SECONDARY SCHOOL EDUCATION

PART A - West Lorne Continuation School

Until 1897 secondary education was given by the public school teachers

and consisted of material equal to Grade 9. Successful students were given a 11Public School

Leaving Certificate11 • Some pupi ls returned for a second year and if they continued to High

School in Dutton, they entered Third Form. A grnnt of $35 . l'>fas given to the Board for

teaching Forms I and II.

When the present Public School 11as built in 1895 , the Principal, Mr.

Milne, taught Forms I and II. This policy was continued until 1918. By 1916 there was need

for more accommodation so on August 25, 1916, it was decided t o build an addition of two rooms ,

a laboratory, library, and office, so debentures f or $6,500. were sold.

In September, 1918, the new addition was opened and now Grades 9, 10, 11

and 12 were taught. VL C. Rogers '"'as t he first principal and t•ras paid $1,200. a year, while

his assistant 1.vas Miss Fern Graham. In 1919 Hi ss P. Headows assumed the principa1ship and

"VIas assisted by lfiss l..f. Gendron and then by Miss Ida Cook in 1920. F. 0 . l1cl1ahon became

principal in 1921 and his assistant '"as Hiss Adams .

1922 brought N. A. Taylor as principal -viho remained until 1925. His

assistant in 1922 1-Tas Miss Adams who was succeeded by Mr. Edmonds in 1923. By January, 1924,

the enrolment had increased to an extent that Mis s Baird vvas appointed as the third teacher.

A classroom was opened in what one time wa.s t he to'.m. hall across the railroad tracks - a

place referred to by most pupils as "the jail11 • Miss Baird endured the class changes from

the school to the town hall until Easter when Miss Johnston succeeded her. In September,

1924, two ne-vr assistants were hired - Miss Allendorf and t..fiss Farries.

By September, 1925, the enrolment had decreased so only two teachers were

necessary. VJ. H. Elliott became t he principal Nith Niss M. Elliott as assistant. Hiss

Florence lfcDonald became assistant in 1926 and no changes '\-lere made until 1928 l'.rhen J. D.

Coombs became principal. Hiss Hanna became princi pal in 1929 but in January, 1930, Hiss

Ontario Minister of Educatio:1 Dr . W. J. Dunlop, seated centre. opened West Elgin school. Others are, left to right: Duvic Fraser, chairman of West Elgi>1 High School Board; G. E. Johnson, inpsector of high sch<~ols for the Qntario Department of Education; the Rev. F. P. Erb, president of the West Elgin Min_isteri~l Associatio~ Principal J. A. Bosman; Jon J ewell. president of the student c:;uncil. ..: - 1 ·

F. l-icDonald succeeded her as pri nci pal and E:.i.ss H. Hogan became the assistant . !'.iss Ida

\-!addle became principal i n 1931 but '\·tas succeeded in 1932 by His s !L Stroder and E. S . J:ac

Ilwain, assistant .

In 1933 Uiss E. Do\'1 became principal and remained until 1939. Her

assistants were E. S. r:ac Ilwain until 1937, '\'lhen he ltaS succeeded by K. Annable , l·tlO in

turn was replaced by Arthur Henderson in 1938.

1939 brought a new principal, Hiss }i. Thompson (Mrs . Hanson Robinson)

~mo remained as principal until 1943 . Her assistants were A. Henderson f ollowed by E. Bur­

f ord in 1940 and A. S. Craig in 1942.

In 1943 J . Harvey Robertson became principal and no changes were made

until 1945 \-~hen S. G. Garnish be came pr i ncipal with \v. C. J ohnst on as the assistant . The

school remained under t heir leadershi p and was incorporated into t he ·vest Elgin High School

Distri ct in 1947 .

PART B - ~Elgin District Hi gh School

A By- law passed by the Elgin County Council in June , 1946 dissolved

the Dutton High School and provided for the establishment of the l·,'est Elgin Hi gh School

District, said District to include the To'\'mships of Aldborough and Dun\'lich, and the Villages

of \vest Lorne and Dutton. The inaugural meeting of the ne\'1 board was held on J anuary 8th,

1947 . Board members were John Gill ies, Chairman (Representine the County); Dr. M. G. Graham,

Vi ce- Chairman ( Dutton Publi c School Board); J . Kearns (Aldborough) ; Earl Lemon (\vest Lorne);

A. J. DeLong (Hest Lorne Public School Board); D. Carroll (Dun\'tich) and D. Fr as er (Dutton) .

George L. l'i:ortin was Secretary-Treasurer .

Aft er January, 1947, the Hest Lome Continuation School became a part

of the \·Jest 'Slgin High School District . S. G. Garnish was the principal and \'/. C. J ohnston

was the assistant . In September, 1947, the students in Grades ~ and XII were transf erred to

Dutton and W. C. J ohnst on remained to teacr 3rades I X and X.

In January, 1948, the Dist rict was enlarged to include the Village of

Rodney, represented by Dr . J . \~lhi t teker .

Operati ng three schools was unsat isfactory and costly ~lith many students

attending schools outs ide the District in order to take subj ects not obtainable in the District

schools . The Board decided that one school, ~mere all subjects would be taught, was a necessity .

In li:ay, 1950, the Department of :::ducati on granted permission to the Board

I

Open in~

I

WEST ELGIN'S atlfactive dis· trict high school at West

Lorne, which will be lormally opened by Dr. William Dunlop, Ontario minister of education, Wednesday evening. Dr. Dun· lop will be guest of honor at a dinner starting at 6:30 o'clock in the school and then will offi· ciate at thE!' opening ~ercmonies, starling at eight o'clock in the gymnasium-auditorium. Ho'O. F. s. Thomas, Ontario minister of llUblic -w,orks, will attend with Dr. Dunlop; also C. D. Coyle,

'M.P. for Elgin and Warden R· K. McNeiL The new scilool was built at a cost of just under $500,000 and already has an en­rolment of more than 325 West

Elgin ljtudents.

<0 Canada!

0 Canada ! Our ho me and native land!

True patriot- love in all thy sons command.

\,Yith glowing hearts we see thee rise,

The True i'\orth, strong and free;

And stand on guard, 0 Canada,

\Ve s tand on guard for thee.

