
family physicians about treatment and if they could not afford medical
care it was provided through state aid. Three tonsillectomies were
arranged for at Ann Arbor through the County Poor Commission. First
grade children were all given a light lunch in the middle of the
forenoon and again in the afternoon, a project supervised by the Home
Economics Department. Each month a health lesson was given in each room
stressing phases of mental hygiene.
Residents of the Cole and Pink Districts voted in August 1949 to
affiliate with the Byron Agricultural School. This same year a cinder
block building 40’ X 104’ for which five mills had been voted, was
erected to the east of the main building to house the shop and
agricultural departments at a cost of approximately $14,000.The next
fall two more classrooms were added on the west side of the cement block
building which became two first grade rooms and later the Home Making
Area.
During 1953 eight other school districts, the Boyd, Green, Williams,
West Brick, Union Plains, Hearst , about half of the Graham and more
than half of the Fuller annexed, more than doubling the size of the
Byron District. The School became a class C school with an enrollment of
approximately 525 and included property in Shiawassee, Livingston and
Genesee Counties.
It had been understood that with these annexations a new elementary
school would be necessary, so a study committee of 26 persons was
appointed. This was composed of one person from each organization in the
community and one from each school district. They met once a week and
most of the people attended every meeting. They looked at other schools
recently built and gathered all possible information to help make their
decisions for a new building. This information was passed on to the
voters and approved by a nearly three to one vote in June 1954.
Completed in the summer of 1955 and in use in the fall were $260,000
worth of new school facilities, a new eleven room elementary building,
office space adjacent to the already existing classrooms and a very
impressive 90’ X 117’ gymnasium with laminated redwood formed arches
above basketball court. The originally planned band room and two
additional classrooms had to be eliminated after bids had been submitted
due to the increase in the price of lumber.
Byron High School
A record turn out of 603 voters on April 3, 1962 approved a bond issue
for $650,000 to build a new high school after such had been recommended
by a citizen’s committee. The farm of Russell Hibbard, in back of the
water tower, was chosen as the spot and purchased for $10,000. Some of
the rooms were completed for use by September, 1963, others moved into
as they were finished. Dedication services were held November 3, 1963
from two to five with the school board and administration and their
wives as hosts, the F.F.A. boys parking cars and the Future Teachers
Club acting as guides throughout the building. This year the legal name
of the school was changed to Byron Area Schools.
 |
 |
Above: Byron High
School Dedication Program 1963
Our community continued to grow rapidly so the biggest news in Byron in
1966 was the passing of a $530,000 bond issue for constructing,
furnishing and equipping a new elementary unit which would provide
eighteen classrooms, two kindergarten rooms, a special ed room, a
clinic, and four additional class rooms and a new drafting and general
arts room to the high school. It was with saddened hearts that the
community watched the old brick high school building being torn down in
the fall of 1966 and the construction begin on the new elementary
building to the west of the gym.
 After
several months study by a Citizens Advisory Committee they recommended
the construction of a new Middle School Annex on the present high school
site for the sixth, seventh and eighth grades, along with furniture and
equipment for the new building. The total cost of the proposed project
to be $1,535,000. This was approved by the voters in June 1972 and
construction began in the fall. The dedication of the new building was
held May 19th, 1974.
Byron Middle School
A track and football field and stadium costing approximately $370,000
and built at the high school was dedicated on September 13, 1991.
|
