COMMUNITY PAGEANT Schools of Jamestown Township On the Afternoon and Evening May 25, 1923 1:30 and 7:45 P. M. at the Jamestown Y. M. C. A. Hall Under the supervision of Dick H. Vande Bunte Schools Participating Bell, district No. 1 - Stella Keefer Jamestown, district No. 2 - Alice Holleman Forest Grove, district No. 3 - Elsie Peets Gitchel, district No. 4 - Dorothy VanderKolk Zutphen, district No. 5 - Agnet TerHaar Mitchel, district No. 6 - Martha Klawiter West, district No. 7 - Joanna Dewitt Star, district No. 8 - Hazel Pelton FIRST EPISODE – Indian Days JAMESTOWN SCHOOL It is about eighty years ago that Rix Robinson came to Jamestown to trade
with the Indians. He found the Indian life to be full of interesting events.
The main crop which the Indians raised was corn. The Indians believed that the
corn was a kind of divine grain, a special gift of the Great Spirit. This gift
was so needful to man that every year when the harvest of corn was ripe a
Thanksgiving Feast was held at which the tribe, headed by the mystery men held
its Sacred Dance of the Corn. Scene I – A Day in Camp Scene II – An Evening in Camp SECOND EPISODE – Coming of the White Man ZUTPHEN SCHOOL The coming of the white men brought both pleasures and disappointments to
the Indians. They were delighted with the trinkets and flashy worthless
articles exchanged by the white man for skins of surbearing animals. But the
white man and civilization came to stay; so, slowly the Indian was driven
westward. The result of this crowding meant that the Indian must give way to
his pale-faced brother or go on the war path. He often chose the latter, and,
to express their bitter hatred they used the war dance as a forerunner of
hostilities. Scene I – First White Men Scene II – A Historical Incident Scene III – Indian War Dance THIRD EPISODE – Pioneer Days GITCHEL SCHOOL STAR SCHOOL When the early pioneers came to Jamestown they found nothing but a
wilderness. The hardships they endured both in mind and body sometimes nearly
overwhelmed them. However they were not to be discouraged. In spite of the
fact that they were without modern conveniences they made life as pleasant as
possible. The home, therefore, became the social center of all activities
where the spirit of the "Golden Rule" was never forgotten. Even now
we modern folk listen to the stories told by our father and mothers. The
howling of the wolves and other wild animals, the felling of the trees, the
spinning of the yarn, the old spelling matches, the dunce, the husking bees,
and the finding of the redears are incidents of history to "grandpa"
and "grandma" but to us are like fairy tales. Often as we see the
generation of today rushing madly about to satisfy their desires and
ambitions, we hear the cry, "Oh, for the good old days of yore!" Scene I – The Pioneer Home Scene II – Wedding Scene Scene III – Social Life Scene IV – Old Fashioned School FOURTH EPISODE – Lumbering Days MITCHEL SCHOOL "Work for the Night is Coming" was a song in the hearts of every
pioneer. As the huge trees were cut down one after the other to make way for
the home and the raising of grains, the lumberman cheerfully hummed the tune.
Practically everything was made of wood, so each settler had much to do. The
sawing and cutting of logs for the home and barn, the making of wooden nails,
and crude shingles were daily occupations. The result of it all we see today
in the beautiful farms. We stand mute when we think of the transformation that
has taken place and sigh, for no more shall we hear the music of the burnished
ax; the echo of the falling pine as it crashes to the ground; or the songs
that were sung around the shanty fire. Scene – Two Days in Camp FIFTH EPISODE – Modern Rural Life MAPLE GROVE SCHOOL The modern rural home shows up in marked contrast with that of the early
pioneer. The one-room log cabins have been replaced by the fine homes we see
in our township today. Many have every convenience of the palatial residences
seen on the boulevards of our cities. The same spirit of progress and
improvement is seen in the school room. The public school system demands that
other subjects than the three R’s be taught; that the equipment be of a type
to bring about the very best results in educating the children, and that the
instructors be prepared for their work to a higher degree of efficiency.
Co-operating with the teacher, the parents have organized the Parent-Teachers
Associations where the problems of the school may be discussed and where a
social time unifies the interest of the school and the home. Scene I – Modern Rural Home Scene II – The Modern School Scene III – A Community Meeting ==================== ENSEMBLE – All Schools PART I - Drill ---------------------------------------
Mitchel School PART II - Song "America, the Beautiful"
------------- Audience
presented by
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BELL SCHOOL
WEST FOREST GROVE SCHOOL
Transcriber: Evelyn Sawyer
Created: 20 July 2003