0 Canada! Glo rious and free!

We stand on g uard, we stand un guard for thee.

0 Canada! \Ve s tand on guard fo r thee.

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(Chairman: D. Fraser)

0 Canada

Chairman 's Remarks

Introduction of Platform Gu.ests­

Geo. L. M ortin

Mus ical Xurnber

Introduction: A. T. Ward, M. L.A.

J ntroduction of Guest Speaker-

A. T. Ward, M. L.A.

Address and Formal Opening-

Bon. J. W. Dunlop, MiJ1ister of Education

;\If usical Number

Presentation of Plaques-

Donors Introduced by Inspector Johnston

Message from the Clergy-

Rev. F. P. Erb, Pres1dent, West Elgin Ministerial Association

The President of the Student Council­

Jon Jewel

The P rincipal-

Introduction of Staff

GOD SAVE THE QUEEN

:·{!fzai'tmut'z. ,-.

On behalf of the \\'est Elgin District IJigh School Board it is with pleasure that r extend to you the heartiest welcome on this the official opening.

r knmv ' I Sjlcak for the whole hoard on this occasion, when J say that we arc l'('ry deeply g-rateful to all the citizens and rate­payers who ha\·c given tlwir generous s upport in the building of this l'erv fine school. \Ve must also remember the financial aid of the P rQV:illci<d · Oov~rnm<:nt . throug-h the Depar tment of Education. To-n ight we a re very proud lo have ynn in spect this modern , well­equi pped school building.

vVe hupe that un clcr the teac hi'ng of our capable Principal and Staff, the students of this ~clwul distr ict w ill he g iven an opportunity of acquir ing a secondary ed ucation wh ich will fit them for their lik­time work. Co urses offered in this school include agricu lture, home economics, shop and commercial. as well as academic studies.

In concl usinn lel me wis h you JH'Osperity and happiness in the years to come.

J. D. FlU\Sl~R, Chairman.

\Vest Elgin is indeed fortunate in having one of the finest,

modern secondary schools in the pnl\·incc. It is a pleasure for

me to express on behalf of the staff and stu<lent body our sincere

appreciation to the ratepayers of this community for providing such

a splenclicl, modern and well equipped school bu il ding.

While t he former schools provided many notable graduates,

the new school will , wit h its modern equipment and add itional fa­

cili ties, meet the needs of the present generation fo r many years to

come. 1t is no\\' up to the incli\' idua l students to make the most of

these opport unities.

J. A. BOS1IAK, Principal

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<lfl! E.:it ELgin :bi1.hict d/-igh c£cfz.ool

:'IT L~XICll'.'\LiTIES Township of Dunwich Township of .\ldborough

Villages pf Rodne). \Vest L om e and Dutton

HISTORY Prc,·iou~ to the establishment of th e \Vest l:<:lgin 1 ligh School

District. there were three schoo!s operating in \\'est Elgin, a lligh ~:chool at Dutton and Continuation ~chouls at \\'est Lorne and l~od­n ey.

1\ Hy-law passed by the Elgin Co unty Council in Jun e J<J.f6, dis­soh·ed the Dutton I Tig h Sehoul and pro\•idccl fo r the establis hment of the \\ 'est 1-:lgin llig h School District, :;aiel District to include the Township of Alcllm rough, the Towuship of Dun\\ ich, and the Vii­Jages of Dutton and \\'est Lornc. The inaugural meeting of the new hoard was held on January Xth, 19-+7. B.;ard members were J ohn G illies . Chair man (Representing tlw County); Dr. M. G. Graham, Vice-chairmn n (Dutton Public School Beard); J. Kearns (Aldhor­ough); Earl l,emon (West Lorne); J\ . J. DeLong (West Lurnc Pub­lic Schott! Board); D. Carroll (Dunwich) . and D. Fraser (Dutton) . Geu. T .. :\I ortin was Secretary-Treasurer.

Tn Janua ry, J().JH, the District was enlarged to include the Vil­lage of l{odncy, represented by Dr. J. Whitt eker.

Operating three schools was lt·nsatisfactory and costly with many students attending schools outside the District, taking s ubjects not obtainable in t he District schools. The B oard decided that one school, where all s ubject s would he taught, was a necessity. ,

In May, 1950. th e Depar tm ent o f licluc;ttion g ranted permiss ion t o the Hoard tn proceed to erect a new school at Wes t Lorne and M r. C. I J. Gill in. o f Londnn, was engaged as Architect to prepa•-e plans. J\ site \\"as purchased and plans approved by the Department in January, 1951. The tender of the Huron Con!>t ruction Company in t he amount of $383,200 was accepted and construction began in ':'~ray 1951, and completed in September, 1952 .

The eq ual ized assessment o f the District is $8,736,71.1 w it h a population of 7.620. The D epartment of E ducation approved costs of $~20.000 on which they pay grants of 75%. The total cos t of the enti re project ,...-ill be approximately $-+HS.OOO.

A survey of the District was made and t he Department of Edu­cation recommended a school designed to accommodate 300 students . The present enrolment is 335. A full curriculum is prov ided including I lome Economics, Shop, Agricul ture and Commercial.

The present Hoa rd members arc, D. F raser. Chairman (Dut­ton) ; J. Kearns, Vice-Chairman (!\ldhorough); !\lex. Wh ite (Coun­ty) ; D. Carroll (Dunwich ) ; \V. Rewhot ham ( \'Vest Lornc); Dr. vVhittck cr ( Rodney), and E. Hayes (West Lornc P uhlic School Hoard).

Tlw school was officially opened on November 12th, 1952, by lhe H onorable \V. J. Dunlop, )1 inister of Education.

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TEACHli'\G STAFF

Left to right: H. ).1. Breckow; S. E. W heeler; R. II. Bailey ; A J. Fontana; W . C. J ohnston; \V. S. Cliffo1·d; ]. A. Bosman (Principal): Ruth Ford (Pr incipal's Secretary); Audrey K irkpatri'ck; Dorothy Steele; Ruby McDomilcl; Lois F ulton ; Helen Carey ; F. ]. B olger.

