Evening public ledger. [volume] (Philadelphia [Pa.]) 1914-1942, 1919-04-03
FIFTY YEARS OF TEACHING
AND STILL LOOKING AHEAD
Bubbng Youth OF T,co Generations With Al Its Trying Pranks
Found Sympathy and Understanding in Miss Lottie
Siddons, Principal of Tyndale School

Miss I.ottie H. Siddons had already
taught ten years in the public schools IN
Philadelphia, but she was still slip OF a
girl when forty years ago she was made
the first woman principal of the Tyndale
school then on Rope Ferry road. Today
hers are almost ready to enter the
school.
Standing in the room. which forty
years ago was the only one in the school.
Miss Siddons today told incidents of her
many years of teaching. She celebrated
her tiftieth anniversary as a teacher this
week Her hair Is a soft, snowy white,
set Off by the plain black costume she
usually wears in the school room. There
is merry twinkle in her blue eyes that
shine behind spectacles. and her cheeks
are smooth and girlish looking.
"Oh, I'm not decrepit," she laughed
when some one remarked at her appear
ance. Il feel just as strong and vigor-
Gus as / did at sixteen. And I can
take care of the children just as WELL
but l suppose in year or two l shall
give up my work here. l hate to think
Of that, but I'd really like to try living
like lady of leisure for a few years.
] have home. you know, at 1411 South
Fifty eighth street, but l haven't had
time all these years to do much more
than sleep at home"
Lost Only Two Weeks
In all this half century OF work Miss
Siddons has missed only two weeks on
account of illness.
Twenty years ago" she said as cas-
ually as though it were a few days
ago. Il was out of school month be-
cause of my sisters illness And then
in the blizzard of 1888 ! was unable 10
get through the snowdrifts for a week.
! You see I had to walk TO school then
because there wern't any cars. For
twenty-one years I walked from Thir-
teenth and Reed streets to the Tyndale
School. Even now I often walk part
way from home. did this morning be.
cause it was such a splendid day.
Yes, there have been vast changes in
the school. the methods Of teaching and
in the community since ! started teach
ing out here. The trolleys and tele-
phones have made much difference in
tho community. When I first came
this was just a small building, erected
I believe, in 1892. There was the one
schoolroom with a room for the jan
itress upstairs. We had a big old wood
stove with a screen around it to keeE
the children from getting burned. There
was a platform and a high chair foI
me, and the children sat on lona
benches with home made desks. There
were only seven pupils when l started
They were big boys who came onl!
about three months Of the year because
they were needed on the farm othel
times. But after I came I made 1t q
lp,int to have the school open regularly
every day for the entire school term
and gradually the younger boys ant
girls came In.
Keeps Unruffied Temper
when the enrolment grew to seventy
six the board of directors for we didn'
have superintendents or board o
education them decided needed an as
sistant. So another teacher was ap
pointed and for a while We both taugh
in this same room In 1853 the new sec
tion of the building was added, givinl
us two new rooms. A little later tn
third teacher was added to our staff ant
we have continued with the number. w
? have about eighty pupils now and tn
school includes all grades from one-A t
! eighth"
Perhaps 1t Is because Miss Siddon
comes from Quaker ancestors, who frs
came to America In 1923, and ism
easily ruffled by the pranks and incor
3 sistencies of childhood, that she retain
{ 40 much of youth herself.
n IT never allow myself to become VOL