DUANE
Duane's take
Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Lancaster, Texas — and the story of how a town decided, generation after generation, that its children deserved better than what came before. Pull up a chair, because this one goes deep.
It starts in 1846 — that's barely a blink after Texas joined the Union — when somebody swung an axe into some logs out at Clear Springs, one mile north of a settlement going by the name of Hardscrabble. That first school was nothing fancy. Just logs and determination and children who needed a place to learn.
But it was a start. By 1863, more families had moved in, and the Masonic Lodge building stepped up to serve as a school. A lodge full of lessons.
Then comes a detail that stops you cold if you're paying attention. In 1868, the old Confederate gun factory — a building that had been built for the business of war — was put to a different use entirely. It became the first school for African American children in Lancaster.
A place made for weapons, turned into a place made for minds. Ten years after that, a new school on Keller Branch was built for those same students. The community kept building.
In 1876, the Lancaster School District formally organized, with F. M. White, Joe H.
Moffett, H. J. Moffett, and George White named as trustees.
Four names on a piece of paper, and suddenly a school district exists. Then 1891 — the Lancaster School Association organized, F. M.
White serving as President, and the Female Institute opened its doors. But under J. W.
Bishop, the Institute became co-educational. The newly formed Lancaster Independent School District took on the problems of overcrowding and bad equipment head-on, and a bond election in 1905 passed, creating a new school on South Centre Street. During the 1910 to 1911 term, the school became associated with the University of Texas.
A new high school was completed in 1923 — and here's a quiet kind of staying power for you — that building currently serves as the school administration building. Under superintendent T. D.
Mayo, Lancaster Schools became members of the Southern Association of Colleges and High Schools. During the 1930s, students donated their senior play money — their own money, money they'd earned from putting on a show — and combined with Works Progress Administration funds, that bought Lancaster an athletic facility. In 1939, Lancaster increased the school curriculum from 11 to 12 years, and the class of 1955 became the first graduates of that full twelve-year program.
And then — and I want you to hear this one clearly — from 1965 to 1966, Lancaster Independent School District integrated. Without a court order. That's the marker's words, and they carry weight.
Lancaster Schools have expanded since 1868, but the marker says they have always been committed to education and will continue to give children the knowledge to achieve their dreams. From a log building at Clear Springs to a bond election to senior play money to a quiet, voluntary integration — Lancaster never stopped deciding that the next generation was worth the trouble. That's not a small thing.
That's everything.
What the marker says
The first log school in Lancaster was built in 1846 at Clear Springs one mile north of the original settlement of Hardscrabble. In 1863, as more families moved in, the Masonic Lodge building served as a school. Education was available to all children and in 1868 the old Confederate gun factory housed the first school for African Americans; ten years later a new school on Keller Branch was built. In 1876 the Lancaster School District formed with F. M. White, Joe H. Moffett, H. J. Moffett and George White as trustees. In 1891, the Lancaster School Association organized with F. M. White as President and the Female Institute was opened, but under J.W. Bishop the Institute became co-educational. The newly formed Lancaster Independent School District addressed problems of overcrowding and bad equipment. A bond election in 1905 passed creating a new school on South Centre Street. During the 1910-1911 term, the school became associated with the University of Texas. A new high school was completed in 1923 that currently serves as the school administration building. Under superintendent T. D. Mayo, Lancaster Schools became members of the Southern Association of Colleges and High Schools. During the 1930s, students donated senior play money which along with Works Progress Administration (WPA) funds built an athletic facility. Lancaster increased the school curriculum in 1939 from 11 to 12 years, and the class of 1955 became the first graduates. From 1965 to 1966 Lancaster Independent School District integrated without a court order. Although Lancaster Schools have expanded since 1868, they have always been committed to education and will continue to give children the knowledge to achieve their dreams. (2012)