Schools in Pocahontas

 

Pocahontas County has a rich history of education, with many different types of schools serving the community over the years.

Early Schools:

• Many early schools in Pocahontas County were one-room schools.
• These schools were often located in old buildings, sometimes made of logs with windows made of greased paper.
• Benches were often made of split logs with pins bored in for legs.
• The Glade Hill School was a log structure with two windows on the two sides and was used as a Sunday School before being used as a school.
• The Glade Hill School was located on the present Albert Wilfong home.
• The Oak Grove School was first organized in 1894 in the old building located on Robin Run where William and Annie Arbogast later lived.
• The Cross Roads School was located below Green Bank on the Dunmore road.
• The Curry School was located on the Ellis Curry farm in the hills, east of Dunmore, West Virginia.
• The Gum Springs School was a frame structure that was built on the Pete Oliver Farm and began operating around 1908.
• The Wesley Chapel School was built by Will and Ed Taylor on land loaned by James and Nelie Taylor.
• The Thorny Branch School was a frame building located in the hollow downstream from the Lawrence Kelly house.
• The Paige Lane School was located three miles east of Clover Lick on the road to Marlinton.
• The first school in the vicinity of Green Bank was erected in 1780.
• A school was built below the town at what was then known as the Crossroads, and another school was built on what was the property of John R. Gum.
• The Hillsboro School was built by Charles Acord and others in the winter of 1901 and January 1902.
• The first school at Cove Hill near Frost was built around 1894 by J.M. Barrett.
• The first school building used for school in the Sunset neighborhood was on the hill, not far from J.A. Clocks.
• A one-room school building was first at Minnehaha Springs and was probably erected twenty-five years ago.
• The first term of the Marlinton Graded School, grades 1-5, was held in the dining room of the Dilley Hotel on the Knapps Creek bank across the street from the Methodist Church.

Curriculum and Teaching:

• In the early days, schools were often private, with tuition paid by the families of the students.
• Teachers were sometimes paid by the number of students they had.
• The curriculum was often limited to reading, writing, and ciphering.
• One of the good things about one-room schools was the discipline and the fact that teachers were respected.
• Teachers were usually invited to the homes of their students for meals or to spend the night.
• Parents were determined to have their children receive an education.
• The schools offered some social activities such as spelling matches and speeches.

Later Developments:

• As the population grew, larger schools were built to accommodate more students.
• The Moore schoolhouse was first erected on the east side of the creek at the foot of the Allegheny Mountain.
• The Douthards Creek schoolhouse was built around 1910.
• A modern schoolhouse was erected to accommodate the pupils who would attend, and an additional room was added to it.
• The one-room school at Minnehaha Springs was replaced by a two-room building in 1918.
• The old brick academy in Green Bank was repaired in 1852, but by 1893, people began to complain about the building, and a new two story building was built on top of the old academy.
• A new school building was erected on the site of the old academy in 1907.
• In 1917, Green Bank High School was founded with the graded school being in the same building.
• The Marlinton Graded School building was erected in 1906.
• The Marlinton Graded School building consisted of six rooms with one large auditorium reaching across the front of the building on the second floor.
• A new brick building replaced the Oak Grove Church in 1910, which is now called Oak Grove Church.
• The Green Bank School added a gymnasium and rooms in 1926.

School Conditions and Challenges:

• Many of the older school buildings lacked modern amenities such as plumbing and central heating.
• Students sometimes had to walk long distances to school, even in very cold weather.
• In some cases, students had to put their feet in warm water to thaw them after walking to school.
• Some of the older buildings had unsafe features, such as plaster ceilings with wooden slats.
• A fire marshal's report listed 94 violations in county schools that include inadequate and unsafe fire exits, combustible wood and glass classroom doors, and electrical wiring which does not meet the National Code.
• There have been attempts at arson in some school buildings.

Modernization:

• The school system in Pocahontas County has been working to improve the school facilities and educational opportunities for students.
• The Board of Education has been addressing issues such as building maintenance and fire safety.
• The schools have also been working to provide career guidance to students.

This information is drawn directly from the sources you provided and is intended to give you a broad overview of the school history in Pocahontas County.