Read time: 4 min.

Seven miles south of Muncie, a massive boulder rises from the earth near the village of New Burlington. A weathered brass plaque affixed to its face declares the spot as the birthplace of Delaware County’s first schoolhouse. According to local lore, the structure once stood half a mile west of the marker, deep within what was then an unbroken wilderness. Unfortunately, the boulder invites as many questions as it answers. Who placed it there? How accurate is its claim? What must it have been like to carve out a place of learning in a dense, untamed forest? The school itself is long gone¹, but its memory endures.

Unfortunately, no one really knows where the first schoolhouse stood, or even how large it was. One account says a 20×20 foot building was erected in 1827 on land owned by Aaron Richardson². Some believe that William Rowe first taught classes there, while others are certain it was Richardson himself³. Another version of the story places the schoolhouse -this time, a modest 20-by-24-foot structure built in 1822- on land owned by Judge Lewis Reese. In that telling, Thomas Hacket took on the role of the county’s first teacher. 

Despite some discrepancies, most accounts agree on the essentials: the school was a simple log cabin with eight-foot ceilings and two small openings covered with greased paper for windows⁵. Yet, one striking detail remains consistent across every version of the story- its logs and siding were shaped by the skilled hands of “Indian” Jim Musco, believed to be the last member of the Delaware tribe in the county that bears their name⁶.

The boulder marking the rough location of the schoolhouse was dedicated by the Paul Revere Chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution⁷ on October 13, 1927⁸. Its proud tablet asserts a version of the story that says “The first school house in Delaware County was erected in a trackless forest one half mile west of this site. ‘Indian Jim,’ the last of the Delaware tribe remaining in this county, a highly respected resident hewed the black walnut logs and clapboards with a broadaxe. The ‘Old Indian Trail’ from Richmond to Peru passes this point.” 

The D.A.R. monument to early education stands as one of southeastern Delaware County’s most recognizable landmarks. The massive boulder is a bold tribute to a schoolhouse that once stood in the woods, but for all its prominence, some details remain unclear. Who decided on this exact location? How much of the story it retells is verifiable, and how much was passed down through generations of uncertain memory? I can’t help but wish we had a clearer picture of the institution it was meant to commemorate- a school born from the frontier, now lingering in legend.

Sources Cited
1 Owens, E. (1971, July 23). “Blab” System Worked Well In County’s Earliest Schools. The Muncie Evening Press. p. 4. 
2 Grecious, A. (1948, April 14). County’s First Schoolhouse Built in 1827. The Muncie Star. p. 61. 
3 Three Indians Met Settlers (1927, September 25). The Muncie Star. P. 45. 
4 County’s First Schoolhouse (1938, September 16). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 21. 
5 (See footnote 2). 
6 Hillman, R. (1993, June 23). Our Neighborhood. TheMuncie Star. p. 4. 
7 Greene, D. (1957, January 1). Seen and Heard in Our Neighborhood. The Muncie Star. p. 4.
8 D.A.R. Names Officers At Last Session (1927, October 13). The Muncie Evening Press. Pp. 1-5.