STUbENT COUNCIL

F ront Rpw~(left to right): } 6rt J ewell (PI'esident); Barbara l{elly (Secretary): J i11 Arnold (StuJ dent Treasurer) ; Mr. Fontana (teacher T r easurer) .

Back Row- (left to · right): Shirley Gammon; Barbara i\fd\eil; Jack Whitteker ; Bob Ronson; J oe Fisher; J eanne Reid ; Gwen W ilson.

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I f·O{Iil.E ECO:\O:VfJCS I{QOM

1.1 B 1\ .\ R \" CL. \SSJ~OO).J CHEYI ISTH Y l .t\BO I~ ATORV

Dutton's first l ligh School \\'US erected in 1~86 al a cost of $+.500. Tt se rved forty-one years. The present structure was com­l)ktcd in 1027 fo r approximately $57.000.

:\fany principals and assistants haYe left their mark on the sclwol and n•mlllllnity. \Vm. Rothwell. B..\., was the first principal. I lis assistant was A. E.. ":'ll o rrow. Three of the early headmasters were: A. C. Crosby. C. 1<. Gunn and D. S . Skinner . Later principals were: j. C. Payne (1900), J. i\. Taylor ( 1901-1906. J. Tl. Smith (1907). E. 0. Leilmer ( 1 90~- 1 909), T. Elliot (1911 -1914), F. Sine (191 -~) . W. J. 1\for rison ( 1<>15- 1()17). J. L. :\T itchcncr (1918) . T. VI/. Elli0t (1910-J<J.)O). J. A. Bos111a n hns se rved efficien tly as principal for twenty­one years.

Oth<'r 1nem l>ers of !he sta ff in J un e 1952, were: M iss Rul>_v \\1 ac l)ona ld, :vi iss Uorothy Steele, R. H. Bailey, F. Bolger, H. M. Breckow, W. C. Johnston and S. E. Wheeler.

":\1any of Lhe graduates of the D utton High School have dis­tinguished t h<.'msel ves. T wo of these became ::\finisters oE Education. They were: Or. Robert Fletcher, one of the first graduates and the late Dr. Duncan McArthur.

cR odnE.'j Continualion a t2hooL

Tlw present school building in Rodney was erected in 1890 to

sNvc as a Public School. T,, o yc·ars later it was awarded a prize at

the \ \'orld 's Fair, ('hica~~o. for tl•t• hc .... t school building in its class.

Tn 1912 Lwo room-; w1·n· adlkd for I hr Continuation School. At that

lin!(' the tru-;Ll' C'S \\'t'f(' .J. J. :\li s tl'i<', Colin Campbell, Dan ::\tcLean,

S. B. 1fnrris, T. C. Campbell and E .. '\. I lug-ill, the chairman. Colin

Campbell was the sC'crdary. fn 11J I~ I lw Continuatic>n School joined

the \Vest Elgin District l ligh Srhool t\rea. Classrs continued in the

prc·scnt bu ild ing until J nnl' , 11J52.

The Iirsl principal wa~> ~ 1 iss K. Nlotl. S he was sncccecled hy

the fol.lowi11g: C. c;. Yo rk, I I. C. Uore, 1 ~. C. R<'id, J. K. Graham, Neil

Taylor . (jorclun Thor11icroft., 1 •. 1 ~ . \Vchs tc r, llarvey G illies, E. J. Keenan . /\. C. 1\n<k rsun, lan Sillars, Donald Tutl and A. l. Hale.

<l!f' e1.t ...lo'Z.JJ.E. Contim:a!:ion ~c/~ool

I ' ntil 1 ~1 17 tilt' s<·rondar\' educat ion consisted of wha t was known as l'uhlir Sdwol l .t';lrn;nt~ 011 which th<· Public School rccciv · t'd an annual ~·rant of $3S.CXl.

\\;h<•n the prc·~cnt \\ ' t•st l .ornc Public School was buill in 1895. one roo111 was givt·n to Contin uation \\"ork where fo rm s T and IT were taught. .\I r. Fn·d ).I ilne was in charge.

Hy J<ll(> thrr<' was a m·ed of more accomnuHiatiou fo r Continu­al ion pupils. On ,\ugust 2.'ith . 19 16 . cash was r<'ccivcd from deben ­t ures to bui ld an addition to the fluhlic School, amounting to $6,501.). Thr new pa rt <:onsislt•d of two classrooms . a labora to ry, lib rary a n.[ office. Th i~ was ln1ilt lo th e left of the Public School and adjoining it. T he Co ntinuatio n St:lwo l was o pened in 191K

In the inte r va ls fro1 11 J <) J X-J<J-~5 t he following we re prineipals­Fcnw l\ lca(lows, 1.-. D . .\lr;\ laho n. i'\. 1\ . Tay lor, W. ] I. Ell iot, J. D. Coo111hs, 1 ~. l l a11 111a. I.'. :\ld>onalcl, l. ·waddle, l\1. Strader, 1•:. Dow, M. Thompson, .J . ll arvcy l{nhe rlson.

J\fle r jannary. 1<).!.7. the \Vest l.omr Continuation School be­came a part or t lw \Vtsl 1£1gin l l igh Sclwol Districl. Mr. S. Ga rnish was principal.

In September l<JJ7. tht' middle school pupil s (C racle X I' and XII) were transferr ed to Dutton. ~Ir. \V . johnston was princ ipal with Grades (J and 10. ln St'pt<'lllhn J<JSO. the West Lorne High School division wa~ rlost•<l. The ( ;.-ack 'J went tD Rodney and the G rade 10 went to Dutton.

LUNCH TIME

to proceed to erect a ne\'t school at Hest Lorne and C. H. Gillin, of London, 1-1as engaged as

archi teet to prepare plans. In September, 1950, the \·Test Lorne High School was closed;

Grade IX students \·rere sent to Rodney and Grade ~( students and H. C. Johnston \'!ere trans­

ferred to Dutton.

