Pioneer school children were sometimes naughty, too
It is always amusing to hear how well-disciplined school children were during pioneer days. However, of course this was not always the case.
Just like today, there were many instances of troublesome behavior. School misconduct frequently extended beyond the cute tales of little boys dipping an unexpecting girl’s pigtails into a desk’s inkwell.
The late Buddy Redman (1903-1992) told me that in December 1911 — right before Christmas — the Antelope Valley Steam Laundry, which was in the downtown area near the second old Lancaster Grammar School (Lancaster Boulevard), exploded. The weather during the night had been unexpectedly cold and frozen pipes were responsible for the explosion
The two teachers — upstairs for the older students and downstairs for the younger pupils — tried to keep the classrooms calm and orderly but failed miserably as all the students pushed and trampled on them while excitedly running outside to see the ensuing fire and smoke.
It took quite a while to regain any peace. Fortunately, no one at the laundry was injured.
Another time, the mischievous Robbie boys secretly brought a BB pellet gun to the Lancaster School and during lunch, while seated on the school’s tall white picket fence, shot Dr. Thailkill, who lived across the street; he was shot in the buttocks and arm while he was retrieving water from the outside pump. The Robbie boys were severely punished by the schoolteacher and their parents.
The old Lancaster School was equipped with a large play area that contained monkey bars, a dangerous galvanized and wood slide as well as a teeter totter and swing set.
However, this playground was unfairly restricted to the energetic boys and the girls were only allowed to play in this “special” area on Fridays. On other days they were resigned to playing in the pavilion area which had only a few benches; looks like little girls were not expected to engage in “unlady-like behavior.”
School punishments for minor infractions generally only required a child sitting on a bench during recess or remaining after school cleaning erasers and writing corrective sentences on the blackboard.
Sometimes a student would get spanked with a paddle. However, Principal Mrs. Avriel/Abriel devised a new punishment. She would take a rubber hose about six feet long and as thick a finger and hit the boys on the calf of the leg. During this period the boys wore knicker pants, so she made them roll down their socks before she hit them which guaranteed they would be sure to feel the pain—ouch! As an Egyptologist, this also reminds me of a famous ancient Egyptian saying regarding schoolboys: A student’s ears are on his back, the harder you hit him, the better he listens. Some situations only took thousands of years to change.
Nevertheless, in late 1912, students at the Waterdale School (Redman District) truly despised one teacher, 70-year-old John Coates (1842-1919). Various problems had been growing at the school and an older student challenged him to a fight.
When Coates refused to fight him, the pupil threatened him with death if he did not leave the community. The boy was arrested and tried in court on a charge of threats to kill; he was found guilty and paid a fine of $20; afterwards, all the students went on strike.
Another police intervention was required in June 1925, when Mrs. Helen Cellar, principal of the Keppel School in Littlerock, complained to authorities that “roughneck” boys at her school threatened her bodily injury if she stayed in Littlerock or attended the school’s closing ceremonies.
Mrs. Cellar (1894-1983) had been at Keppel School for three years and during the last year a dispute developed between her and the first grade teacher, Mrs. Ethel Thompson, regarding administration matters.
It then snowballed into a personal dispute and the bitter disagreement then spread to the Littlerock inhabitants who aligned themselves into two distinct factions with physical clashes being only narrowly averted. The troublesome boys also feared they would be demoted of flunk.
Ultimately, Lancaster Constable Edwin Cummings (1876-1942) was ordered to provide assistance as needed in suppressing the bad male students (probably seventh- to eighth-grade boys) who were menacing Mrs. Cellar. He assigned Palmdale Deputy Constable William Wilson to be Mrs. Cellar’s guard at her home.
He also attended the school’s closing exercises the following morning. Fortunately, no violence occurred during the school’s closing ceremonies.
Following the closing of school year, the Cellars left for Los Angeles where they spent the summer. Neither Mrs. Cellar nor Mrs. Thompson were later employed locally although Mrs. Cellar did continue her teaching career in Los Angeles.