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      One-Room School Houses of Dodge County.  An online eBook

 

Columbia School

District # 6

Clyman Township

 

Year

Teacher

Students

Notes

 

 

 

1910

 

 

 

1911

 

 

 

1912

 

 

 

1913

Lou Della Dehne

16

 

1914-1920

?

 

 

1921

Helen Casey

26

 

1922

21

 

1923

 

 

1924

24

 

1925

Anna Simon

35

$855.00/Yr

1926

33

 

1927

Loretta Winkleman

 

 

1928

Mildred Owen

 

 

1929

38

 

1930

Alice Gallagher

34

 

1931

Alice Nesbitt

26

 

1932

Margaret Rupnow

32

 

1933

32

 

1934

35

 

1935

Mrs. Dan J. Barry

30

 

1936

30

 

1937

Viola Kreger

31

 

1938

23

 

1939

Adeline Zastrow

24

 

1940

24

 

1941

27

 

1942

Adeline Zastrow Kregmar

28

 

1943

Mrs. Kenneth Bornitzke

29

 

1944

Marion Rhodes

30

 

1945

Marion Schmeling

29

 

1946

Bernice E. Haase

38

 

1947

22

 

1948

30

 

1949

George J. McCray

31

 

1950

Bernice Haase

42

 

1951

Mrs. Irene Ulrich

30

 

1952

Nellie Rettschlag

14 (?)

 

1953

34

 

1954

42

 

1955

Closed

 

 

 

 

Remembers Life at the Columbia School

By Catherine Lentz

Dodge County Independent News

November 23, 1983

 

A part of Clyman’s history went up in smoke Saturday, Nov. 12, when the old Columbia School building was burned down.  Oh, but so many wonderful memories will always remain with those of us who were fortunate enough to have attended the school some 30 years ago.

 

There were 30-40 students in grades one to eight, all in one room, with only one teacher.  Discipline never seemed to be a problem.  You sat at your desk and kept busy until it was your turn to go up to the front of the room and sit around the big table with the teacher and review your new assignment.

 

When the older students were done with their work, they would help the younger children with flash cards for math or listen to them learning to read about “Dick and Jane”.

 

The ones living in Clyman walked

 

There was no bus transportation for anyone.  Students from the country were driven to and from school by their parents, and the ones living in Clyman walked.  Very rarely was school cancelled because of bad weather.  When the roads were closed, the teacher walked to school, and the students arrived whenever they could get through.

 

After school activities consisted of small duties for everyone.  The younger children dusted the furniture and cleared the chalk erasers, while others cleaned the floors, emptied waste baskets, cleaned the bathroom sinks and any other small tasks to keep the school shining clean.

 

Every week, two different students had the honor of raising the flag in the morning and lowering it after school and one never let the flag touch the ground.  It was then properly folded in a triangle and placed in the cupboard until the next day.

 

About once a month, the teacher would exchange library books at the court house in Juneau, and a few students could go along to help select some new reading material for the next month.

 

The hot lunch program meant bringing your own soup from home and heating in on the electric plate.  No one went home at noon, everyone brought his or her lunch in metal lunch boxes.

 

All students had recess at the same time, and there was no need for a playground supervisor.  The older children taught the younger ones how to play baseball or gave them rides on the playground equipment.  In the winter, snow houses and tunnels were built and even a few snowball fights took place.

 

When one had to stay in at recess and miss the fun, one didn’t throw many snowballs.

 

Christmas was a special time for all of us at that school.  There was a big tall tree set up in the front of the room, all decorated with lights and ornaments what just seemed to appear overnight.  No one would every say that Santa didn’t bring it, but I’m sure some knew that the teacher bought the biggest tree she could find and decorated it herself.

 

There were always presents for everyone under the tree, pretty hankies for the girls and white handkerchiefs with initials on for the boys and also pencils with your name and small colored note pads.

 

Mrs. Nellie Rettschlag

 

Perhaps these memories are so dear to me because 30 years ago, my mother, Mrs. Nellie Rettschlag, was a teacher in that school.  Like we so often hear “Those were the good ole days”.

 

After closing in 1953, the building was later used by the Dodgeland School District for special education classes for a few years, and then vacated.

 

The building may have been burned down, but our memories will always remain.