History of Middlesex County, Massachusetts - citizen hylbom blog

SCHOOL HISTORY.
In 18£2 the territory now occupied by Lowell
was one school district with two school-houses, — j
one near the pound and the other at Pawtucket I
Falls, near the Stone House. The Merrimack Com-
pany built a school-house on Merrimack Street;
employed at first a female teacher and paid the
whole expense for its support. When Eev. Theo-
dore Edson came, the school was put under his
charge. Joel Lewis was the first male teacher, for
one year, at the end of which time he was appointed
surveyor for the Locks and Canals Company. He
LOWELL. 99
Appleton Bank Block, erected 1S;S.
died November 11, 1834. In 1835 Mr". Lewis !
was succeeded by Alfred V. Bassett, from Atkinson,
New Hampshire.
In 1839 the Merrimack School had one hundred
and sixty-five pupils. In the summer of this year
Mr. Bassett resigned his situation as teacher. lias-
sett was succeeded by Walter Abbott of Milford,
New Hampshire, who remained one year, left, and
engaged in the mercantile business. Reuben Hills,
of Hancock, New Hampshire, came in 1830. In
May, 1833, the North School-house, near the
North Common, was completed, and the Merrimack
School was moved into it. In April, 1832, this
school had so increased that it was found necessary
to have an assistant, and Mr. N. D. Healey was
appointed. When the school was removed to the
new house, two female assistants were employed.
In 1834 the school was divided. Mr. Healey was
appointed principal to the new school, and Mr.
Bean appointed assistant to Mr. Hills. This school
has had the following names : Merrimack, North
Grammar, Hancock, and Bartlett.
j
j
Ailams School. — The population in the vicinity
of tlie North Grammar School increased so rapidly
that the committee of 1S36 opened the lower part
of that house, and appointed Otis H. Morrill as
principal.
Wlien Mr. Fisk resigned his position in the
Hancock School, the house was remodelled by
dividing it into eight rooms, in seven of which
female assistants were placed, and Mr. Bement in
the eighth, the whole making one school called the
Bartlett Grammar School.
Irish Schools. — In 1844 the school committee
appointed a sub-committee to report upon the his-
tory of these schools. I avail myself of their report
—
:
" By the advice and eft'orts of philanthropic indi-
viduals a room was rented, sujjplied with fuel and
other necessaries, and a teacher placed in this
school who was to be remunerated by a small
weekly voluntary tax from the parents. From tlie
poverty and indifi'erence of the parents, however,
the scliool languished and became extinct. It was
revived from time to time, but after months of
feebleness failed.
" Up to the year 1840 the attempts to establish
a school in the neigliborhood of the Acre were sus-
tained chiefly by individual benevolence. At the
annual town-meeting in May, 1830, an article was
inserted in the warrant for the appointment of a
committee to consider tiie expediency of establish-
ing a separate school for the benefit of the Irish
population. The committee reported in favor of
such a school ; the report was accepted, and the
sum of S 50 was appropriated for the estabhshment