In 1950 the Board purchased seven acres of the former Clark farm from

Peter Ocolison for $8,500 . The plans of the ne .... t school \'lere approved by the Department in

January, 1951. 'l'he tender of the Huron Construction Company in the amount of $383,200. i'las

accepted and construction began in Nay, 1951 and completed in September, 1952. The Department

of Education approved costs of $420, 000 . on vJhich they paid grants of 75 per cent. The total

cost of the entire project \'las approximately $490,000. The school consisted of eight regular

classrooms, two science labs, one industrial arts room, one home economics room, a cafeteria,

an auditorium - gymnasium, plus teachers ' , board and nurse ' s rooms and administration offices.

Designed for 320 students, the school opened \'Ti th an enrolnent of 33 5. The school ·was

officially opened on November 12th, 1952, by the Honourable ~~ . J. Dunlop, l'fanister of

Education.

T'ne Board members in 1952 were : l.J . Fraser, Chairman (Dutton) ; J . Kearns,

Vice-Chairman (Aldborough); Alex \"Jhite ( County) ; D. Carroll (Dum·Tich) ; \!. Re\'lbotham (\{est

Lorne); Dr . \'}hi tteker (Rodney), and E. Hayes (1·Jest Lorne Public School Board) . The teaching

staff in 1952 were : J . A. Bosma.'1, Principal; N. C. Johnston, History and Guidance; Dorothy

3teele, French; Ruby He Donald, lrathematics; Hrs. Audre:r Kirkpatrick, Latin; F . J. Bolger,

Science and Agriculture; :il . H. Bailey, Commercial; S. E. lfJheeler, Dnglish ; H. H. Breckmv,

Industrial Arts ; Hel en Carey, Home Economics ; Lois Fulton, Girls ' Physical Education; A. J .

Fontana, Boys ' Physical Bducation and \·I . S. Clifford, Science . Ruth Ford 1vas the Princi pal ' s

Secreta17 and Ben Lemon 1·ras the chief caretaker.

~J 1953 the enrolment had increased so two teachers were added : Norma

Coutts, English and 1<1. S. Sheeler, History. Also Frances Purtill became Home Economics

teacher; Nrs . Janice Laking, Girls ' Physical Education and Francis HcConaghy, Boys ' Physical

Educati'.)n.

FCi"l changes were evident in 1954 with only three changes in staff:­

l~elville Esseltine replaced H. Clifford, Grace Graham took over Home Economics and Hugh Telford

assumed the teaching of Industrial Arts . In the same year a barn 1-;as erected to aid the

agriculture courses .

I n 1955 a contract was let to Alex Parker, lVest Lome contractor, to

build a four room addition. By January, 1956, the add..i.tion was completed at a cost of $1~9, 500 .

Several changes in staff also took place : C. \i. lt.umford '·ms appointed Principe:>~; J . A. Bosman,

Principal of Dutton High School and l·!est Elgin for tv1enty-four years became the teacher of senior

Science; J . B. :HcBride replaced S. E. i'l/hecler but was replaced in January, 1956, by Ualcolm

Foster; !~rs . Audrey }liller, Girls ' Physical Education; A. P . Shippe,~ . ·eplaced Nolville Esseltine;

Urs. Anne 1:;ylie replaced Uorma Coutts; Cela 1-:cKillop, Home Econo1nics and lirs . Eileen Beacom,

Corranercial.

In J 956 only one staff replacement \vas made : Kar-.t 0 ' Brien replaced Halcolm

Foste:-, English, l!hile D. H. Ross, Agriculture and Hathematics, and J. D. Gahagan, History and

English 1-1ere added.

1957 vras a year of change . The buses which had been operated by !'tillers

of Dutton since the Board' s inception for forty- t,·ro cents a mile, \-rere put up for tender. The

lowest bid caMe from D. Carmichael, l·lest Lorne, but it was discovered that Hillers had a monopoly

on the charter. The Board decided to buy its own buses so seven buses were purchased at a cost

of $50,000. This purchase has resulted in a $15,000. saving each yea:r . Also, in 1957, the

cafeteria was taken over by Industrial Foods Limited of Toronto . Local help were retained under

the direction of Hrs . Jean HcColl and the price of the meal - twenty- five cents for hot plate,

plus milk - remained the same . Staff changes were more numerous than i n 1956 as Mrs . Fl orence

Dill replaced Mrs . Anne \··!ylie, English and Art; \\alter Stuart replaced J . Gahagan, History and

English; 1-irs. lois Stuart replaced Nary O' Brien, English ; Virginia Shortt took over Home Economics

and A. L. Smith took charge of Boys ' Physical Education .

The year 1958 was saddened by the sudden death in October o.f the head

caretaker, R. J . Lemon, 1'll10 had served since the opening of the school. He was succeeded by his

brother, Raymond Lemon. Two neu teachers joined the staff: K Baker became Home Economics

teacher and L. F . Hartwick, Science and History was added.

1959 1-1as the year of calm before the stonn. Only one teacher, G. Senecal,

Home Economics, replaced 1·1. Baker.

The yea.r 1960 saw a new principal, Donald Thomas , replacing C. vl. Mumford .

However, a statement by a Dumdch reeve that the Board should not have hired the president of the

Ontario Secondar<J School Teachers ' Federation, led to Hr . Thomas ' resignation at Christmas . He

was succeeded by a retired principal, A. G. Riclunond. Owing to the illness of Mrs . Audrey

Kirkpatrick, three Latin teachers succeeded each other during 1960 - russ Cole, Mrs. Rowan and

Henry 1-iathews. Robert Salter, History, replaced \f. H. Stuart but was replaced by Joan Cornfield

in November . A.s usual the home economics changed hands l'lith Jane \·Joolliams, replacing G. Senecal .

Two teachers were added to the staff because of increased enrolment : - R. D. Hunt, English, and

Roman Piontkovsky, liathematics and History.

In 1961 a ne;.; addition 1·ras started ,,rh,ich consisted of a cafeteria, shop

and two science labs . Tho total cost was $145,000 . and vras completed by December . Five changes

occurred in staff as Sally Harrison replaced Joan Cornfield, Hrs . Nargaret Robinson became the

Corrnnercial teacher; l{arilynne Tunks, Home Economics ; J ohn Duffy, English, repl aced R. Hunt, and

Norma Schnekenburger, History, 1,ras added. The staff <:~nd students were saddened by the death of

Mrs . Audre:r Kirkpatrick, Latin teacher since the school w·as built, 1..ho taught in spite of ailing

health until three weeks prior to her death .

