Past Schools in Tongue River Valley

Pete Hager and Pete Kilbride share the stage

Pete Hager, Ranchester, gave a talk to a large crowd on Monday night, Jan. 10, about the past schools in the Tongue River Area. Pete Kilbride, Superintendent of School District #1, introduced Hager and spoke about the schools today. Hager displayed a collection of year books and other memorabilia from the early schools.

Hager said that the current School District #1 boundary starts on the Montana border, then south to Wolf Creek, east to the Big Horn National Forest, northwest to the Tongue River, and coming back to the Montana border.

In the early 1860s, this land was ceded to the Native American’s to live and hunt without interference from the whites, essentially the first Indian reservation. The Indian land went from just past Hardin, Montana, north to what is now Miles City, then South to Kaycee, swinging back to the point of beginning. A large piece of country.

“Some of the tribes bothered the white settlers,” Hager said. “And the settlers asked the Army to stop the problems.” After the Custer battle of 1876, the US Government moved these tribes to reservations. With the Indians contained, it was possible for settlers to take up land in what was ceded to the tribes.

The Slack school was one of the first schools in the area. “At the time Sheridan County was still a part of Johnson County. A minimum of five ranchers identified that their properties were separate school districts and that their ranch headquarters would be the district headquarters. Each built a small school building and hired a teacher. After about three years, the ranchers decided the existing situation was too expensive and in 1882 there was a request to the county to combine all five schools into one district, with the Slack School near Parkman being the only school for the new district.” Hagar said. Slack School still exists today as one of the few one-room schools still in existence in Wyoming. It has five students and one teacher.

“Another school was built near where Valley Meat is now located,” Hager said. It came about this way.

In 1890 the Ohlman school was established and the 5-Mile School was abandoned. The Ohlman school was located on Five Mile Flat, about 2 miles from Parkman. The school was standardized by Dorothy Brown and a high school was added in 1923. “When the school became overloaded with students, parents requested another school, and the Little Blue School was built,” Hager said. The Ohlman school was closed in 1935.

The first school build in the town of Dayton was built in 1890 as well. It was located about where the fire department and town hall are today. That building was used until 1930, when a heating stove overheated and burned down the building. A new brick building was built that same year and was used until 1960.

“The town of Ranchester had three schools after the proposed railroad was moved from the Dayton area to Sheridan and then Ranchester. The railroad was originally planned to go to Big Horn, then across to Dayton and Parkman, following the old Bozeman Trail. Due to the high cost of obtaining some of the land for the right of way, the railroad changed it route to go through Ranchester.”

The first school built there was in 1899, and was only a tar-paper shack in the middle of town. In 1908, another school was built and then one in 1913, which was used until 1922, when it was replaced by a two-story, white brick building. This school was in use until 1956, when several other schools, Kooi, Pass Creek, Dayton Ash Creek and Parkman, were consolidated into one school.”In the early days, sixteen-year old girls could take training and teach school. Pete Hager’s mother, Grace, was a teacher in the “Little Blue School” in 1929. “She rode a horse to school each morning and back home at night,” he said.

Hager then turned the mic over to Pete Kilbride, who talked about how the schools became what they are today. At one time there were 37 school districts in Sheridan County. Today there are three. In 1954 and 1955 were the last years that Dayton School District #5 was a district by itself. District #24 was created on July 5th, 1955, consisting of Dayton(#5) and Ranchester (#33), and Districts 10, 12, 24, 40, which were Pass Creek, Parkman, Kooi, and Ash Creek. On Sept. 28th, 1956, District #24 became known as Tongue River Schools.

Kilbride also read from some of the old school board meeting minutes from the early years of SCSD#1.

Here are some excerpts: In Oct. 1956, the sports teams consolidated. Ben Reynolds and Linda Cook received $5 each for suggesting the name “EAGLES”.

Fall of 1956: Discussions began about the building of a new Junior/Senior High. On Jan. 31, 1957, a vote was taken for the site of the new school. The Dayton location received 237 votes to Ranchester’s 218. After a canvas was called in Feb, Dayton received 232 votes and Ranchester, 222, with one vote being cast for 1 Halfway Lane.

May, 1960: School Census 364 kids. 197 boys, 167 girls

June 10th,1960: Rotary Club and two Woman’s Clubs asked the board for use of a bus and driver for 60 kids for the summer swimming club. Approved.

At one meeting the board voted to raise teacher retirement from 2% to 2 ¼%

In July of 1967, Gus Lofgren served as board treasurer. Today his son, Eric is currently the Vice-Chair of SCSD#1 School Board, continuing the tradition of service.

March 12, 1968: Had a talk with Mr. Walt Gray about his football spending.

Dec. 12, 1969: Mary Spear and Leslie Mohns were caught with alcohol in their pockets at a basketball game. Suspended from Pom-Pom and pep club for the rest of the year.

Sept 10, 1970,Sheridan School District #1 West was Big Horn School in Big Horn.

In 1970 the school board declared a new local holiday for students and staff.

The motion passed unanimously.

Jan. 20, 1971: (Big Horn) The Adsit boys walked off Mr. Blundell’s class again. The Hillier boy is a similar problem. Kilbride said, “It is Interesting that discipline like this was in public meeting. Kids were suspended for running in the halls or chewing gum in the gym.

July, 1971: Organizational meeting for Sheridan County SD #1 West (Combining Big Horn into the District)

In 1982 the four-day school week was instituted. One reason was due to basketball games on Fridays, and as many of the students were on the teams, there were few students left in school. Some of it too was due to gas expense, and not running the buses every Friday saved the district money. To make up for the shorter week, the school lengthen the days during the week. Some parents sued, due to a hardship for working families needing ‘daycare’ on Fridays due to their jobs, and the case when to the supreme court. The four-day week was reinstated the following year and it has been that way since then.

Through all the changes over the years, SCSD#1 continues to offer quality education for students in the Tongue River Valley and Big Horn.