First Schools in Konawa

The First Schools in Konawa
updated by Heather Reeves, February 24, 2004
from "They Came from Everywhere and Settled Here"
by Dr. Arthur Kennedy

Konawa's First School The first school was a log structure located halfway between the north edge of Konawa and the Hazel Road. It was located on the East Side of the Maud Road on a heavily wooded hill. There was a spring nearby which flowed north and a little east into Mud Creek. No photographs of this original school house are known to exist.

The Second School in Konawa

By August and September of 1904, the community didn't think the two-room building was going to be ready for the students when harvest time was completed. Volunteers helped to finish the school building which was opened the day after Thanksgiving in 1904. This building was located on East Street, Block Number Seven, Lots 5 - 10 and was a two-room, box building with plain gables. The school building was located to the east of the lots, where there was a simple play ground and two outhouses filled the two back corners of the land.
Community members felt that the two-room building was not big enough for the students so a decision was made to increase its size. The teachers and parents put together a drive so they could use the money for materials because they couldn't get any money from the state or the county. The new school was mainly built by volunteer labor, but this time with a general carpenter J.E. " Ed " Cunningham was employed as the overseer. The new school was attached to the two-room building as the cross of a T.
There are two known photographs of the east side school. The first picture shows both the two-room one-story building, with the much larger two-story four-room building attached to its east end. The second (shown here) is a photograph of one of two very early saw mills down by the railroad tracks along side the site where the Henry Starks grist mill stood, and the southwest corner of the school is in the far distance.
After the addition, the school consisted of two spacious side by side rooms on the first floor, and on the second floor there where two matching rooms. The building was only one room deep front to back. The only thing separating the two rooms front to back was a wide hallway.
Beginning in 1911, or possibly as soon as the school was moved in the fall of 1909, the Masonic Lodge held meetings in the assembly hall in the old school. In June of 1909 the Lodge bought ten buildings and lots. It continued to serve that group until it was torn down between 1923 and 1925. The same general floor-plan was drawn for the new school. The northwest corner of the top floor was occupied for an assembly hall which was used for the same kind of attention to drama, speech, musicals, and chapel (assembly).

The School Moves to the West End of Town

The first picture at left shows the school building completed in 1909, this building served until 1929 as both the Elementary and Senior High. Work has begun in 1908, a huge building with a completion date fixed. The new school was to be ready for the 1909-10 school year. The new school and the old school were just alike in that they both faced the east, they both were two-stories and had a basement which was the third floor, and had a bell derrick. On May14, 1909: Prof. E. L. Burton has been employed as principal and also for a teacher. He would teach grades seven, eight, nine and ten.
Its time for a new building at Konawa Schools. It went under construction in 1908 and was opened for the 1909 and 1910 school term. This building was a lot larger than the two other buildings that were built before its time. It stood eighty feet high, it was seventy feet long, and the width was also seventy feet. This building burned down on the month of January 2, 1940, as shown in the final picture at left. Note the old gym, which is still standing, in this picture.

Fourth School for Konawa

After the fire destroyed Konawa School in 1940, the fourth school building was built in Konawa. This school building had an entrances between the two main offices. To enter the gymnasium you had to enter two sets of doubled doors. After passing through the doubled doors you enter the hallway to the girls dressing room. The girls dressing room and toilets were located at the south end of the building and the boys dressing room was located at the north end of the building. The gym was also used as an auditorium. The stage was big enough to have any play and it had room for the biggest band or orchestra.
There are only three of these buildings still standing today. The home economics building, the vocational agriculture building, and the large stone gymnasium. The home economics and agriculture buildings are located on the east side of the football field and the stone gymnasium is located on the corner West and South Streets. The gym was repainted from white to peach in the summer of 2003.

Faculty Pictures

The top picture at left dates from around 1911 to 1914. To the best of our knowledge, those in the pictures include (left to right): Mr. Miser, Ida White, Carma Dallas, Bertie (White) Kiler, T.B. Liner (Superintendent). A striking resemblence between Mr. Liner and our middle school principal, Larry Marlow, has been noted.
In the second picture, which is believed to dated around 1939 or 1940, we see the members of the music department with other faculty members. In the first row, second from right, is Mrs. Farb who played violin. Also in the first row on the far right, is Mary Beth Huddleston, a pianist. Paul Meyer is in the center of the second row. Mr. Meyer was a band director.

School Store
Konawa alumni may recall the school store, or concession, located northeast corner of old high school. It opened around 1929 and was operated for many years by Bertha (Jones) McMahan. Shown at left, the store sold lunch items, candy, supplies, and provided a place to convene for many activities. Known as "Big Bertha" was a force to be reconned with in many respects.
Memories of the store stock include: Baby Ruth, Butterfinger, Heath Bar, salted peanuts, licorice twists, Juicy Fruit and Dentene, Nehi, CocaCola, Grapette, books, and paper.
Thanks to Dr. Kennedy for use of the photograph.

