Map of the Location of the
Alpine Township Schools, 21 January 1885
Drawn by Hiram J. Chambers

Photo of Hiram Chambers as a young man below.

Schoolhouses in Alpine Township
(From 1881 Chapman's History of Kent County, Pg. 560-561)

  • District No. 1 is in the center of the township.  Its first schoolhouse was built on the farm of Edward Wheeler, on the north side of section 22.  The present school building was erected in the year 1861, and is a substantial frame structure.  It stands on the south side of section 15, one-half mile east of the town hall.

  • District No. 2 has an old wooden building, commonly known as the Coon schoolhouse.

  • District No. 3 (fractional with Wright Tp.) has a nice brick building situated on the north side of section 30.  It was erected in 1868, at an expense of $1,000.

  • District No. 4 (fractional with Sparta Tp.) has a small frame house, known as the Rouse schoolhouse, situated on the north line of section 3.

  • District No. 6 (fractional with Sparta Tp.) has a schoolhouse in the northeast corner of section 5.  It was erected in the year 1864, at a cost of about $1,200.

  • District No. 7 (fractional with Plainfield Tp.), known as the Colton schoolhouse, situated on the south side of section 13, is a neat frame structure.  it was erected in the year 1869, at an expense of $950.

  • District No. 8 has a small, frame house, known as the Pearsall schoolhouse, which was erected in 1851, on the northwest corner of section 28.

  • District No. 9 (fractional with Plainfield Tp.) has a very old building, known as the Withey schoolhouse, situated on the northeast corner of section 36.

  • District No. 10 (fractional with Wright Tp.) has a small frame house, known as the Boyd schoolhouse, standing on the southwest corner of section 8.  It was erected in the year 1856.

  • District No. 11 has a small wooden building, which was erected in the year 1855, and used until the year 1869, when the Roman Catholics of the district, with the aid of the surrounding districts, erected a building of their own at a cost of $1,500, in which they now have a German-English school.  The deserted building is situated on the south side of section 26, and the new one at the center.

  • District No. 13 ( fractional with Walker Tp.) has a nice frame building, known as the Johnson schoolhouse.  It was erected in the year 1859, and stands on the south side of section 34.

  • District No. 14 (fractional with Sparta Tp.) has a small frame building, which was erected in the year 1852, and is known as the Englishville schoolhouse.  It is located on the north side of section 1.

  • District No. 15 (fractional with Walker Tp.) has a small frame building, known as the Monroe schoolhouse.

DIST

NO. CHILDREN

BLDG

VALUE

NO. TEACHERS

T-SALARY

TOTAL EXPENSES

1

51

frame

$150

2

$148

$694.21

2

42

frame

$1000

2

$183

$264.93

3 fr.

41

brick

$1300

3

$105

$272.09

4 fr.

46

brick

$1200

2

$199

$238.64

6 fr.

39

frame

$1500

2

$240

$302.93

7 fr.

71

frame

$800

3

$225

$464.71

8

33

brick

$1200

2

$164

$187.99

10 fr.

63

frame

$500

2

$140

$229.32

11

47

frame

$1800

1

$360

$742.04

13 fr.

41

frame

$400

2

$228

$296.00

14 fr.

48

frame

$1000

2

$122

$242.38

15 fr.

13

frame

$300

1

$128

$193.95

 

 

Hiram Chambers (11 Dec 1842-23 Jan 1915) was the son of Elihu T. Chambers and Lydia O. Chase.  Hiram never married.  His siblings were Will Chambers and Sarah (Chambers) Snyder.  Both Will and Sarah taught at the Wheeler School in Alpine Township.
Elihu and Lydia, his parents, are both buried in the Alpine Center Cemetery.

 


Transcriber: ES
Created: 23 Jan 2003