ST. JEAN BAPTISTE SCHOOL DISTRICT No.2828

1. St. Jean Baptiste, so named because it was in a French-Canadian
2. settlement, was built in 1914. The only English family was that of
3. Colonel E. Pitman. Early board members were Eloi Gagnon, Adelford
4. Belanger and Arthur Belanger with George Tessier acting as secretary for
5. many years.
6.  
7. Teachers were French-speaking in the early years and later English-
8. speaking teachers were hired. Some of the locally educated teachers who
9. taught were: Claire Richardson (Folkins), Stella O’Brien (Cryderman) and
10. Irene Fahner (Renville).
11.  
12. Poor farming conditions caused many of the families to move away and
13. due to low enrollment, the school was closed. When enough students were
14. available it was reopened. It was finally closed in 1935 and the few
15. pupils went to Butzeville. The building was moved to Wainwright to be
16. used as a dormitory for out-of-town students.
17.  
18. Today, new families have moved in and oil wells dot the land.

St. Jean Baptiste School District No. 2828
Submitted by Mildred Goede Reinhart

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