Schools of Jacksonville
By Faye (Acker) Martin
The first "school house" to be erected in what citizens now call Jacksonville and vicinity was built by Hundley Wiggins and F. C. Hardgraves in 1846-47. It was located at the east end of the old City Cemetery near a spring of water, and Miss Jane Walker was the teacher. However, an article in a Dallas Morning News issue of 1932, states that the Cherokee Indians operated schools for their children before being expelled from the area.
The first school in the new town of Jacksonville was a private school called Jacksonville Collegiate Institute. It held classes in the Methodist Church building, a frame structure located on Patton Street, and was founded by John J. A. Patton, for whom the street was named. He was a son of a Presbyterian Minister, who had moved to Texas in the 1850s. In 1874, Jacksonville Collegiate Institute moved to a frame building erected for the school on a lot later occupied by the Methodist Church on South Bonner Street. Despite high tuition, enrollment passed the 100 mark. R. E. Hendry succeeded Patton as teacher. The building was used in 1880 for a private school with A. D. Davies, principal, but the following year marked the beginning of public education in that particular structure.
On January 8, 1881, a meeting was called of the trustees of a public school named Jacksonville Academy. Meeting in the home of A. J. Chessher, who was elected president, were E. B. Ragsdale, C. G. Boles, J. K. Mitchel, B. F. Brittain, trustees, and W. H. Lovelady, said to have resigned. On January 18, 1881, J. M. Hubbard was employed as teacher, and "the schoolhouse turned over to him." He was to bear his own expenses, receiving income from fees charged. Orthography, reading, writing and mental arithmetic cost $2.00, English grammar and arithmetic, $2.50, geometry was $3.00 and Latin and Greek, $4.00.
According to J. A. Templeton, historian, in 1887 a two-story frame structure was built on the hill where the Tomato Bowl now stands. This building was used until a storm, called the worst in Jacksonville history, flattened the building. Mrs. Eula (Bolton) Morgan, now one of the oldest residents, often has told of the discovering, as she "fed the chickens," that the school had blown away.
In 1891, as provisions were being made for a new public school, the Jacksonville Education Association was organized and a private school at 607 South Bonner Street, at the corner of Sunset Avenue, was opened and known as Sunset Institute. On this site today [1972] is the L. E. Martin home. With a capital stock of $10,000, directors included J. A. Templeton, J. H. Bolton, W. A. Brown, J. L. Douglas and D. W. Bagley. Incorporators were M. D. Morris, W. P. Devereux, R. W. Morgan, S. E. Jones and trustees, Bolton, Templeton, Brown, Douglas and Bagley. Continuing until 1894, school then was united with Alexander (Collegiate) Institute at its removal from Kilgore to Jacksonville by East Texas Conference of the Methodist Church. Founded by Isaac Alexander in 1873, it later was known as Alexander College, operating on this site until moved to College Avenue, and its name changed in 1924 to Lon Morris College.
By the early 1890s, the second public school operated by the town was built "down the hill" from the location of the demolished building. This was the first brick school building. (This building now is the King Apartments, 607 East Rusk Street). Several smaller buildings across the street were used as class rooms as the number of students increased.
In 1906, bonds to the amount of $25,000 were voted for the erection of a school building on the present site of the Tomato Bowl. After a delay of uncertainty of clearing title to the land, a gift of C. S. Bolton, and the contractor's slowness in finishing the building, the corner stone was placed in 1910. The structure was actually completed in 1912. The Board of Trustees at the time included J. T. Smith, J. E. McFarland, M. H. Fite, J. T. Gillespie, John Howard, G. E. Newton and J. D. Williams. Final cost was $45,000.
This building, latest thing in architectural beauty at the time, was erected for a high school, but before the building was finished, several elementary grades were placed there. Mrs. V. P. Monkress, known to hundreds as "Miss Lavinia," tells of moving her class into the building before it was finished, making a door out of a window with steps down into the room. The windows had to be kept closed before of sawdust and shavings that blew into her room, and the "noise was terrible." The children entertained themselves with the wood shaving "curls."
Compiled by Greg Smith. If you have any materials you'd like to contribute, please email me.