The Romance of Norwalk

The school visitors tried again December 28, 1882, recommending the establishment of a high school and ac¬ companying the recommendation with a resolution authoriz¬ ing the selectmen to establish such a school and to appropri¬ ate $1,600 toward its erection. The report was gratefully accepted; the resolution and the recommendation promptly rejected. Matters dragged along after this for 15 years with no further attempts being made to establish a high school in Norwalk. June 26, 1897, discouraging infor¬ mation is contained in town meeting report to the effect that the matter of establishing a high school had been “indefin¬ itely postponed.” The Honorable John H. Light decided to see what he could do and at the gathering of the council June 28, 1900, presented a petition for. the establishment of a town high school, under Chapter 138 of the General Statutes. The SCHOOLS 249 petition was put to vote and lost. Hope broke over the horizon for the education idealists of Norwalk when at town meeting under date of September 20, 1905, a new report of the high school committee was read and accepted and it was voted: “That the selectmen be and they hereby are au¬ thorized and directed to purchase the property known as the ‘Mallory’ lot on West ave., in the town of Norwalk (said property now being owned by Raymond Brothers and by John McMahon) for high school purposes at a cost not exceeding $1 1,500.” It was then voted that $83,500 should be set aside for the erection and completion of a high school building. The following month, J. G. Gregory named a high school building committee consisting of: John A. Os¬ born, Abiathar Blanchard, Josiah R. Marvin, Charles L. Glover and George S. Kendall. Two new members had to be added to the committee April 30, 1907, because of the resignation of Josiah Marvin and the death of Abiathar Blanchard. William C. Foster and Augustus C. Golding succeeded them. After matters had progressed so far, the town fathers suddenly lost heart and their minds became crowded with doubts and distrusts on the proposed high school. So they decided to hold a special meeting May 10, 1907, in order to allay their fears on just a few of the following questions : To decide if the building being erected would be large enough to accommodate an increase in ten years; to decide if the lot was big enough to permit of an addition if neces¬ sary; to decide if perhaps it would not be better to abandon the site altogether and pick another; to decide if, after all, it would not be better to give up the idea of a new high school building at the present time, because of the high cost of material and labor; to decide whether matters might be helped by either increasing the building committee or dis¬ charging it altogether and selecting a new one; and to de¬ cide if the building committee had acted within its powers in accepting plans radically different from those presented when the money was appropriated for the building. 250 ROMANCE OF NORWALK After this hectic disturbance, when the meeting finally came together, it was merely decided to “let the committee go ahead!” The building was erected in 1909 with nine¬ teen rooms, plans being made to accommodate about 550 pupils. Since that time, seven additional rooms have been opened, three in the assembly hall, it having been found necessary to use part of the assembly hall for study purposes, and four on the third floor. The present school building program contemplates in the future, the erection of a new and up-to-date high school building on a central site. The school now stands on West ave. near Courtland Place. While the matter of establishing a high school in Norwalk hung in the balance for 38 years, another problem of edu¬ cation was occupying the attention of the local people. For some time leaders in the community had harbored the idea of abolishing for all time the school districts and of bring¬ ing each separate school directly under the town supervision. There were many who opposed any such move and when the matter was put to vote in October, 1875, there were only 142 in favor of the consolidation and 952 against it. The matter hung fire for a number of years and it was not until 19 1 1 that the townspeople could come to one mind on the subject, when the districts were consolidated. It is interesting to follow the increase in expenditures for the schools by the town of Norwalk down through these years. In 1869, $15,000 was laid aside for education for one year in Norwalk. The sum was increased to $20,000 in 1871. In 1875, it was $29,500; 1 887, $31,1 14.25 ; 1899, $49,425; 1903, $55,757; 1912, $102,186.60, this including the high school; 1929, $449,511.11. The great jump in the yearly running expenses of the schools from a little more than one hundred thousand dollars in 1912 to nearly five-hundred thousand dollars in 1929, is explained by the fact that pupil enrollment has increased greatly in the past 17 years, and by the fact that teachers’ salaries today are much higher than they were in 