Footnotes to Long Island History
Budget $197 in 1890
School Used 100 Years
by
Thomas R. Bayles
While the schools throughout Long Island are having severe
growing pains due to the rapid increase of population, it may be
interesting to look back and see how the schools were conducted a
hundred years ago.
The school house shown in the picture was located in Middle
Island, just east of the Presbyterian church, and was a typical example
of the one-room school in use in the smaller communities during the past
century. It was built around 1813. Before that time there was not much
attempt at public education, except where some educate person taught
pupils privately, and we find that in 1800 a Mr. Hubbard “frequently
taught social and business meetings.”
When the Town of Brookhaven was divided into school
districts in 1813, this district was known as “Middle Island Church
District No. 11, to embrace the inhabitants of the north part of
Middletown (as Middle Island was then known) and Swezeytown.” On
October 24, 1842, it was changed to District 16, and has been so known
since that time.
A high slanting desk was attached to the wall and extended
around the sides of the room, all the pupils had to sand in order to use
it. Sawed slabs from the local saw mill, with two legs at each end,
were used for seats. These, of course, had no backs. Heat was
furnished at first by a fireplace in the end of the room, and in later
years by a stove with a long fire box that took in a big chunk of wood
and threw out lots of heat which was necessary to combat the cold air
coming in the cracks around the sides of the building.
School was usually held eight or nine months in the year,
and one monthly pay in the early years was $8 to $10, which probably
included board, as the custom of “boarding around” prevailed at that
time. All of the children in the community did not attend school at one
time, as it was customary for the younger children to attend school when
the weather was good during the open season, and during the winter when
the weather was bad and there was no farm work the older boys came.
The old schoolhouse was abandoned in 1914, after having
served the community for 100 years, and was sold to Lester H. Davis of
Coram, who moved it to his farm for a tenant house. It burned down
several years ago.
A new school was built a short distance north on the
Swezeytown road and no bond issue was sold to finance its construction,
as it was built and paid for the same year. This school was closed
about 1943 by a vote of the district and since that time all the
children of the district have been sent by bus to Port Jefferson.
The writer has in his possession a school report, for 1890
of the East Middle Island school, District 17. This gives the amount
raised by tax for the school expenses for that year as 197.10. Expenses
were as follows:
“Paid Miss V. Hallock for teaching $137.29, paid Edgar
Swezey for cords of wood delivered at the schoolhouse $8.00 paid D. F.
Raynor for sawing wood $3.00, paid to William Risley for kindling fire
70 mornings at the schoolhouse at 5 cents each time $3.50.”
This was the total expense of operating the school, for that
year.
The assessment roll for this district in 1881 shows an
assessed evaluation of $39,500, and a school tax rate of 25 cents. One
of the largest taxpayers on this list was Joseph H. Randall, who owned
600 acres of land with a tax of $7.50. One of the smallest was Telem
Smith, with a tax of 25 cents. There were 37 children of school age
registered in the district.
These figures give some idea of the difference between
country schools in those days and the present time. No transportation
was furnished and many of the pupils walked a mile or two to get to
school. Very few attended high school as there were no facilities for
getting to one. The budget expenses for 1954 for this district is over
$22,000. Surely the children get a break if the taxpayer does not.
Time marches on.