September, 1962 f ound the school with the greatest mnnber of nev• teachers

since 195=' . '11 . D. Lancaster became the nel·T principal; Sarl Fleming replaced ituby KcDonald,

:Hathematics; l1rs. Jean Georgevich, French, succeeded Dorothy !Jteele 1-.rho retired to \·lallaccto,.n;

Hrs. Lorenia Edmonds, Latin; Dinkar Deshpande from India reDlaced Nrs . lois Stuart, English ;

Ers . D. Le<lch , Enelish and History; James Laccby, Science ; F. Sercombe replaced F. Bolger,

Ji.griculture; Clare Carew, English ; Jeanette Uzas, History and English and Rosina Hay, French .

Only two teachers remain of the original staff in 1952 - J . A. Bosman and

\l. C. Johnston . During this time the staff has increased from thirteen to tlt1enty- three . The

Board also has changed through the years, but has retained two originals : D. Carroll, Dum·lich re­

presentative anti George L. l·:ortin, Secretary-Treasurer. T. Ashton, Aldborough ; John Stalker,

County; and A. S. Lee, Rodney, have succeeded members of the 195? Board ltmereas the Public Scl1ool

representation moved from E. Hayes to G. Berdan to A. Liebner . Dutton representation was changed

from D. Fraser t o 'dilliam Blain to H. Campbell, l'.rhile the Separate School \vas represented by

Charles Pfeifer followed by J oseph Neiss .

Changes were also evident j.n t he secretarial staff - Hiss Ford (l~rs . Davis)

was succeeded by l'Irs. Doris Cantelon in 1960 who wa::; assisted by Mrs. Eileen Kozdras after February,

1961. In October, 1961, l1rs. Kozdras succeeded Hrs . Cantelon and Doris J ohnson became her assistant .

Although changes were numerous, by 1962, the ris e in remuneration ltlas signifi­

cant. The shortage of teachers and t he great demand for more education influenced the increase .

Salaries in 195? ranged from a minimum of ~3,000 . to a rnaximu.'!l of 04,000 . By 1962, teachers l·Jere

placed in f our categories l·Jhich \·Jere detenrined by oualifications. ~alaries no'\'r ranged from a

minirnUJ'l of C4, 700. t 0 a m.aximum of G9, 600.

fJ he <lt1/ e:1t £ Lgin r:bi:S.h.iat dfi9h

c:SahooL !Boa'Ld

'te9u.e1J.t the company of you.'t1A.elf and

lady at the

l0fficiaL (£) pening

of the netll cJ./igh ~chool at

IW e1A.t ..f o'tne

<lt1/ edne:S.day, the tweLfth. day of dV oc:rembe'l. nindu:n hund.'ted and. fifty-two

9 u.'they fbinne't at 6.3 0 p.m.

rP'tog'tam 1A.ta'tt14 at 8. 3 0

•

·wEST ELGIN

DISTRICT HIGH SCHOOL

High School Gymnasium, West Lorne

"ELME R''

(A Play in One Aci)

To his beautiful twin sisters, Je:mie and J anie, Elmer Collier is on a,wkward impossible adolescent; to Elmer, t hey arc selfish and de­manding. When Susan, accustomed to her sister's hand-me-downs, re­ceives a beautiful new evening wr:rp, the twins plan to borrow it>-th~tt i.; uniil Elmer intervenes.

The Cast

ELMER C0I LlER, fourtt>cn years old - Kenneth E'lison SUSAN COLLIER, ~ixtccn to-mnrrow Rena :U"acom JEANIE COLLIER, seventeen J ean Buckrcll JANIE COLLl ]i)R. her twin Marilu Cros.; MISS LUISA PINNEY, n &·e..<>smakc-r Barbara McNeil MRS. COLIER Mary Cadog,m FANNY BELL, a coloured girl who works :})y the day

_ Kathl'yn MacMil lan HUBERT BUOWN, seventeen .Jack V{hil tckct· RUSS!ELL JAMIESON, seventeen Charles For:;<yth PANSY, a nondo~cript pup.

PLAY GIRLS' CHOIR

Directors

S. E. Wheeler Miss Steele

INTERMEDIATE CERTIFICATES

J ack Arnold, Louise Babin, Donna Bobier, Donald Bosman, Jea'1 B:.tckrell, Mary C:.tdogan, J ean Cook, J oe DeGraw, Shirley DeGraw, Olga Fodor, Lewis Ford, Patsy Ford, Velm::t Gal, Evelyn Hansford, Laverne Hayes, Fay H<'--:senaucr, Bela J elinek, J :1mcs J ewell, Pat Kearns, P ili lo­nwne Knapp, Joe Kovacs, Annie Kuhayda, Beverly Lashbrook, Ron<tld Lee, Kathryn MacMillan, Patsy :McBrayne, Annie McCallum, Anuruw M Grc~or. Jack McKdlar, Lois McKillop, Frank McMurchy, Barbnr1 McNeil, Norma McNicol, Barbara Marcus, Frances Marcus, Gary M..tl'· tellc, Reginald Miller, Way ne Miller, Duncan Morrison, Bernice Neil, Gloria Neil, Mal'y Paterson, Clarcmc Prins, Leonard Reid, Yvonne Hip­ley, Bob Ronson, Withold Schackow, Joyce Schneider, Wayne Schweit­zer, Ken Stnddon, Ruth Steele, Margaret Tat.omlr, John Thomson, Helen VJtga, Douglas Webster, Gr ace Wilson, Arthur Zoller.

•

PR0GRAM

0 CANADA

CHAIIRMAK'S REMATIKS J.D. F raser

GIRLS' CHOIR

VALEDICTORY ADDRESS ·s adie L illey

P RESENTATION of EllLc; Sifton :VIcmorial Medal and Donald Duncan Graham Memorial Scholarship - Dr. D. A. Duncanson

ACCORDIAN SOLO Milke Bildy

PRESENTATION OF DIPLOMAS Dr. N. H. High, 0. A. C., Gu~Jph

VIOLIN SOLO Elaine Keillor

PRESENTATION OF AGRICULTURAL WINNERS-Dave Arn1.~Lrong, Ass't. AgriculttLral Rep.

