Briar View School District #4837
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The Briar View School district No. 4837 was first organized in 1929, with Mrs. Ella Bratton as secretary, and Art Telfer, Frank Jack, and Algie Bratton as trustees. School was first held in the Bratton's farm home in 1930. Miss Elsie Harper was the first teacher. She taught for one term and had 24 pupils in attendance.
After acquiring a school site on the SE 15-44-12-W2 a school was built, through the efforts of the ratepayers of the district, for the cost of materials and work. Equipment and classroom furnishings were ordered from Christie School Supply Ltd. in Brandon, Manitoba. The school opened in September 1934 during the worst years of the “great depression”. During those years, provincial grants were small and local people did not have money to pay their taxes. It was reported at a meeting of the Board of Trustees in August 1939 that the district still owed $336.40 to Christie School Supply. It was also mentioned in 1939 that the school “had been in operation regularly, excepting two terms owing to lack of funds, up to the present time.”
The school district records were destroyed in a fire in 1939. This was reported in a memorandum from secretary-treasurer Ferdinand E. Horn dated August 15th, 1939. “On July 18th, 1939 the books and records of the district were destroyed by fire together with my other belongings in my home.”
To compensate for the lack of available money the Board resorted to wood as a medium of exchange. The Board minutes dated October 6th, 1939 record “Correspondence ..Accepted offer from Christie School Supply for two cars seasoned poplar at two dollars per chord ... on dept due them.” The minutes for January 27th, 1940, mention a number of ratepayers that delivered wood to cover all or part of their school taxes and “To teacher - payment authorized by cordwood to the amount of forty four dollars and 20 cents ...”
Hiring and retaining a qualified teacher was also a struggle throughout the history of the school. For example the board minutes of January 27th,1940 record “Accepted teacher’s resignation dating Jan. 16th, 1940.” The minutes over the next several meetings mention correspondence with the “Teachers Federation” and the “Dept. of Education” regarding hiring a teacher and the salary to be offered. The minutes of Feb. 27th, 1940 state “communication with Dr. Harrison on acquiring teacher advised to raise salary ... offering 1st class certificate teacher $600.00 and 2nd class certificate teacher $550.00 per annum.” The board requested permission to hire someone on a temporary basis until a “qualified teacher” could be found. The minutes of August 10th, 1940 record “Letter from Dept. of Education re: minimum salary discussed. Decided that school would have to be closed unless Dept. grants permission to engage teacher for less than minimum. Inform Dept. to that effect.” The September 4th, 1940 minutes contain “Letter from Dept. read ... agreement signed between Board of Trustees and Henry Charles Brown, teacher ... to teach ...at $600.00 per annum with the consent of the Dept. of Education.” The minutes also state “Check to Mrs. K Miller and B.G. Humpherville - authorized to issue when grant comes in. If more funds available also to H.B. Brown.” (Humpherville and Miller were the teachers from the previous year.) During those years teachers wages were low and they often had to wait for payment. By the 1950s conditions for teachers seemed to have improved somewhat. The minutes for September 4th,1952 state “Teachers agreement filled and signed at $1500.00 per annum.”
In 1952 the Tisdale School unit was formed. The Briar View School Board minutes on October 14th declare, “Due to unit taking over schools Oct. 15th it was necessary to call Board meeting and pay all bills and turn the balance over to our Unit.”
April 12th, 1958 a ratepayers meeting was held “in the Briar View School-house at 2 p.m. - 4 ratepayers present” After some discussion a motion was made “that subject to ...(certain conditions) the school be closed and the students be transported to the New School to be built at Bjorkdale Hamlet.”
The Teacher: (some information missing)
After acquiring a school site on the SE 15-44-12-W2 a school was built, through the efforts of the ratepayers of the district, for the cost of materials and work. Equipment and classroom furnishings were ordered from Christie School Supply Ltd. in Brandon, Manitoba. The school opened in September 1934 during the worst years of the “great depression”. During those years, provincial grants were small and local people did not have money to pay their taxes. It was reported at a meeting of the Board of Trustees in August 1939 that the district still owed $336.40 to Christie School Supply. It was also mentioned in 1939 that the school “had been in operation regularly, excepting two terms owing to lack of funds, up to the present time.”
