The Democratic banner. (Mt. Vernon, Ohio) 1898-192?, 1911-11-03
PIONEER
Days 10 The School Houses
Of Knox County
Related By A Venerable Lady
Of MI. Vernon
Started With Salary OF One
Dollar A Week
Acted As JanitreSS Of School
And Boarded Around
Some Of The Primitive
Methods Employed 10
Teaching

An exceedingly interesting lady of
Mt. Vernon is the venerable Mrs.
Maria Pierson Berry, who makes her
home with her niece, Mrs. Maria Bar
rett, at No. Gil East Vine street. AL
though up in the eighties in age, Mrs.
Berry's faculties are wonderfully
acute, and she takes the keenest inter-
est in the affairs of the day. In her
early life Mrs. Berry had several
years experience as teacher in the
public schools, and recently she pre-
pared an article telling of those ear
ly days. Through the kindness of a
friend, the Banner is privileged to pub
lish the article, which will be read
with much interest, as it tells of ex-
periences in teaching in the pioneer
days of Knox county. 1t is as follows:
There was born in little village of
Knox county on January %, 1928, in a
humble log cabin on main street a
little girl who was destined to be-
come one of the pioneer public school
teachers in Knox, Licking and Coshoc-
ton counties. The first recollection of
school days were of a little brick
school house near the center of the vii
lage and the teacher armed with a
switch marching around striking right
and left, saying, STUDY your lessons. .
How the children quailed before him !!
The school room was dark and dingy,
having brown plastered walls, never
touched by whitewash. windows fes-
tooned with cobwebs and probably new
er washed.
1t was a foul-smelling place SEEM
ingly never ventilated. The desks and
seats were rudely constructed and a
huge wood stove occupied the middle
of the room. A water pail and one
tin cup were furnished to supply the
thirsty scholars who never dreamed of
germs or microbes. No blackboard,
maps, or pictures graced the bare
walls, and a more plison-like place
would be hard to conceive.
On one occasion, While one of the
small children in a log school house,
an unwelcome guest, made visit very
unceremoniously, as class was on the
floor in the midst of recitation, a
small boy cried out in great fright as
he pointed to the wall behind the
teachers chair, 30! See that big
snake" All fastened out of doors and
the teacher assisted by some of the
elder scholars dispatched the snake,
threw out it's dead body, and all re-
turned to their lessons. The reptile
was not yenemous only house snake,
but not at all desirable in a school
house.
| Sometimes, to vary the mopotony
there was permission given to study
aloud, when each We'd with the rest
as to which could make the most
noise OF course it was discordant as
the lessons were different, but was
most thoI oughly enjoyed by those
who liked great racket.
Amid such surroundings she OBJ
| tanned the rudiments of an English
education, and then after entering
| her teens was allowed the privilege
of one term in the Martinsburg Fe-
male Seminary. Another winter in the
district school was given her, and on
April 9th, 1916, she came to Mt. Yer
non as an applicant for teachers cer-
tificate, which was granted by G. ID.
Miller, young lawyer of this city.
The examinations were not public nor
on specified days and she returned
home proudly in possession of a GER
tificate permitting her to teach pub
lie school for two years in this coun-
ty. No questions were asked concern
ing her age and although but seven
teen, took her place as public school
teacher in a log school house in the
woods about one mile east of Martins
burg.
The wages were one dollar per week
and hours from $3.50 a. m. until 4.30
p. IN. and no holidays. She was board
ed around the district one or more
weeks in each place, and never had
reason to complain as she considered
It as good as she had at home. The
wages may seem startling to some,
but probably as good as the average