A PLAY "ELMER"

"GOD Si\ VE THE QUEEN"

HIGH SCHOOL STAFF

·J. A. Bosman, M.A. (Principal); R. H. Bailey, B.A. (Commerci..tl Subjects); F. J. Bolger, B.S.A. (Agriculture and Agricultural Science); H. M. Breckow, B.A. (Industrial Arl~ and Crafts); :\ofiss Steele, B.A. (Home Economi"s); W. S. Clifford. B.S.A. (Agricultural Science, Mathe­m:~tics); A. J. Fontana, B.P.II.E. (Ph ;.sical Education, Geography); Miss FUitQn, B.A. (Physical Education, En~lish); W. C. Johnston, B.A. (His­tm·y, Geography, Guidance); Mrs. Kirkpatrick, B.A. (Latin, English); .:Yli"s :VIcDonald, B.A. (Mathematics, Art and Crafts); Miss S teele, B.A. (Fren~h. Mus ic); S. E. Wheeler, B.A. (English, History, Guidance).

HIGH SCHOOL BOARD

J. D. Fraser (Chah·man), D. E. Carroll, E. Hayes, J . S . Keurns, W. F . Rcwlbotham, A lex. White, D1·. J . G. Whitteker, G. L . lVlol'tin (Sc~.-treas.).

SECONDARY SCHOOL GRADUATION DIPLOMAS

Jill Arnold, Robert Babin, Clifford Campbell, Janet. Campbell, Bessie Coppe, Mar.cia DeLong, Joyce Downie, Harvey Friedrich, Mar­garet RObley, Betty Jamieson, J on Jewell. Frieda K ebbel, Mary Mc­Alister, Mary Jane MdLandress, Dorothy ·l-fcPherson, Sylvia Mille=, biane Nasiakas, Norman O'NeiR, Isabel Patterson, 'Morley P atterson, J ack !Redman, Jeanne Reid, Wilfred Ri.vest, Elsie Schaffer, Marion Schnekenburg-er, Ruth Schnekenburger.

HONOUR GRADUATION DIPLOMAS

Wayne Fordham, Barbara K elly, Sadie Lilley, "Cela McKillop, Frances McNeil, Lawrence Pollard, M3l'y t.ou Sheeler.

SCHOLARSHIPS, BURSARIES, ETC.

Donald Duncan Graham Memorial !Scholarship -··--····· Cela McKillop Ellis tSi.fton Memorial Medal ····--·-·------------ !Richard Redinger Dominion-'Provinciail Student Aid Burs,~.ries :

University Type ·-·-· Cela McKillop Normal School Type -------- · Sadie Lilley Grade XIll Type Norman O'Neill

F IRST AID Cf;RTIFICATES

CliffOTd Campbell, Wayne Fo,r{lbam, Jon Jewell, Dan McCallum, Donald McKillop, Norman O'Neil, !mr-<Vrence Pollard, Roger Whitehead, Mansen McPhee (Voucher). .."

FIELD DAY WINNERS

Senior Boys' Champion Norman O'Neill Senior Girls' Champion Phyllis Graham Intermediate Boys' Champion Bill Graham Intermediate Girls' Champion J anet Walker J unior Boys' Champion ---· __ Arthur Zoller J unior Girls' Champion ·-------- Joyce Schneider Juvenile Boys' Champion ····---- - - ·--···-- Larry Lamb Juvenile Girls' Champion - -----··- -·· Elaine Thwaites

HISTOHY OF GRACE Jd~GLICAN CHURCH

West Lorne

The map sur·vey~d i'1 1.873 , when the Canada Southern Railua y built the Bisma rck Station

on the twenty acres of land given by the late J . C. Schleihauf fo r +:re name , g jves the

locati.on of Grace , Chn r oh of England , on lots 162 and 163 north of Main Street , south of

Monr oe Street and west ~f Morden Str eet . The deed of l~nd js d~teJ MAy ~lst . , 1883 , f rom

J . C. Schleiha~f t~ lev . J~hn Scnultz .

The pr~sent chu.rr.:!h was origin.q.lly a hall of the tJoodme n of the ;N"orld . It '..VB.S f irst

mentioned jn the Djoce~0 of Huron as the seat of a new congregation 1n 1882 , and was

c ::msecratod !:>y the late "Bisho p 3al dvJj.n on Febr·1cry l~lth ., 1 4 . The name 11 Grace 11 v1a s

given as an honora r ; tr i bnte to t he active t-Jor>l{ of Nrs . Sq,rah Ann Sch l r:> i .ha uf in r at sj.ne

money for the bell . The fo r mer rectory , where P . H. Schleihauf now l ives , was ~ iven r ent

free by the late J . C. Schle~hauf to the resident R2ctor , Dr . John 3chultz .

Mini.sters servine vJere : Dr . John Schultz ( for·merly .:1 ~oman C:lth:)lj c Pr:5est , ) {cv .

Geoffery Hi ll , Rev . Dougl a s Steele . Huron College s t udents served for a while . After

union with Dutton in 1908 the ministers were; Hev . S . P . Irvin , Rev . T. B. Howar d , Rev .

K. McGowa n , Rev . U • .:3 . Hawkin s , !lev . R. J . Nurphy , Rev . J . H. Colclough , Rev . \.J . ·,.;allace ,

Rev . E. W. HcKegney, Rev . J . H. Smith , Rev . C. L. Langfor0 , Tiev . R. Capper , Rev . R. N.

tveekes , Re~r . W. K. Jvforrlson, Rev . E . F. P. Benne t t , and the present rer.:!tor, Rev . R. Ridley

Parson .

The imitation pi pe organ was d~nat~rt bJ Jdwa r d Loosemore , the choir stalls we re made

by .Ar ch :i. e Jur tch , the ·ha.pti. sma l font wa s given by 0 . B. Schleihauf , and a l tar cross by

John Hi lner , a b8ok- r est for the a lta r by J ohn :vc?.rd , and an end~vnnent of .,-500 . 00 by Mrs .

Gilbert .

