I always thought one-room schoolhouses were relics of an ancient era. It surprised me to learn that some in Blackford County operated through the 1950s and 60s! Today, a pair of elementary buildings that succeeded the one-room schools of Licking and Jackson Township have been consolidated as well. I guess time marches on.
It might not seem like it today, but one-room brick schools were pretty revolutionary way back when. Around 1830, the earliest educational institutions in Blackford County were simple, log structures funded by subscription1. That ended in 1851 when Indiana ratified a new constitution that provided the basics for township-based, public education2.
The School Law of 1852 expanded on it, and trustees across Blackford County formalized an educational system. They established districts across the county and built frame schoolhouses about two miles apart to serve them.
Before the School Law, Licking Township’s first teachers included Eli Rigdon, Aaron McVicker, Elizabeth Hart, Christopher Clapper, and William W. Cline3. The history of education in Licking Township ties closely to Hartford City’s, but the two institutions operated separately until 19624.
By 1900, Licking Township’s schools operated on a 137-day schedule5. Five years later, the township was home to thirteen brick schoolhouses outside Hartford City6. Each had an official district number but were given a colloquial name by their patrons that generally referenced nearby families. They were called Bailey, Gadbury, Corn Cob, Carney, Pleasant Grove, Jennings, Hughes, Slater, Ervin, Beath, Guseman, Butler, and Woolard.
The schoolhouses eventually consolidated. By 1947, Licking Township only operated Carney, Guseman, Slater, and Erving8. All four were closed a decade later when the modern, six-room Licking Township Elementary School was built9. In 1961, the institution joined Hartford City’s school district10.
Neighboring Jackson Township evolved similarly. William G. Sutton, Edward M. Crumley, Robert H. Lanning, Cornelius Beal, and Thomas Dean were among the first teachers there11. The area eventually became home to fifteen district schoolhouses, and most were given common names as well.
Early on, Jackson Township’s residents called their schools names like Goughenour, Markle, Dildine, Barr, Dean, Lanning, and Blake. Others like Trenton, Ridetown, Crumley’s Crossing, Millgrove, and Center took their names from where they stood12. The rest were named for geographical features like Creek, Cat-Tail, and Linnbark13.
In 1961, Jackson Township combined with Harrison and Washington Townships to form Montpelier Community Schools14. A modern, 16,000-square foot Jackson Elementary down the road from the Dildine school was completed in 196315.
Blackford County’s two school districts merged in the late 1960s and rearranged their facilities. Licking and Jackson Elementary Schools were absorbed into the new district and operated until the end of the 1992-93 school year. A study found the cash-strapped corporation could save $400,000 by shuttering both schools17.
The administrative offices of the Blackford County School Corporation moved to the former Licking Elementary two months after its closure18. The old Jackson Elementary became the new home of the Blackford County Jail in 1995. After the 2022 closure of Montpelier Elementary School, students from both townships attended classes in Hartford City.
Both elementary schools stand today, as do five of Licking Township’s schoolhouses in one form or another. In 2021, parts of three were left in Jackson Township. I’ve often marveled at the Hoosier ingenuity that led us to reuse those century-old structures for other ambitions!
While the old Licking and Jackson Elementary Schools don’t trip my trigger the same way a one-room schoolhouse does, they’re still important reminders of rural education and how cutting-edge concepts eventually fade away or find other use. Did you go to LIcking or Jackson Elementary? I’d love to learn more about them.
Sources Cited
1 Helm, T. B. (1881). Mount Pleasant Township. In History of Delaware County, Indiana: With Illustrations and Biographical Sketches of Some of Its Prominent Men and Pioneers (pp. 268–269). book, Kingman Brothers.
2 Natali, B. L. (2007). The Impact of Caleb Mills on the Hoosier Education Debate: An Edition of Two Unpublished Addresses (thesis). University Graduate School, Indianapolis.
3 Shinn, B. (1900) Biographical Memoirs of Blackford County, Ind. book. The Bowen Publishing Company. Chicago, IL.
4 Hartford City Students to Go to School Sept. 4 (1962, August 27). The Muncie Star Press. p. 10.
5 (See footnote 3).
6 Hixson, W.W. (1905). Blackford County, Ind. map. Map Collection, Indiana Division, Indiana State Library.
8 Two Teachers To Be Employed (1946, July 25). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 10.
9 School Construction Halted (1956, April 13). The Muncie Star. p. 21.
10 Vote Two-Unit School Plan in Blackford (1961, April 9). The Muncie star. p. 3.
11 (See footnote 3).
12 Farrell, J. (1962, June 28). Old-Timer Sighs For Frog Alley, Swamp College. The Muncie Evening Press. p. 13.
13 Hartford City (1959, September 7). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 10.
14 Hartford City Students to Go to School Sept. 4 (1962, August 27). The Muncie Star Press. p. 10.
15 New Jackson School to Open on Monday (1964, February 23). The Muncie Star Press. p. 7.
16 New Blackford County High School (1967, October 18). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 21.
17 Brown, D. (1993, May 13). Parents want to limit the shuffle of students. The Muncie Star Press. p. 1.
18 Brown, D. (1993, July 15). Blackford schools moves offices to Licking. The Muncie Star. p. 1.
