Langtry School

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and here's how Duane tells it. Out here in Val Verde County, in a little place called Langtry, there's a schoolhouse with more history packed into its walls than most buildings twice its size. The story starts before 1900, when the first Langtry School went up right on this very site.

Think about that. Before the turn of the century, somebody looked at this stretch of hard West Texas country and said, we are going to have a school here. And they did.

Then came 1911, and with it a new building, this one with a bell. A bell to call the children to class, and to call the whole community together for Sunday School. That bell did double duty, just like everybody else out here.

Now, the academic year in those days typically ran six months or less. Six months. Reading, writing, civics, and math.

The essentials. No frills, no extras. Just what you needed to get along in the world.

Fast forward to 1934, and Langtry gets serious. A new schoolhouse goes up, built to hold ten grades under one roof. Ten grades, one building.

The auditorium inside became the beating heart of the place, hosting school events, church gatherings, social activities. Out here, a building that can do all of that is worth its weight in something considerably more precious than gold. Then the 1950s roll around, and Pumpville school consolidates with Langtry.

Two communities, one school. But the story doesn't end there. It ends, or rather it changes, in 1972, when students started attending school in Comstock, and the Langtry schoolhouse closed its doors as a school.

Closed its doors, but never lost its purpose. That building, that sturdy 1934 schoolhouse, was renamed the Vashti Skiles Community Center, honoring Langtry's longtime teacher. And to this day, it remains a focal point of this historic town.

A bell, a teacher's name on the wall, and over a century of West Texas life. That's Langtry.

What the marker says

The first Langtry School was built on this site prior to 1900. A 1911 school building had a bell to summon children to class and the community to Sunday School. The academic year typically lasted six months or less, with reading, writing, civics and math as the the main subjects. In 1934 the present schoolhouse was built for ten grades under one roof. The auditorium hosted many school, church and social activities. In the 1950s, Pumpville school consolidated with Langtry, which in turn closed in 1972 when students started attending Comstock. The historic schoolhouse, renamed Vashti Skiles Community Cenyer for Langtry's longtime teacher, remains a focal point of the historic town. (2008)