1912. Proof that Norwalk does not spend too much on its schools is given in the 1924 SCHOOLS 251 and 1925 reports made to the State Board of Education. At that time the average per capita cost of elementary schools for a selected group of Connecticut cities and towns was $84.40. The cost in Norwalk was $67.80. Evening schools were established in Norwalk in 1893. At a special meeting, it was voted to form evening schools uin the Winnipauk school district, one in the Center school dis¬ trict, one in the Over River school district, one in the South Norwalk school district and one in the East Norwalk school district, they to be continued 100 nights.” Today there is one large evening school which is conducted in the Frank¬ lin Junior high for 78 nights during the winter months. For some time it has been under the direct supervision of Joseph Nathanson, science instructor at the Norwalk High school, and it has a registration of about 300 pupils each year. The night school has become an outstanding educational institu¬ tion in Norwalk. Public schools today are really free. Tu¬ ition rates were abolished by legislation in 1868, and in 1900, Norwalk voted to supply text books and supplies to all scholars. Up to this time books had been purchased only for those pupils who could not pay for them. Education is compulsory for children between the ages of 6 and 14 and it is estimated that there are now about 6,000 boys and girls in attendance at the public schools of the City of Nor¬ walk. More than 1,000 others are in private schools. PUBLIC SCHOOLS In the city at the present time, there are the following schools; Winnipauk, Franklin, Concord, West Norwalk, Brookside, Rowayton, Roosevelt or North Center, Marvin, Broad River, Over River, Putnam, Knudsen, Lincoln, Jeff¬ erson, Cranbury, or North East, Washington, Center ele¬ mentary, and Center Junior, Franklin Junior, Roger Lud¬ low Junior, Norwalk Senior high, and Fitch, recently de¬ stroyed by fire and about to be rebuilt. Of Fitch schools there have been many, the name being ROMANCE OF NORWALK 252 the oldest in town. One of the first, or perhaps even the first school in town was called Fitch and there have been several since, by that name. The last Fitch school, which was burned to the ground in February, 1929, stood on the corner of East ave. and Winfield st. The building which preceded it, was a “little red schoolhouse” which was built in 1820 and for many years was located on the top of East ave. hill or Earle hill, as it is sometimes designated. It was later moved down to the foot of the hill where it stood for another period of time, though much closer to the road than it is now. When the new Fitch school (which burned in 1929) was built, the little old red schoolhouse was put up for sale. The father of Mrs. John F. Darrow, 30 West Main st., who wras Oscar Raymond, bid in the little place for his father-in-law, Stephen Raymond. This old school, which was later turned into a house and was moved farther into the lot to its present location, is now occupied by Mr. and Mrs. Milton Dana Morrill, at 185 East ave. When the structure was turned into a house, the school bell was sold to Captain Charles Cook St. John, who placed it on the front of his boat. Mrs. Darrow is under the impression that the auction of the little old school house, in which Oscar and Stephen Raymond figured, took place about 1868, and that by that time the last Fitch school which just burned, had already been built. This would then place the erection date of the last Fitch school previous to the year 1868, although local school authorities are of the opinion that the school was built in 1871. It is difficult def¬ initely to place the date. At the present time, plans are in progress for a new Fitch school building. The Franklin school, another old building, was thought to have been built about 1854. Wooden additions were made in 1873 and 1894. Previous to 1854 there had been two schools in the district: the Old Well school, a two-room affair in the vicinity of the present Soldier’s Monument near the South Norwalk Congregational church; and the Flax Hill school of one room, near the junction of West st. SCHOOLS 253 (Flax Hill road) and Lowe st. The two schools were con¬ solidated and known as the Union school or the South Nor¬ walk Union school district, in 1854. In that year a five- room building was erected for the Union school, later called the Franklin school. This building, which is part of the present Franklin school, was made of wood but was filled in with brick, and was located on the corner of Flaxhill road and Franklin st., where the present school stands. The school being considered very modern for those years was well attended. Yearly tuition was charged, ranging in price from $.90 in the primary grades to $4 in the high school classes for district scholars and $5 in the high school classes for out of district students. The principal in i860 was paid the lordly sum of $800, while his four assistants put together couldn’t scrape up more than $1,400.