Rains County, Texas GRIT SCHOOL
Grit is located south of Alba and was first called "New Hope". It was a large farming and ranching community. The first school at Grit was a one-room school near the Sabine River. This school burned and it was decided to locate the school on the Grit Road which is now Hwy. 779. Mitt COX gave the land for the school. At first it was a large, one-room school, but later it was partitioned off to make two rooms. The school building itself had two large classrooms and a hall and was a two-story building. There was no electricity at the school and they used kerosene lamps and a woodburning stove for light and heat. There were also many windows in the school building to let in natural light. There were no indoor restrooms, but there were two outhouses (one for boys and one for girls). On the school grounds, there was also a small two-room house, call a "teacherage," in which the teachers could live during the school year. (Alba Texas: A Century to Remember, Fifty Years to Reminisce; The Alba Ladies Club)
The Grit School closed in 1949 and the teachers' house was sold to someone who moved it to another location. (A Century to Remember, Fifty Years to Reminisce; The Alba Ladies Club)
The school was used from time to time for church and revival meetings.Grit teachers housing - (contributed by Gracie Morrow)
Some of the teachers were :
Mr. & Mrs. Chritzberg
Thelma Dotson
Jewel Donnard
Irene Herbert
Sybil Terry
Alta Martin
Sara Martin
Jewel Gilley
Una Bill Gilley
Lola Middleton1930-1931 H.C. Burns - Principal
1940- 45 students
1941- no census available
1942- 31 students
1943- 40 students
1944- 33 students
1945-25 students
1946- no census available
1947- 23 students
1948- 15 students
1949- 13 students
Deed Records vol. 109, page 209
Rains County, TexasBe it resolved by the County Board of School Trustees, of Rains County, Texas, assembled in regular session at their usual meeting place in the city of Emory, a quorum of said Board being present and participating that: Whereas, Common School District No. 13 has been dissolved and its territory consolidated with the Alba Independent School District, and the school heretofore maintained in said district has been discontinued ,and the building heretofore used as a school house is no longer needed or used for such purposes; and Whereas said building is needed for religious and community purposes; Be it resolved by this Board, that the said school grounds and the said school house thereon standing be sold to the community for religious and community purposes, for and in consideration of the sum of $1.
Be it further resolved that Jim McBride as President and Arthur Jones as Secretary to this Board, be, and they are hereby authorized to make, execute and deliver to such trustees as may be designated by said Community to accept the conveyance of said property, a good and sufficient deed in accordance with this resolution.
It is, however, further resolved that any deed of conveyance made pursuant to this resolution shall retain the teacherage located on said school ground if any, for the use and benefit of independent school district to which said district has been attached or with which the same has been consolidated.Resolution made & passed -- October 1949 & appears in Board Minutes
Arthur Jones, secretary, witnessed October 19492.5 acres of land in the E.N. Stringer Survey
Beginning at the original northeast corner of the said E.N. Stringer Survey, a stake for corner; Thence west with the NB line of said survey 172 varas to a stake for corner, at the intersection of said NB line with the Mineola and Willow Springs public road; Thence in a southeasterly direction with said road, 216 varas to a stake in the EB line of said survey;
Thence north with said EB line 145 varas to the place of beginning.
Trustes for New Hope Community, commonly called Grit who handled the sale of the above described land were R.D. Jones, L. Hill, and Carl Adams.
