  Cardinal Courier At
the corner of Houston and William Streets in Pottsboro stands the
remains of the first high school established in Pottsboro. It was built in the twenties and had six rooms.
Modern conveniences such as central air and heating weren't available. In the winter, stoves which burned coal were used and had to be filled by the students many times during the day. There was no running water so a pump located outside the school was used. Ray Cook, a former student at the school, recalled that the school had eleven grades and a student body of around three hundred. Since there were only six rooms, there were around fifty students in each room. Some native Pottsboro people who attended the school include Winnie and Virgil Gibson, Lee Gilloud, and Arnold Waldrop. The faculty consisted of six teachers and one principal. Some of the teachers were Mary Thorpe, Effie Gibson, Madge Terry, Mike Wilson, and Ray Short. The principal was Mrs. Miller. There was a school board which had three trustees who were elected for three year terms. Courses of study weren't limited to "readin', 'ritin' and 'rithmetic". Some other courses including biology, geometry, civics, and algebra were offered to the students. Even in the twenties, sports were an important part of a school's activities. The school had organized basket ball and track teams for boys and girls at the high school level. There was also a baseball team available to high school boys. There was a basketball court and baseball field located just north of the school, a little father away was a tennis court. Like today students traveled to other schools to compete such as Hagerman, Sadler, Southmayd, Denison and Plainview schools. Many times, Pottsboro would host its own track meets at which wrestling matches were sometimes held as an attraction. School was held for the full nine month term, but some students stayed out of school in order to harvest crops. Casses began at 8:00 a.m. and ended at 4:00 p.m. Before school started, the students went to chapel. This was a devotional program which included prayers, singing and a Bible reading. Lunch period was an hour long in which most students went home to eat. If anyone was absent, no excuse was necessary. Although there were some advantages to school fifty years ago, education has come a long way. ~ ~ ~ Natalie Clountz Pottsboro School History  Susan Hawkins © 2024 If you find any of Grayson CountyTXGenWeb links inoperable, please send me a message. |