Ability to Read and Write English

 

Students from Middle Fork School Circa 1928  Top Row L to R: Mary Helen Care, Alice Christensen, Chloe Carey, Cecilia Lyon, Winifred "Fett"  Sandin , Walter Bentz. Bottom Row: T.R. "Bus" Hess, Mary Sandin, Faye Lyon, Harry Bentz

Montana enacted a Compulsory Education Law in 1905 that basically stated that all children between the ages of eight and fourteen must attend a school for at least four hours a day, five days a week for a minimum of sixteen weeks during the year. If the child was of a younger age it was permissible for only two hours a day of schooling. The Law clearly states “The certificate shall be issued upon satisfactory proof of the age of the minor and a knowledge of his or her ability to read and write legibly the English language.” Once that certificate is issued a child over the age of fourteen cannot be mandated to attend school. The majority of students, especially rural were no longer attending school after the eighth grade. Those that were unable to obtain a certificate were forced either to continue attending school until they turned sixteen or break the law. By the 1950’s they had enacted laws that fined the parent daily if the minor did not attend school until the completion of the eighth grade. 

 As is often the case, laws were enacted with out providing the money for schools, teacher and learning material to be provided so it continued to be up to the families to find some way to comply to the law. As early as Granville Stuart time it is documented that he hired teachers to come and live with his family to provide schooling for his children and neighboring ranches. One of those teacher’s, Isabelle Brown, became his second wife in 1890, after Awbonnie, the mother of his children, died. 

 Granite County passed a bond issue to build the still operating school in Philipsburg in 1896 and prior to that Major William Graham and Mrs. Titus are known to conduct educational classes in the town. Rural families were expected to either move to town during school sessions or board the children with family or friends. 

 I have been unable to determine which country school was the first to be established in Granite county. I know the Cow Creek School started in 1912 with funding from parents and interested parties. The Trout Creek School was awarded a certificate that met Standards of Education in 1916, and was proudly supported financially by the surrounding ranchers. I possess a picture of Flint Creek School but have no reference to any date. Spring Creek school was started by the upper Willow Creek families after teachers had been hired by individual families and lived in their homes in the early 1920’s. Although my father states in his writing that he attended Rock Creek school, for his first grade, I believe he meant Spring Creek, as that would have been in 1927, and the first teacher I found a record of for Rock Creek was 1930. Dad (Harry Bentz), then attended Middle Fork School through the eighth grade. 

State funding for rural schools was first established in 1927 under the Common School Equalization Fund and revisited in the 1940’s. Although this still failed to provided adequate money it did begin the advent of one room school houses, usually constructed by the hard labor of the local parents; funded a meager wage for a school teacher (that often was boarded at a close ranch). Some of the schools had families with enough means to provide for the construction of a teacherage next to the school house, which was present at Porter’s Corner and all of them constructed a shelter for the horses to be stabled. Different families were responsible for providing firewood and kerosene for warmth and lighting and hay for the horses. Sometimes the students rode as far as 8 miles to the nearest school. Seldom did parents hitch up a team to bring the children to and from school. Students were responsible for purchasing their books and often shared one book among many students. 

Rural schools were to be closed in 1947, but parents on Ross’ Fork and West Fork were able to find Jewel Ball to teach, Kaiser and Carpp to provide the Ewing Bungalow for housing and the Berry House in the Sapphire Ranch meadow was converted into a school room for eight students. Helen Sanders attended first grade with her sister Naomi a seventh grader. I was in the first grade and my sister Rosalie was in the third. Helen Christensen was in the third and her brother Bill was in the fifth and Wesley Sutherland was in the sixth grade. Rural schools were all closed the next year and parents were given a stipend for gas to drive them to the Skalkaho Junction, now Hwy 1. School Bus service expanded to West Fork Bridge in 1950.