Schools of Yesteryear
East Sherman Memories, Part 4
by Janis Stein

Join me in the continuation as East Sherman students recall traveling to Harbor Beach for John Deere Day and the preparations they made for their annual Christmas traditions.

From time to time, the teacher had to excuse herself from the classroom, so she could use the outhouse. As soon as she left the room, eraser fights erupted. Students of all ages sent erasers filled with chalk dust exploding through the air. Anyone getting hit with these eraser bombs found themselves covered in white. Although the teacher was gone only a few minutes, upon her return, the schoolhouse was in shambles. She didn’t use the outhouse often and it is thought she probably held it as frequently as she could, knowing chaos would erupt when she left!

The children worked hard on their lessons, and they were sometimes rewarded with a trip to a neighboring school where they participated in a spelling bee. In the 1920s, one of the student’s fathers hitched up his farm horse and sleigh, and over the years the children visited White Rock, Helena and Rock Falls Schools. During the 1930s, one girl remembers her trip to East Huron for a spelling bee; competitions were always so much fun. In later years, the East Sherman children visited East Huron again, challenging them to a softball game, eventually East Huron repaid the visit. It seemed East Huron won more often than not since they had a higher male ratio of ball players than East Sherman’s team. Later still, students traveled to White Rock School for a football game, and students also visited Ashmore School on Toppin Road. Not all lessons were learned in the schoolhouse, and teamwork could be learned just as well on the baseball diamond.

In the early 1960s, John Deere Day was a well-loved yearly event held at the Community House in Harbor Beach. Cars loaded with children and adults alike made the trip. Machinery dealers hosted the event, and company officials would show a film on the new equipment line for the upcoming year. Visitors were given a ticket upon their arrival, and a drawing was held at the end of the event. It was always an exciting day for people of all ages.

Every October around Halloween the outhouses would inevitably get moved to the front of the school or pranksters would tip the privies over where they stood. During the early 1960s, four boys plotted to do just that. Their plan wasn’t without casualty, however. As one of the outhouses tipped on its side, one of the villains fell in the hole!

Such harmless pranks were never cause for worry, but flat out vandalism was not tolerated. One particular year, some teenagers, who were not even students at East Sherman at the time, decided to have a little fun. One of the school board members was determined to do his part to thwart any damage to the school property on Halloween night, so he hid inside the school, laying in wait for any vandals. It didn’t take long, it seemed, before he heard movement outside, and soon one of the windows was pried open. The boys had climbed inside, and proceeded to spread around a few bags of cider pulp, making quite a mess. The school board official waited until they were done with their handiwork before turning on the lights, catching them in the act!

Christmas brought with it some wonderful traditions. In the 1920s and 1930s, the stage was set up just inside the school, east of the entrance. The stage was decorated with greens brought in from the woods, and children brought in items from home such as an apron to round out a costume. If the program was held in the evening, lanterns scattered throughout the building illuminated the schoolhouse. It is thought electricity was installed sometime during the 1940s, with one or two lights hanging down from the ceiling. During that time period, the stage was erected on the east end of the schoolhouse, and the children each had a part to recite. The lights were turned off between each skit as the children prepared for their moment in the spotlight. There was generally an exchange of small gifts; the children were always grateful for the peanuts and candy they received, and of course, all enjoyed Santa. When enrollment declined in the 1950s and 1960s, sometimes the children visited another area school and watched their program rather than create their own.

For a period of time in the 1950s, one student, accompanied by his mother, arrived early at the school to clean and get the furnace going; for many years, though, the teacher was responsible for taking care of the stove and other necessary janitorial work. Upon the hiring of one particular teacher, she was informed she would be responsible for these tasks. The teacher accepted this but commented that would be the extent of it. She informed the board they certainly would not have her up patching shingles on the roof!

Children were provided with tons of entertainment throughout the years both in and out of the classroom. On one particular occasion, the school board hired an area farmer to chop firewood and deliver it to East Sherman’s woodshed. Rather than use the driveway, the farmer decided he would try to skim over the hard-packed snow in the ditch. In retrospect, he should have known better, and the result was just about how one might imagine; the snow was hard but not that hard. His vehicle nosed into the ditch, and it would take the combined strength of some of the children to push him back on the road!

Be sure to look for the conclusion in next month’s issue as I describe Bingo! games and embroidering projects.

If you would like to see your schoolhouse featured in this series and are willing to share your experiences, please email Janis at janis@lakeshoreguardian.com or write to Janis at The Lakeshore Guardian, 9697 Purdy Rd., Harbor Beach, MI 48441.

© 2005 Janis Stein