Reminiscences
by Clara Brady“Echo School”
Echo School was located on the SE ¼ 32-47-10. It was a large, white, fenced in, frame building standing in the middle of the lonely prairie. The barn, wood shed and outhouses were the only buildings in sight.
In January, 1926, I came to teach at this school. There were eight children on the register: five Hollars and three Crouses. My boarding place was three and a half miles from school with Bill and Ena Revill. They supplied me with Daisy, a clever horse that easily outfoxed me many times. Once during a blizzard, I simply got lost among the sloughs and willow clumps. Someone had informed me of a horsersquo;s wisdom in being able to always find the way home. So as a last resort, I gave Daisy her head. After a right angle turn, she headed off confidently and we arrived home safely.
Like any other country school during these years there was an absence of playground equipment. During the winter, noon hours and recesses were spent making forts and having snowball fights. In the spring we had the physical education program and Don Hollar’s horse to play with. So as you can see they were a happy group.
The highlight of the community was the school Christmas concert. I remember one cold Saturday morning, Ena and I drove 15 miles to Viking in a cutter to purchase a spruce tree. A great deal of planning went into this event – costumes to be made, sheets to borrow for curtains, lanterns for lights and locating Santa to pass our the treats. Such excitement.
Because of the small enrollment, we became very close and my memories of Echo School classes still are vivid although it was 56 years ago.
(Written in 1983)
Echo School
Submitted by Mrs. Clara Brady (Abbott)
139