The Republican. [volume] (Oakland, Md.) 1877-current, 1943-04-01


ing experience in Maryland.
Most of Mr.. Elbows education was
obtained in the one-room school on
Elder Hill near Friendsville. His has
been a long and useful life as teacher
and Civil Service employee. At eighty
three years of age, in honored re-
tirement in California, he recalls the
days of his youth in Maryland; he
writes the same firm hand which he
doubtless learned on Elder Hill more
than fifty years ago.
Prior to the advent of free schools
in Maryland there were few sub
scription schools near my home in
Allegany County, Maryland. These
summer subscription schools were
taught by good ladies who had in
some way acquired a little more
learning than those whom they were
to teach. For these schools our par
ents subscribed to the best of their
ability some times for one or two
children for one summer and for a
like number of other children for
another summer. | remember three
of these schools, one at JohnstoWn
(now Hoyes), another on the Robert
Sterling farm. and still another in a
sbop ON the Elijah Friend farm now
owned bv ]. Bunnell Friend, in which
I attended school for at least few
DAYS. NV only rccollections are that
we had slab benches and that Eliza
Frazec was the teacher.
Close unon tbe coming of free
sobool. - ono room school building
woo oroc+od in our district and named
tbo FIdor Hill School This school
vas an tho cast side Of the Oakland
Fr;ondsviIla HIGHWAY and it stood
bocl, in tho woods lust across the
biobvvav from the school there was a
ro+bo. Ioruo charcoal nit which 7 be-
lievo had bocn used when there was
an Iron Furnace ON Rear Creek at
Erio,dsviuo As wo had no plav-
o.rornd ON tho school PREMISES we
nsod tba charcoal nit which served
onr noods for some nlavs but as
+horo was No water at school EXCEPT
small nail Of drinking water car
,;od fron, o,,i+o . dis+anco tho char
oooI ni+ did NOT serve we'll to keen
o,,r hands nice and clean IF OH,
c,onco,.;o,, Conv Rocks couId he
rasr,,oc+od thew would show minis
tol,ah1o o,,;donco of tho charcoal nit
Tow, Pail rooui,nd more snace than
+bo cborcoo1 ni+ Furnished which was
s,,rroundad hv tho woods ON three
.;dos co ,vc ho,,s cut o,1+ undcrbrush
and climbed trees and cut off
branches that we MIGHT strike the
l,.,u o. o,oo+o,. distance Whom wn bac
n,ado ourselves = respectable play
oronnd from the woods and the nit
we were indeed bappv lot of bows.
FIdor uiI School was dubbod by
one teacher "The Bee Hive. Here
attended school under ten different
male teachers and one female teacher
Miss Mary McCIintock The male
teachers were: Benton White, Viii
liam Ensley. John c. Durham, Asa T
Matthews. Thomas Wclch. Miltor
FORSYTH, Henry Friend, James j
Ryland. John Dell. and Silas Weimer
So far as | know none of my teach.
ers held a college degree or a State
Normal certificate, but some of then
regarded teaching as a noble calling
"Tbe Bee Hive" was an ungradcC
school and we did not always know
what Grade we were in. but am quite
sure that all of us who used NJ A
NevclTs Sixth Reader were not II
the Sixth Grade. Our teachers hac
not time TO give us much individual
instruction. vet some pupils ACQUIRED
tbc habit of helping themselves anC
thus became able to face some of lifc's
problems.
NV. schoo1 davs of FIdor H;I orc
I'm roco1lod ,.,+l,o,. ,-iv;dI,. br+
,,,,,s+ NOT ind,,I,o IN foo n,ncb ron,i
,,is.o,,co 1os+ NOV, u.oo,, +boso VIII,
NOV, rand +bis h1inn narrative nj
my, school davs Suffice If 70 cav on,