Whittier wrote "In School Days" from which the above lines are quoted perhaps a hundred years ago, but if he were to return to Southern Illinois today he could still find the inspiration for his lovely poem. The schoolhouse still sits by the side of the road
here in Pope County, and around it still grows…

As late as 1949, Pope County still maintained 55 of these one-room school districts, with classes being held in approximately 33 of the schools. Today, though many of buildings
still stand, only five schools are in operation to remind us of days that
used to be. And they’re a far cry from the old days…..

(Picture) At Grasty School near Dixon Springs, Mrs. Gusta Welligton presides as
Johnny Martin, 13, a seventh grader, and Linda Wemhoener, 10, fifth grader,
work at the blackboard.

(Picture) Six year old Elaine Broadway gets her food tray as Debra Lou Bates, also waits her turn. Both are Bay Valley School first graders.

Modern conveniences

I ( Mildred McCormick) recently (1962) visited one of the five one teacher schools, as they are known today. It is known as Bay Valley School located on
Route 146 (should be 145) between Golconda and Metropolis. About the only thing it has in common with Whittier’s School is the fact that it is a one-room and is in charge of one teacher.
It boasts modern playground equipment; a hot lunch program with a kitchen as modern as that of any present day housewife;
running water provided by a drilled well; a piano; the latest in books, maps, and other class room equipment; and a bus for transporting students to and from school.

Only the first four grades are taught today instead of the eight formerly taught in the one room. This practice is the rule in all five schools – some teachers hold classes in the first four grades, others teach 5th through 8th grade. Bay Valley School is
under the supervision of Mrs. Milo Ditterline, friendly, cooperative, dedicated teacher _ no old-fashioned schoolmarm here!

Second grader, Glen Broadway, 7, opens milk carton for 6 year old sister, Elaine, a first grader, during 30 minute lunch
period at Bay Valley School. ( picture).

Water Cooler

"I attended one of the real honest to goodness backwoods country schools.Old Grandpier, Dist. 33, the scene of my labor as an elementary student, that changed very little at the time of my sojourney
during the thirties, from the time of my grandparents’ youth.
My contemporaries and I enjoyed a few modern touches, the textbooks were up to date, we had maps and the latest
encyclopedias.
We had a big shiny globe and a contrivance near the front door which identified itself by a neatly lettered sign as a ‘Sanitary water Cooler’. Sanitary, it could have been, but water cooler, it was not. In appearance it resembled a king-sized picnic jug with a spigot at the bottom. It was designed to hold a block of ice, but to us the word "ice" meant only
two things _ both associated with winter. It meant either something to skate on for pleasure or something to fall on by accident.

Our bathroom facilities consisted of the inevitable two little buildings at the rear of the school yard, infested in summer by
colonies of antagonistic wasps, and warmed in winter only by our memories of the stifling heat in summer.

Still Familiar

There was no electricity, and if we mentioned a warm lunch, we were speaking of someone in the winter who managed to get to school before the contents of his "lard bucket" froze. I do not mean to give the impression that we were unhappy. On the contrary, we were normal, happy, and so far as we knew, exactly like school children everywhere. There was nothing in our lives to cause us to compare our lots unfavorably.

The one room school building is still a familiar sight in extreme Southern Illinois. Most of the buildings in the 55 districts of
1949 have been sold. (The five still operating do not function as separate districts but as members of the county-wide unit-district.)

Some of the abandoned buildings, including my old school have burned__ some victims of lightning others destroyed by vandals. Many new owners razed the buildings, rebuilt them as shops. An occasional owner left the building as he found it, using it for storage or ignoring it completely, leaving it to the mercy of the elements. Some of the nicer schools have become residences.

Making a Comeback
At least two of the unwanted buildings have been restored to a measure of their former value to the communities. Thompson school, located on Rural Route 1 and Little Grandpier, on Route 146, both a few miles from Golconda, have been purchased
by groups of private citizens who operate them as clubs. Thompson has become the Coon Hunter’s Club, and Little Grandpier has been re-christened as the Rod and Gun Club.The clubs are maintained by means of dues paid by the members. Though few changes have been made in the buildings themselves, other than the addition of electric power. They are kept in repair and have become the site of many evenings of entertainment for members and guests.

Entertainments such as were enjoyed within the walls when they were new are again making their appearance to delight the grandchildren of the early students. Perhaps the most popular and most often repeated of the revived amusements is the square dance with string bands, made up of local talent, supplying the music. Old-fashioned pie and box suppers are frequently held, primarily to raise funds for some favorite charity, but equally welcomed by the public for the sake of the rousing good time they anticipate.

Shooting matches to test the skill of the local marksmen are usually held around Thanksgiving time with hams, turkeys, and bacon for prizes.

Foot of the Hill

One of the loveliest schools lies in the country in the location known as Foot of the Hill located on a gravel road some four miles south of Golconda. It sits in solitary withdrawal about 200 yards from the road. As its name indicates, it sits at the foot of, and to the right of a long, steep hill as one approaches from the north. As one approaches from the south, however, he might call it Top of the Hill, since it perches on top of a considerable elevation as viewed from the flat roadbed below. The building is silhouetted against the side of the larger hill, framed by a thick growth of native timber. Although the building has long been abandoned, it retains its original beauty when viewed from the distance of the road. Not only does the sumac grow on the side of this hill_ so does sassafras, horseweeds, ragweed, and every other variety of tree and plant life indigenous to Pope county.

As for the blackberry vines, they not only creep as Whittier described them_ they cling, claw, embrace, entwine, grasp and hang on for dear life.

Ghosts of the Past
Perhaps it is the feeling of complete isolation, or the beauty of the woodland setting _ whatever the reason, this location seems more than it appears on the surface_ an old worn-out wooden building which had lived out its purpose.From the cathedral-like quiet of the deserted schoolyard which is slowly being absorbed into the woodland from which it
came, I looked up at the towering hill on one side and down at the level farmland on the opposite side. As I walked slowly around the aging structure, I seemed to feel the presence of its own private ghosts of the past.

( Picture) Cook, janitor and custodian of Bay Valley School is Mrs. Nell Jeffords, shown preparing meat pies for lunch.

Note: All the pictures were too dark to copy. This article is on file in the Pope County Historical Society's Genealogy collection.