Mr. Plattenburg served in the capacity of principal and superintendent of schools until May, 1861, when the schools were closed for lack of funds. Because of the Civil war very little progress in education was made, and the records of the county superintendent’s office for that period are not available. The earliest record in the office of the county superintendent concerning the schools of Atchison county is found in an old record book of July 7, 1863, as follows:
“Through the kindness of the present board of County Commissioners, E. Leighton, B. Wallack and C. G. Foster, this book was furnished for the records of the public schools of Atchison county. It is hoped that every superintendent, into whose possession this book may fall, will perform every duty devolving upon him officially, and make every effort to advance the cause of education.
“Orlando Sawyer,
“Superintendent of Public Instruction,
“Atchison County.”
Old High School Building, Atchison, Kan.
In spite of the fact that the records of County Superintendent Sawyer, who held his office from 1863 to 1867, are somewhat incomplete, they contain much interesting information.
The average length of the school term for the first year was three and one-half months, and in some districts, owing to the distance and the rigors of the winter climate, school was held only during the summer months. Among the early teachers in this county were Miss Lizzie Keith, who taught in District No. 29 in 1863; Miss Mary A. Shields, who taught in District No. 16 in the same year; Miss Helen L. Bishop, of District No. 26, and Miss Stewart, of District No. 31. Miss Bishop was a pioneer in advocating the teaching of vocational subjects in the public schools, including domestic science, manual training, agriculture and sewing, and for her zeal in this respect she was derided and laughed at. Women teachers in those days, as now, outnumbered the men. The following are the names of those who received teacher’s certificates in 1863: July 8, Michael Roach; July 27, Mrs. Esther Thayer; July 30, W. D. Barnett; August 15, Mary A. Shields; August 15, Solomon K. McCrary; August 27, Richard Dunn; September 14, Martha Stewart; September 25, Allen Abbott; September 27, Adelia Guest; October 11, Carlos E. Pease; October 14, John C. Butman; November 23, I. J. Adams; December 1, R. S. Cook; December 4, L. A. Messenger; December 4, Harriet Hollister, and December 4, W. R. DeWitt.
There were thirty-one districts in the county in that year, and the amount of State funds apportioned to Atchison county was $295.30. The school population was 1941, with an enrollment of 1,072, and an average daily attendance of 500. Twenty-nine teachers were employed, twenty-two women and seven men, with an average monthly salary for the men of $25.20 and $16.75 for the women. The total valuation of school houses was $1,050, and the amount of money received from the county was $827.05. The following is a list of the Atchison county school officers in the year 1863: