Little Schools in the Parkland

NEW RIBSTONE SCHOOL No.3049

  1. The first school in Ribstone was held in the municipal hall about 1918.
  2. Mrs. Corriveau was the teacher and trustees were Corriveau, Williams and
  3. Teddy Smith who also acted as secretary. His job was to collect taxes,
  4. pay bills and generally run the business of the school district.
  5.  
  6. The first school house was built in 1921, a one-room building on a cement
  7. foundation located on the SE ¼ 17-43-2 W4th. It was named “New
  8. Ribstone” to distinguish it from “Old Ribstone” which was north of the
  9. village.
  10.  
  11. As the years passed, a high school was needed so the municipal hall was
  12. moved to the school site, a basement was added and Crest Hill School was
  13. moved in for a third room. A teacherage was built in the basement of the
  14. high school.
  15.  
  16. When surrounding rural schools were closed, a new, larger school was
  17. built in 1954 but shortly after was moved to Chauvin and children bussed
  18. there.
  19.  
  20. The former school building was purchased by Ben Gray, and later sold to
  21. Jack Worrall, then Wayne Buck and today is the home of Michael and Gail
  22. Wright. The municipal hall was also bought by Gray to house his school
  23. buses and eventually Jack Worrall used it for the same purpose. The hall
  24. was moved to the R.L.D.S. church site and is now part of the building.
  25.  
  26. Ribstone was noted for its social activity and culture. In 1953, to honour
  27. Coronation year, the junior students put on an outdoor play to mark the
  28. occasion. This play depicted English drama. Ann (Oliver) Pilgaard was the
  29. princess with all her ladies, knights and followers. Grace (Darling) Burton
  30. supplied the proper effects on the piano.
  31.  
  32. Students entered the forces of World War II. Some who have been noted
  33. are: Bob and Harold Clifford, Earle Brabbins, Harold Gregory, Orville
  34. Dallyn, Albert Burton, Fred and Gordon Hilker, Glen and Ronald White, Ken
  35. Oliver and Alf Chandler who, after his death, had a lake in northern British
  36. Columbia named after him.
  37.  
  38. Students went on to become authors, teachers, doctors, musicians,
  39. ministers and successful farmers in the district, as is evident in the
  40. names of their descendants — Hilker, White, Tizzard, Clifford, Moncrieff,
  41. Burton, Dallyn, Blair, Morrison, Buck and others are all familiar.
  42.  
  43. A note of interest, Don Gunn, who was an active member of A.R.T.A., before
  44. his death, was a former teacher at New Ribstone.

New Ribstone School No. 3049
Submitted by Mildred Goede Reinhart

12-13