Norton High School - Sojourn Yearbook (Norton, MA)

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IN NORTON today there is an enrollment of over one hundred and sixty students. The school has grown from the original two buildings to eleven buildings including a riding school and an indoor riding ring. Miss M. Elizabeth Johndroe is the present principal of House in the Pines. The Main House at House in the Pines NORTON PUBLIC SCHOOLS Public Education, in Norton, began with the appointment of the first schoolmaster, Thomas Skinner, on June 1, 1719. He was hired for one quarter, at a salary not to ex- ceed two pounds. At the time of Mr. Skinner ' s appointment, the town of Norton had no school- houses. The classes were held in private homes, carpenter shops, establishments, and religious meeting houses. The school year was divided into quarters; each quarter was taught in a different section of town for children in that vicinity. The youngsters were taught to read, write, and cifer. The first school building was constructed in 1817. Soon after the building of the first school, one room schoolhouses were built in each of the eight districts in town. District School VIII was situated in Winnecunnet and was the last of the district schools to be Barrowsville School — built in early 1900 ' s 13

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EDUCATION WHEATON COLLEGE In 1834, Judge Laban Wheaton established an insti- tution of learning for young women as a living memorial to his daughter. The school was incorporated by the Legis- lature on March 10, 1837 un- der the name of the Norton Female Seminary. On March 16, 1839 it was changed to the Wheaton Female Semi- nary. The Seminary had a dis- tinguished record and in some ways did pioneer work in the educational field for women. Mary Lyon Hall on Wheaton Campus It was noted for its high ideals and for the fine character of its student body and of its faculty. In 1912, the Seminary was organized by Mary Lyon and became known as Wheaton College. The college is now a non-sectarian school for women; it stresses liberal arts courses, strength of character, and responsible citizenship. The enrollment for 1960 is approxi- mately eight hundred students. Dr. A. Howard Meneely is the President of the college. HOUSE IN THE PINES House in the Pines, a private school for girls, was founded in 1911 by Mrs. Gertrude Cornish Milliken. Mrs. Milliken was a former teacher at Wheaton Seminary. The school opened with approximately fifteen pupils, and Cole Memorial Chapel at Wheaton 12

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closed. Until 1942, classes for grades one to six were held in one room and were taught by one teacher. In 1902, Mrs. Wheaton gave to the town of Norton, land on which to erect a Center School, the first high school in the town. The town appropriated $13,000 for the building. Money was raised by subscription, to put in a stone and gravel walk. Ninth grade boys raised thirteen dollars to plow, grade, and seed the playground. In 1903, the school was opened with three rooms furnished. Pre- vious to 1902, pupils wishing an education beyond the second year of high school attended high schools in neighboring towns. The town of Norton paid the students ' tuitions. The Old Center High School In 1904, Mrs. Wheaton donated a fully equipped labor- atory to the school now fully established. The salary of the three teachers was ninety-five dollars per month. There were thirty-two students in the high school at this time. The first graduation was held on June 27, 1906, with George M. Benis as Superintendent of Schools and H. E. Gardner as principal. Six seniors were graduated. The graduating class of 1911 estab- lished the precedent of earning money for The Norton Elementary School 14