Ireland School

There is plenty of Irish going around in Nodaway County — what with the world’s shortest parade by Burney’s, the Irish settlement at Conception, the old St. Patrick’s Church, and bars seemingly everywhere.  But if you want to go to Ireland, all you have to do is go to Wilcox.

The Ireland School was about a mile west of Wilcox.

Here’s a history of the school.  There are lots of interesting and perhaps bizarre things about the school.  For starters, in this description, the teacher was the only one with a chair, which implies, though it is not stated, that students had to stand.  The school was said to be the first in the county to have a vestibule entrance (a small, enclosed entryway attached to the front of a single, large classroom that served as a transitional space, protecting the main room from cold, wind, and debris while providing storage for student belongings).

Here’s the description from the February 27, 1947, Nodaway County Tribune:  I don’t understand the Henry Roach Irish Humor reference.  When I googled the name, I got Hal Roach, the film director. The colorized image of the students shows a red schoolhouse based on this article, but in viewing the original, I think it was probably white.

Henry Roach’s Irish Humor Named the Ireland School

On one acre of land obtained from the government in 1868, in the midst of a vast open prairie, a little red schoolhouse was erected by carpenter Jerry Cox and his son, George. That was seventy-nine years ago. The site is eleven miles northwest of Maryville and four and one-half miles southeast of Burlington Junction, in Nodaway township, and the “vast open prairie” long ago was transformed into “closed”, fertile and productive farms.

In 1865, Joseph Carter and J. E. Wilson were among the Ohioans who settled in the community. The Carter farm embraced some 372 acres, and it was from this family that the first Carter school gained its name. Mrs. Carter was formerly Miss Ann Wilson, but any relationship with J. E. Wilson, if any, is not established. However, Miss Josephine L. Wilson, a daughter of Mr. and Mrs. J.E. Wilson, was the first to secure a teaching job at the new Carter school.

The interior of the first school was rough and unplastered. The desks for pupils and teachers were hand-made and securely fastened to the floor. Below each desk was a shelf for books.

The teacher’s desk was on a platform about six inches above the floor level. The teacher had the only chair in the room. A long blackboard paneled the wall behind the teacher’s desk. First Teacher Miss Josie Wilson, the first teacher to use the desk and chair, had more to do than to move in and start the youngsters with their A, B, Cs. The school year was divided into two terms: a summer term and a winter term, each lasting three months. Miss Wilson, having accepted the first job, soon discovered that the two terms were “subscription” terms, and she had to travel far and wide over the district visiting parents of prospective pupils to sell them on the idea of education.

Children did not become pupils until their parents paid a stipulated sum for each term. Miss Wilson was undoubtedly a teacher for approximately fifty pupils enrolled each term. Miss Wilson was succeeded by Miss Eliza Nicholas, who taught the summer term in 1871. Miss Nicholas was the daughter of George Nicholas, another native of Ohio, who settled in the community in 1870. She was a good saleslady and a teacher.

Dr. Carter: A Teacher. Marcus Carter, a son of Joseph Carter, taught the winter term in 1874. He turned from teaching to the study of medicine and was, for many years, a practicing physician in Nodaway County. Present residents of the community, who were his pupils, are Mrs. Jay Meek and Mrs. Frank Hackett.

Other pupils include Noah Duncan of Maryville and Mrs. Margaret Carter of Van Nuys, Calif. Miss Emma Johnson and W. P. Daugherty were also among the early-day teachers of Carter school.

First Vestibule Type School Abraham Booher, a native of Burney, Switzerland, moved from Illinois to near Maryville in 1865.

In 1872, he purchased 250 acres of land in the Carter community. Like the Carters and Wilsons, Mr. Booher became one of the prominent men in the district. So, when the early settlers found that the first school was not meeting demand, they decided to build a new one. Mr.

Booher suggested a building patterned after those he had known in his homeland, with a vestibule at the front, used as a cloakroom. There was some controversy over the departure from the established box-like structures. However, an agreement was reached, and in 1879, the present school was built, vestibule and all. It was the forerunner of this type of school construction in the county. The Carter School was closed for five years and reopened only in September last year.

Editor’s Note: Former pupils of Marcus Carter, mentioned in this article, helped compile the history of the Carter school. 1946-47 IRELAND SCHOOL CLASS Front row, right to left–Gary Babb, Colene Hughes, Ruth Kunkel, Nancy Howard, Gary Kunkel, Kenneth Hughes. Back row, right to left -Mrs. J. Vernon Taylor (the teacher), Betty Jenson, Dolores Howard, Barbara Taylor, Kathlyn Taylor, and Ronnie Howard

Jokes about a Teacher Having Only a Chair

1. The teacher’s chair has a name and a reserved sign — it’s the only throne in town.
2. Kids stand for class because the teacher’s chair doesn’t come with enough room for two.
3. The teacher’s chair has its own zip code.
4. They call it “teacher’s chair” because it’s the only place in the county with lumbar support.
5. Parent–teacher conferences are awkward — everyone brings a folding stool.
6. The chair’s been there so long it teaches a class of its own.
7. Field trips are just the kids taking turns admiring the chair.
8. The teacher sits, and the students learn patience.
9. The chair gets more PTO than the rest of the staff.
10. The school’s fire drill? Everyone races for the chair, and the teacher says, “Oops, you’re late.”
11. The teacher’s chair has a parking spot out front.
12. When inspectors ask about seating capacity, the teacher points to the chair and says, “One plus imagination.”
13. Graduation photos are just the teacher in the chair with a proud look.
14. The chair has a nickname: “The Principal.”
15. They don’t call roll — the teacher checks who’s standing and who’s just staring longingly at the chair.

Jokes About Naming a One-Room School in a Cornfield in Ireland School

1. Ireland School — because every good school needs shamrocks, even if they’re made of corn stalks.
2. They named it Ireland School so the kids could learn the difference between a shamrock and a soybean.
3. Ireland School: where the school colors are green and greener.
4. The school crest? A leprechaun holding a pitchfork.
5. You don’t need a map — follow the trail of potatoes, and you’ll find Ireland School.
6. Ireland School hosts St. Patrick’s Day parade every day at recess — the cows lead.
7. Parents ask for directions: “Turn left at the silo, right at the scarecrow with a fiddle.”
8. The school motto: Erin go braagh — or at least until harvest.
9. Teaching geography there is easy: “You’re in Missouri, but your desk faces the Emerald Isle of Corn.”
10. Enrollment requirement: Can you make it across a field without losing your hat?
11. The school bell doubles as a church bell and a tractor warning.
12. They say the school was named Ireland after the first teacher saw the corn sea and declared, “It’s like home!”
13. Graduation photos include a backdrop of stalks and the occasional stray rooster.
14. Ireland School — where everyone’s related and you find out on the first day.
15. The library’s most-read book: How to Spot a Leprechaun in a Corn Maze.