Swindall School

Duane's take

Here's my telling of the official marker for Swindall School, out of Van Zandt County. Now, some stories start with a grand gesture, and this one's no different. Picture the area around what's now known as Van, back in the 1880s.

Scattered farmhouses, a general store, and not much else. No school close enough for children to attend with any kind of regularity. Just kids growing up in the gaps, so to speak.

Well, a local farmer named George W. Swindall looked around at that situation and decided to do something about it. He donated one acre of land for the establishment of a community school, right around 1880.

One acre. That's all it took to get things started. And here's a detail worth savoring: three of Swindall's own children later attended that very school.

The man put his land where his family was. The community took notice. The school took root.

And before long, folks were calling both the school and the community itself Swindall. Now the first teacher to walk through that door was T.W. Staton.

For years and years after that, the school ran on exactly one teacher at a time. One. That held all the way through the 1905 to 1906 school year.

Then, in fall of 1906, something a little different happened. The school hired husband and wife John N. and Lucy Rhodes, making them the first two teachers employed at the same time. Two teachers.

That was progress. A third was added in 1911. The Van school district itself was officially established by the county commissioners court in 1903, covering twelve and one-fifth square miles and containing two schools: Swindall and Spring Hill.

Now, a post office had been established in the area back in 1894 under the name Van, but the school kept right on being called Swindall. That name had staying power. By 1915, Swindall School was well into its third decade of use, and it was showing every bit of its age.

It needed repair. It had grown too small for its own enrollment. The community had outgrown the very acre that started it all.

So in 1916 a bond was passed to build a larger school, situated roughly halfway between Swindall and Spring Hill. Both schools closed at the end of the 1915 to 1916 school year. The new school opened that fall of 1916, and they called it Van Common School.

One farmer, one acre, one quiet act of generosity, and an entire community found its footing. That's not a bad return on a single acre of Van Zandt County dirt.

What the marker says

In the 1880s, the area now known as Van contained a scattered collection of farm houses and a general store. There was no school located close enough for community children to attend regularly. Recognizing the community’s need for a school, a local farmer, George W. Swindall, donated one acre for the establishment of a community school ca. 1880. Three of Swindall’s children later attended the school. The community and the school came to be known as Swindall. Swindall School’s first teacher was T.W. Staton, and the school only employed one teacher at a time through the 1905-1906 school year. Two teachers were employed at one time when husband and wife John N. and Lucy Rhodes were hired in fall 1906. A third teacher was added in 1911. The Van school district was officially established by the county commissioners court in 1903. The district contained twelve and one-fifth square miles and two schools—Swindall and Spring Hill. Although a post office was established in 1894 under the name Van, the school continued to be called Swindall throughout its years of service. By 1915, Swindall School was well into its third decade of use, was in need of repair, and was no longer large enough to accommodate its enrollment. A bond was passed in 1916 to build a larger school approximately halfway between Swindall and Spring Hill Schools, and both were closed at the end of the 1915-1916 school year. The new school opened in fall 1916 and was called Van Common School.