2023 Fall Newsletter

RULES FOR TEACHERS IN 1872 The world nowadays has so many rules and regula tions for anything and everything. Obviously, you have to have laws regulating certain circumstances and things need to be regulated and I guess that is why you have rules. Rules change over time and how one implements those rules can be subject to interpreta tion. There are volumes of rules governing absolutely everything. Back in 1872, there was a list of rules for teachers put out that today would probably bring law suits. Here they are: 2. Each teacher will bring a bucket of water and a scut tle of coal for the day’s session. 3. Make your pens carefully. You may whittle nibs to the individual taste of the pupils. 4. Men teachers may take one evening each week for courting purposes, or two evenings a week if they go to church regularly. 5. After ten hours in school, the teachers may spend the remaining time reading the Bible or other good books. 6. Women teachers who marry or engage in unseemly conduct will be dismissed. 7. Every teacher should lay aside from each pay a goodly sum of his earnings for his benefit during his declining years so that he will not become a burden on society. 8. Any teacher who smokes, uses liquor in any form, frequents pool or public halls, or gets shaved in a bar bershop will give good reason to suspect his worth, intention, integrity and honesty. 9. The teacher who performs his labor faithfully and without fault for five years will be given an increase of twenty-five cents per week in his pay, providing the Board of Education approves. 1. Teachers each day will fill lamps and clean chimneys.

Secetary’s Report cont.

KEYBOARD PEOPLE WANTED We are trying to copy all of our obituary card files into a computer data base. Presently There are over 30,000 scanned obit cards that need to be renamed with the persons info on the card. The museum will provide USB thumb drives to volunteers who could take the drives back to their computers and rename them at their own pace. We are pleased to welcome several new volunteers who not only approve of our endeavors but want to join the team. If you would like to learn more about our efforts, give us a call. We do have specific needs for computer skilled residents to aid in documenting new collection items yet any and all assistance will be greatly appreciated. We hope you can join us in pre serving Miami County’s history! We again joined the Master Gardeners in September and manned a table at the Courthouse during their bi-annual Garden Tour handing out an article on the courthouses’ history. In her new position as Executive Director and Muse um Manager, Jana Harrington Barcus lead yet another momentous occasion, the first step to meet our goal of doubling usable size, when repair work began on a portion of the second story for much needed office space. Additionally, Jana has added a new goal, plac ing the buildings on the National Historic Registry and, thus, qualifying for Historic Trust grants, to her already full plate. This whirlwind of activity has caught the eye of the Mi ami County Republic, as, Year-to-date, Vince Thorpe, our Treasurer (and now author!), had 18 of his histor ic columns published with the Republic authoring an additional 19 articles/speaker announcements, which included four receiving front page attention! As an other whirlwind of activity, our Facebook site interac tion with the public has dramatically increased in the past few months with over four-fold more posts and 22% more followers. This increase was aided, among other things, by expanding our outreach to a wider au dience of Kansas history, genealogy and local attrac tions Facebook groups. Hats off to our hard working and clever Face-book team! NAMES of NEW VOLUNTEERS!

Source: Kansas Heritage Center-Dodge City, Ks

Page 10