The school district records were destroyed in a fire in 1939. This was reported in a memorandum from secretary-treasurer Ferdinand E. Horn dated August 15th, 1939. “On July 18th, 1939 the books and records of the district were destroyed by fire together with my other belongings in my home.”
To compensate for the lack of available money the Board resorted to wood as a medium of exchange. The Board minutes dated October 6th, 1939 record “Correspondence ..Accepted offer from Christie School Supply for two cars seasoned poplar at two dollars per chord ... on dept due them.” The minutes for January 27th, 1940, mention a number of ratepayers that delivered wood to cover all or part of their school taxes and “To teacher - payment authorized by cordwood to the amount of forty four dollars and 20 cents ...”
Hiring and retaining a qualified teacher was also a struggle throughout the history of the school. For example the board minutes of January 27th,1940 record “Accepted teacher’s resignation dating Jan. 16th, 1940.” The minutes over the next several meetings mention correspondence with the “Teachers Federation” and the “Dept. of Education” regarding hiring a teacher and the salary to be offered. The minutes of Feb. 27th, 1940 state “communication with Dr. Harrison on acquiring teacher advised to raise salary ... offering 1st class certificate teacher $600.00 and 2nd class certificate teacher $550.00 per annum.” The board requested permission to hire someone on a temporary basis until a “qualified teacher” could be found. The minutes of August 10th, 1940 record “Letter from Dept. of Education re: minimum salary discussed. Decided that school would have to be closed unless Dept. grants permission to engage teacher for less than minimum. Inform Dept. to that effect.” The September 4th, 1940 minutes contain “Letter from Dept. read ... agreement signed between Board of Trustees and Henry Charles Brown, teacher ... to teach ...at $600.00 per annum with the consent of the Dept. of Education.” The minutes also state “Check to Mrs. K Miller and B.G. Humpherville - authorized to issue when grant comes in. If more funds available also to H.B. Brown.” (Humpherville and Miller were the teachers from the previous year.) During those years teachers wages were low and they often had to wait for payment. By the 1950s conditions for teachers seemed to have improved somewhat. The minutes for September 4th,1952 state “Teachers agreement filled and signed at $1500.00 per annum.”
In 1952 the Tisdale School unit was formed. The Briar View School Board minutes on October 14th declare, “Due to unit taking over schools Oct. 15th it was necessary to call Board meeting and pay all bills and turn the balance over to our Unit.”
April 12th, 1958 a ratepayers meeting was held “in the Briar View School-house at 2 p.m. - 4 ratepayers present” After some discussion a motion was made “that subject to ...(certain conditions) the school be closed and the students be transported to the New School to be built at Bjorkdale Hamlet.”
The Teacher: (some information missing)
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Elsie Harper |
1930-31 |
Mary Carlson |
1931-34 |
Dan Clark |
1936-37 |
Florence Lundberg |
1937-38 |
B. Humpherville |
1938-40 |
K. Miller |
1939-40 |
Henry Brown |
1940-41 |
Gladys Furry |
1941-44 |
Martha Pearl Edwards |
1944-45 |
Thelma Rudachyk |
1945-46 |
Adele Catherine Collins |
1946-47 |
Gladys Irene Gaudreau |
1948-49 |
Muriel M. Pockett (Popp) |
1949-50 |
Dorothy LePaire |
1950-51 |
Ingvar Harold Wick |
1951-52 |
Vivian Inez Townsend |
1951-54 |
Monique Popp |
1952-53 |
Lorenne LeGare |
1953-54 |
Edith Wearing* |
1954-56 |
Anne Bailey* |
1956-58 |
Elaine Bailey* |
1957-58 |
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*Study Superviser
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Abstracted from: A Season or So ..., A History of the people of Bjorkdale and surrounding districts., 1983. Published by Bjorkdale Historical Committee and some information from original school district minutes.