WAKEENEY – The school bells are ringing once more in Trego County!
Establishing an education system was one of the first goals of our county’s early settlers. Little one-room schoolhouses, with a teacher and all the materials needed to teach “reading, writing, and ‘rithmetic,” were provided by citizens with the expectation that graduates of the schools would become leaders in the communities speckled across the county.
The Trego County Historical Society offers a glimpse into those early school days at their Pleasant Valley Schoolhouse, an original country schoolhouse located on the grounds of the museum. It was moved to WaKeeney in May 1997 from its original location in the northwest part of the county.
Inside the school you’ll find desks, maps, and symbols marking it as an institution of free public education. On a dais in front of the chalkboard a teacher would lead two rows of students sitting at wooden desks.
Of course, education has changed a lot since the 1880s. One-room schools are a thing of the past and many of the academic tools found in the museum’s collection may not be recognizable to today’s students.
The education collection at the Trego County Historical Museum is home to a large archive of schoolbooks, teaching instruments and historical records from our local schools. They offer visitors a lesson in just how important providing quality education in a remote country setting was to early prairie settlers.
The museum will occasionally host special lectures given by the last of the teachers and students to attend our county’s country schools, and you’ll often find teachers leading their students on visits to the museum to find out more about what life was like for yesterday’s young pupils. It’s a meaningful lesson and a fun trip back in time, too!
Welcome your students back to school with a trip to the Trego County Historical Museum, where they can experience the early days of the American education system on the High Plains of Trego County!
The Trego County Historical Society (785) 743-2964) is located at 128 North 13th Street, in WaKeeney (Exit 128 off-I-70, North 1 ½ miles on Hwy. 283). Check their website for more information.