BACKTRACKING
Brush Creek School
by Terry Hogan
Near Lake Bracken, there was a one
room school house known as Brush Creek School. The last time I noticed, the old school building still
stands, incorporated into part of a private residence.
The year I started first grade
(1952), was the first year for Allen Park School in Galesburg. I was part of the first, first grade
class at Allen Park. I rode a bus
that went by the old Brush Creek School.
At some point, and my memory is too vague to recall when, the bus
stopped at the old Brush Creek School and picked up Francis Rutledge Francis was in the same class as me. So Francis didn’t attend Brush Creek
School, but he did sleep there. He
was probably the only kid I ever knew that was encouraged to sleep in school.
My brothers, Ron and Roger, attended
Brush Creek School. They are
apparently no worse for it, at least the best I can tell. I don’t know any particulars about the
teacher there. However, early
tradition was that these simple schools were usually taught by a single female,
with some degree of formal education.
She was generally underpaid and often had janitorial duties for the one
room school, as well. She was also
held to a very high moral standard.
And in a small rural community, there were few places to hide. Despite these limitations, if she did
find a husband, usually her teaching days were over.
A reader emailed me a copy of the
1947 class of Brush Creek School.
The teacher is not in the photo, so it is a good guess that she was the
photographer. She was thoughtful
enough to place the name of the school and the year on the blackboard behind
the lined up students. There are 17 young faces peering out across time. Nine boys and eight girls, looking (at
least to me) to be ranging in age from about six to perhaps 12 or 13 years old,
are mostly smiling. In 1947,
flannel shirts appeared to be a popular choice for rural, growing children, and
were unisex, with two of the girls wearing them.
Affixed to the wall behind the
children, and just above the blackboard, were the omnipresent pull-down maps
that were used for teaching geography.
The wood floor looked like it had seen some hard wear from the scuffles
of young feet.
I am told that there are both
Kidders and Durbins represented in the photo, but I cannot sort them out,
despite knowing kids from both families. But this was 1947 and I would have
been busy learning how to walk.
Although my brothers attended the school, they were not students there
in 1947.
April, 2009
The Durbin family I knew because
they lived at Lake Bracken and were within walking distance from our home. The youngest son was a friend of one of
my brothers, being 6 years older than me. Mr. Durbin was
an employee of the CB&Q railroad and he and his family lived in a house near
the old pump house. The pump house
pumped water from Lake Bracken to Galesburg and nearby rail areas to meet the
thirst of the old CB&Q steam locomotives. The old pump house and the nearby
residence are now gone. Only the
round brick tower, rising from the lake (minus the roof) remains.
Even memories need to be taken down
off the shelf once in awhile, dusted, admired, and safely returned to the
collection. Perhaps this will have stirred one or two of your own.