From the “Scratcher” or notebook of Superintendent of Public Instruction Philetus Fales.
Dec. 31, 1867: “Appointed Sam’l Ewing Clerk of Dist. 38 in place of H.P. Sutton resigned.”
June 11, 1868: “Visited district 38, Miss Hawkins, teacher. Only 12 enrolled. After visiting school, rode over district to ascertain situation of settlers and site for school house.”
June 22, 1868: “Visited school in district no. 13, Miss Starr, teacher. Rode over territory at corners of 13, 12, 32 & 38 to examine into propriety of organizing new district in forks of Ottawa and Wolf Creeks. Also wrote orders for first meeting in district 51.”
Jan 7, 1870: “Mrs. Bullock. Visited Jan 7th. 20 pupils. Billard Readers. 2 in Physiology. Good school. House new–stone–not seated.”
From “The hitching post…” column in the Ottawa Herald, a series of articles about early Franklin County schools researched by Bruce Fleming and written by Herald Editor and Publisher Jim Hitch. (No date given)
Hawkins School, District 38, was located 2 ½ miles east of the intersection of US-59 and K-68 on the northwest corner of the intersection.
The district was organized in 1868 and, according to Patricia E. Brooks of Seal Rock, Ore., “My grandfather, Ernest Kansas Hawkins, his brother Frank, and their father Nathaniel Hawkins, built a stone (school) house in 1868. It measured 16 by 20.”
The school, apparently, was a Hawkins family operation until 1869. School most likely was held in the Hawkins home. In 1868 and 1869 there was a large influx of people coming into the county and enrollment began to balloon.
Brooks also reports, “A carpenter working for my parents in California in 1962, said he was from Ottawa and had worked restoring the Hawkins schoolhouse. He said they sanded the old desks, repaired the floors, put a fence around the school yard and painted the building red.
Hawkins School operated until 1967 when Mary Pickens was the teacher.
In 1954, after Hawkins, Bullard, Emery Green and Elm Grove consolidated, a new school building was erected. It still stands. Two teachers were employed until the last year of operation when seventh and eighth graders attended Ottawa Junior High.
Peggy (McMillen-Toumberlin) Rice prepared lunches for students at the school for four years toward the end of Hawkins’ existence.
Ina Bainer, who began teaching at Hawkins in 1949, was presented with a white quilt designed by Freone Hollinger, Ottawa RFD 2, when she retired in 1962. The centerpiece of the quilt was a replica of the school. Brick-shaped blocks depicted homes in the community, with each family creating a block
A matching sham (cover) was embroidered with special dates and quotes. Names that appeared were Bill and Sue McNish, Terry, Roberta and Dorothy Glanville, Paul Mengerhausen, Kent, Rita and Kean Hollinger, Janice and Victor Hart, Darlene Rice, Cathy Crockett, Robert, David and Janet Kunard, Janet Daugharthy, Irene and Alfred Jacob, Gerald Reed, Jerry Burgoon, Judy Bayless, Jim and Leonard Robbins, Becky Troutman, Vickie Higbie, Connie Burlingham, Sharon Pope, Ruth Hoopes and Lela Jordan.
The quilt is now in the possession of Marjory (Bainer) Atchison of Olathe, Mrs. Bainer’s daughter.
After the school was closed in 1967, The building was bought by the Ottawa school district. COF Training Services Inc, used it for several years. It was later occupied by Good Earth Clay and is now the home of Wanda Briggs.
The original Hawkins home was about a quarter mile south of the school,Three generations of the Rice family attended the Hawkins School, beginning with Bessie (Hawkins) Rice and including her four children and three Rice grandchildren.
Dene (Rice) Lister, Pomona RFD 2, has a newspaper clipping that reports that Reuben Hawkins built the rock house that stands a quarter mile west of the school. It formerly was owned by Myra (Hawkins) Tussing.
Others known to have taught at Hawkins were Mary Thomas, Linnie Tutcher, Eileen (Anderson) Finch, Beth (Briles) Gentry, Carroll Wells, Eleanor (Seright) Kissinger and Rachel (McCune) Hoopes.
Former students known to be living in Franklin County are George Maxwell, Sue (McNish) Whitney, Nancy (Toumberlin) Watts, Terry Barnes, Shari McMillen, William Carpenter, Gary Rice, Darlene (Rice) Lister, Bill McNish, Evelyn (Wallace) Bledsoe, Wilbur Kristenson Jr., Betty (Kristenson) Barnes, Lyle Turner, Carolyn (Morgan) Rubick, Lowell and Doyle Morgan, Jane Marie (Burlingham) Dunn, Tracy Perkins, William Hawkins Rice, Rita (Hollinger) Satterlee, Kent and Kean Hollinger, Charles Burlingham, Candi Hart, Gail McFadden, Wanda (Flory) Crooks, Jo (Turner) Boyke, Rae (Turner) Warren, Don Schamle, Ed Carpenter, Jim Ferris and Leonard Robbins.