The earliest members were : J . C. Schl e iha.uf , Henry Hill , Phili1J Lindenman , 1.val t e r

Paris , J . Boyla.nd , J . H. Greer , the Me>bg br others ( Samuel E. , Robert a nd John) , N'ii.liam and

2d'A'ard .Bole , John Cha~ely , Dr . Jr~ck , Hm . ~den , the :•/alke rs , Mumfor ds , Hanns , 'I'riggers , Levli.s ,

V/estcotts , Pa.:-tridges , N~i ls, Milners , and the pr esent congregation .

The church was r en:>va ted in 1949 when eight memorial \oJindows were installed a nd

dedic~ted to "The ~Ilor y of God and in .Lovi.ng memory of 11 Hr . a.nd Mrs. John Ch::~sely , 1-tL!' .

and NrG . J . C. Schleih.'luf , Dr . a nd Hrs . ~rock , \villiam ~md Harold , Gust1ve Li ppol <l ,

'I'he Milner f ami.ly , Mr . and Hrs . vlllliam Neil , Hr . and Mrs . Albert Page , Mr . -:md l-1rs .

Jndrew Jones , Ada a nd Esther .

Tha founders of the church ha.ve passed awa y , but they have left to their successo!'s

a noble r e cord 01' industry , unselfishness , and loya lty to the ca use of Christ .

1884 1954

~race ~nglican cteburcb West Lorne, Ontario

70th ANNIVERSARY SERVICES WILL BEHELD

SUNDAY, JUNE 27th, 1954 at 11 a.m. and 7 p.m., D.S.T.

A Cordial Welcome is Extended to Paraliionen, Former

Members, Neighbors and Friends to Attend

REV. W. RIDLEY PARSONS, B.A., B.D., Rector

rep:tred by :

Mrs . Jo~n R. Sloan

( Etheline Schleihauf )

Seventieth The seventieth anniversary or

t he Feast of the Dedication of Grace Anglican IChuroh, West Lorne, will be held on June 27th. The rector, Rev. W. Ridley Par­son, will celebrate the Festival Eucharist at 11 a.m. In the ev­ening at 7 p.m., Rev. Canon J. H. Smith, of Ridgetown, a former rector will be guest preacher.

Parish The Church of England has

played an important role in ~he history of .E»gin County, tbemg early estaJb.J.ished in the "Tallbot Settlement," at St. Thomas, Port Stanley, 'Port Burwell. In West Elgin at Tyrconneil, the heart of the s~ttlement ol St. Peter's W.:l.S the pioneer church <>f the area, being built in 1828. In AJdlbor­ough Township, however, the An­glir.ans were not o.nganized until 1882. The PreSbyterians and the Covenanted 'Baptists were among the earliest religious groups in the township whose earJy set­tlers were laJ:~gely o'f Highland Seottish origin.

The earliest population and industrial centers were at Eagle and New Glasgow along the lake and the Talbot Road. With the building of the Canada Southern Railroad in 1'87,2 the little ham­lets of Rodney, Bismarck and Dutton (in Dunwich) expanded rapidly. It is safd that Dutton was named after the chiei en­gineer -of this railroad, when it was first operated,

A nucleus of ADg]fcans among the !EnglLo;h settleri .in West Lome, then Bismarck, is reported as early as 1£74 as worshipping at the nea:rest parish' church at Tyrconne11 a,nd West Lome i.a ~ church then opened 1by the Pres­byterians.

It w·as not, .however, untiJ 1881

Anniversary As a socia-l event lor parishion­

ers and their friends the Wom­an's Guild is sponsoring a straw­berry social to 'be held on the lawns of Mesdames Grace Milner and .Tames 'Humphries, Monday evening, June 28th. Parishion­ers, former metm>ers and :friends are cordililly invited to share in the celelbrations.

History lhat the first defijite and con­structive wor.k: twas lbegun to­wards or-ganizing the Church in the area. In that year Rev. John Schulte, D.'D., Ph. D., a man of great tal-ent and rich church and cultu.ral 'ba·cikground, having resigned his !pTofessorship at Huron College, was a'P'Pointed !by Bishop Isaac Hellmuth as Ang>li­ran missionary in A1dll:x>rough Township. fu the following year, 1882, the c<>ngregation oi Grace Anglican Church, Bismarck, was organized and recognized as of­ficially in union with the Synod o[ Huron.

For three years Dr. Schulte l artlored to lay the foundation of the present parish. He spoke German fluently and was permit­ted to use the Lutheran Church on Middle Street for the conduct of Anglican services for a time. He received his chief lay support from the John Christpher IScblei­hauf family. "Squire" Schlei­hauf was a fanner and lumber­Iflan and a member of St. Peter's Lutheran Church at Churchville, but he proved a patron of the Anglican cause. His wife .Sa:rah Gillbert ScMeihaui, twas a dev<>ut communicant of the Anglican Church, coming from 'I'yrconnell in 1875. She is reported as hav­ing visited. her old home church many times by horse and ibuggy. This family gave land deed-ed in

1883 to the church for its perman- aod !burials prior to this date. ent site on West Main Street. Lil lian "Vic." Schleihauf was the That year the •Temperance Hall Iirs l child to lbe baptized in the was bought and moved to this new church and .Stel1a Mann, site. It was enlarged, ·renovated daughter of Mary Pag~ and By­and furnished as a church, in ro n Mann was ·captized at the which work the congregation home o f her grandparents in vo}unteere:i their services. Mr. West Lorne by a -churcll clergy­Schleihauf .gave lumber and mao in 1890. The fu:st recorded wood for the interior trim and baptisms in the register are of Richard Bale constructed the 111:lry, Grace and Norman Trig­pews. On Feti>ruaPy ·19th, 1884, gc.r, t-hildren c:t! Mr. and Mrs. Rt. Rev. Maurice S. Baldwin, D. Thom l!s Trigger, d-ated .Tuly 5th, D., consecrat-ed the building as 1900. The first Confirmations Grace Church, just a few months arc of Lillian Victoria Schleihauf, after his own consecration as the Sarah G. Fitzpatrick and .Tohn W. third Bis'hop of Huron the pre- 'l'iloks, confirmed iby Bishop vious Nov.emher. " WaJtcr Minot Baldwin in 1899. Paris and Robert E. Mogg were Services we1·e held in 'Rooney the first church wardens. !rom time to time in the Town

Among the ea:rly pionee1~ of Hall, the EV'angelica.l Church, the parish and names held• in llnd in the •homes, lbut a cong:re­loving memory were Mr. and gati~n 'Was never fully organized Mrs. J. C . ,Schleihauf, Mr. and there. The Church of the Na­Mrs. Henry Hill, Mr. and !Mrs. tivity, Dutton, was constructed Richard Bale, !Mr. and Mrs. and opened in 1•890. James Westcott, Mr. and! Mrs. Clergy who have served the John Chasley, Walter Paris, John, parish since its inception and Sam and Robert Mog.g, .Tohn Boy- their dates, are as 'follows: land and Dr. William Brock. Rev. John Schulte, D. iD. 1881-4. Comin-g in the 1890's were Mr. Rev. Jeffrey H.iJl 1'891. and Mrs. Ben P artridge, Mr. and Rev. Mr. Steele 1895. Mrs. George Walker, 'Mr. and Mrs. Rev. J. c. Ferrier 1897. George Lewis, Mr. and !Mrs. iRev. S. P. Irwin 1898-'W03. .Tames J ohnson, 1...1r. and !Mrs. Rev. T. B. Howard 1900-0£. William Neil, Sophia Steele, tRev. Kenneth McGowan 1906-9. Mary We'tiber, Joseph Wilton, Rev. W. B. Hawldns 1909-11. William W. P arker, Fredella Rev . .R . .r. cMurphy 1912.1J8. Mann, Byron iMann, Mrs. J ohn Rev. J. H. ,Colclough 1919-20. Morgan and William Trigger. Rev. William Wa1lace 1920-24.

In Hl97 the mission of Dutton, !Rev. E. w. McKegnie 1924-26. Bismarck and 'Rodney was esta.b- •Rev. J. H. Smith .J.926-29. Jished and the !first priest-in- Rev. c. L . liJangford 1930--39. char.ge was Rev. J. C. \Ferrier. Re,v. R. c. Capper 1939-42. The following year Rev. S. P. Rev. R. M. Weekes 'W43-49. Irwin was ordained <and placed Rev. W. K. Morrison 1949..¢1. in charge of the parish. He was Rev. c. F. 'F. Bennett 1952. the first settled residen~ pastor ·Rev. w. R. Parson 1953. to stay any length of t.1111le 2:nd ., Omitting other names alreadr--•"'"'·,--­he served the parish for five given the mem'bership role lbe-years. tween 1900-110 1ists the following:

Parish Regidw The Parish Register dates from

1898, thoug;h there must have been many fuaptisms, marriages

!Mr. and Mrs. W.illiam Barnard . Mr- and Mrs. Harry Bennett. M. Cromwell. John Harry Chasley.

I

Douglas Grey. J oseph L. Garvin. Mr. and Mrs. John Hill. !Mr. and Mrs. Norman Ken­'Mr. and Mrs. Charles Keele.

nedy. G eorge J. L ewis. Mr. and Mrs. William Linden-

man. Mr. and Mr.s. August Lippold. Ed ward Loosemore. M. Lucas. •Mr.s. Burton Mar·ks. Mr. and Mrs. John !Milner. Mr. and M.rs. William Milner. L. P. Thompson. Mr. and Mrs. John Ward. During the next fifteen years

up to 1~25, such well known names among parishioners were added as toUows:

Mr. and :Mrs. John a3ole. Walter and Gertrude Cadogan. Mr. and Mrs. Mike HaD!ley. Beatrice and iMargaret Hanley. James Humphries. Clara and Sarah Jones. Emma and Bertha Jennings. Gilbert and Otto Schleiliauf. Mr. and !Mrs. Thomas W. Sims. Mr. and Mrs. Allbert (Jake)

Smith. John R. Slo'an. Mr. and Mrs. David M. Wa'b­

ster.

Preseat Pariah The present constituency of

the parish includes fifty-five families, with •lJ.O baptized and 75 confirmed memibers.

The Sunday School, AduH Bi­ble Class, A.Y.P .A., and Woman's Guild, have all had ·a long and active history pa:ralleling that of the Grace Church congregation. A Ladies' Aid was or.gJanized lby Miss Sophia Stee-le, with Mrs. Sara Schleihauf as ~he first pre­siden·t. She held office for years and was vecy earnest in her work for the advancement oi the Kingdom of God. Alter her death her daughter, Mrs. John

Bole, was president in 1919; in 1930 Mrs. William Neil.

Mr. J ohn Ward was Rector's Warden for over twenty years during which time Otto Sclrlei­haur served as People's Warden.

Grace Church was completely renovated and redecorated in 1948-49, the members of the con­gregation contrilbuting their la­t.or. At that time anan~ new rot-morial windows were given by different persons in memory o.E loved ones. !Mrs. Gertrude WiJson gave the present organ. An Altar Cross, Boo:k rest, Pul­pit B~ble and aisle carpet were then given. In 1._954 a new Altar was constructed and given by Mr. Ted Sole in memory of his parents, and new candelabra were gi•ven in memory of the late J ohn M'ilner. PJans are now being formed· 'by the eongrega­tion for the con.-:.-truction of a new Parish Hall to serve the needs of the Sunday School, ~he choir, Guilds and other parish activit­ies. A Building !Fund has been estalblisbed lfor this purpose.

Wardens o£ Grace Ohurch in 1954 a:re William E. Ourtis and Frank Drew. Benjamin Part­ridge is Synod representative, succeeding John Sloan. Mrs. Gertrude Wilson is parish trea­surer. !Mrs. Albert Kla-pko is clerk of the Vestry. 1Mrs. Dou.gaJ Carmichael is president C1f the Woman's Guild and A'IJXiliary; 'Mrs. James Roach, directress of the Altar Guild. Frank Drew is superintendent of the Church School and ior a nuniber of years Mrs. Frank Drew has given de­voted and able service as organ­istd and director of music at the church.

January 1st, 1953, a step for­ward was taken •by the !Parish of Dutton and West Lorne by be­coming fully self-supporting and thereby gaining status of a Syn­odical Rectory.