Present Day Campus
Today's Konawa Public School campus is the pride of our community. Constructed through out the seventies, eighties, and nineties, these buildings are described at length on separate pages. To read about our present campus, return to the school index and look for links in the facility column.

Konawa's First School	The first school was a log structure located halfway between the north edge of Konawa and the Hazel Road. It was located on the East Side of the Maud Road on a heavily wooded hill. There was a spring nearby which flowed north and a little east into Mud Creek. No photographs of this original school house are known to exist.
The Second School in Konawa	By August and September of 1904, the community didn't think the two-room building was going to be ready for the students when harvest time was completed. Volunteers helped to finish the school building which was opened the day after Thanksgiving in 1904. This building was located on East Street, Block Number Seven, Lots 5 - 10 and was a two-room, box building with plain gables. The school building was located to the east of the lots, where there was a simple play ground and two outhouses filled the two back corners of the land. Community members felt that the two-room building was not big enough for the students so a decision was made to increase its size. The teachers and parents put together a drive so they could use the money for materials because they couldn't get any money from the state or the county. The new school was mainly built by volunteer labor, but this time with a general carpenter J.E. " Ed " Cunningham was employed as the overseer. The new school was attached to the two-room building as the cross of a T. There are two known photographs of the east side school. The first picture shows both the two-room one-story building, with the much larger two-story four-room building attached to its east end. The second (shown here) is a photograph of one of two very early saw mills down by the railroad tracks along side the site where the Henry Starks grist mill stood, and the southwest corner of the school is in the far distance. After the addition, the school consisted of two spacious side by side rooms on the first floor, and on the second floor there where two matching rooms. The building was only one room deep front to back. The only thing separating the two rooms front to back was a wide hallway. Beginning in 1911, or possibly as soon as the school was moved in the fall of 1909, the Masonic Lodge held meetings in the assembly hall in the old school. In June of 1909 the Lodge bought ten buildings and lots. It continued to serve that group until it was torn down between 1923 and 1925. The same general floor-plan was drawn for the new school. The northwest corner of the top floor was occupied for an assembly hall which was used for the same kind of attention to drama, speech, musicals, and chapel (assembly).
The School Moves to the West End of Town	The first picture at left shows the school building completed in 1909, this building served until 1929 as both the Elementary and Senior High. Work has begun in 1908, a huge building with a completion date fixed. The new school was to be ready for the 1909-10 school year. The new school and the old school were just alike in that they both faced the east, they both were two-stories and had a basement which was the third floor, and had a bell derrick. On May14, 1909: Prof. E. L. Burton has been employed as principal and also for a teacher. He would teach grades seven, eight, nine and ten. Its time for a new building at Konawa Schools. It went under construction in 1908 and was opened for the 1909 and 1910 school term. This building was a lot larger than the two other buildings that were built before its time. It stood eighty feet high, it was seventy feet long, and the width was also seventy feet. This building burned down on the month of January 2, 1940, as shown in the final picture at left. Note the old gym, which is still standing, in this picture.
Fourth School for Konawa	After the fire destroyed Konawa School in 1940, the fourth school building was built in Konawa. This school building had an entrances between the two main offices. To enter the gymnasium you had to enter two sets of doubled doors. After passing through the doubled doors you enter the hallway to the girls dressing room. The girls dressing room and toilets were located at the south end of the building and the boys dressing room was located at the north end of the building. The gym was also used as an auditorium. The stage was big enough to have any play and it had room for the biggest band or orchestra. There are only three of these buildings still standing today. The home economics building, the vocational agriculture building, and the large stone gymnasium. The home economics and agriculture buildings are located on the east side of the football field and the stone gymnasium is located on the corner West and South Streets. The gym was repainted from white to peach in the summer of 2003.
Faculty Pictures	The top picture at left dates from around 1911 to 1914. To the best of our knowledge, those in the pictures include (left to right): Mr. Miser, Ida White, Carma Dallas, Bertie (White) Kiler, T.B. Liner (Superintendent). A striking resemblence between Mr. Liner and our middle school principal, Larry Marlow, has been noted. In the second picture, which is believed to dated around 1939 or 1940, we see the members of the music department with other faculty members. In the first row, second from right, is Mrs. Farb who played violin. Also in the first row on the far right, is Mary Beth Huddleston, a pianist. Paul Meyer is in the center of the second row. Mr. Meyer was a band director.
School Store	Konawa alumni may recall the school store, or concession, located northeast corner of old high school. It opened around 1929 and was operated for many years by Bertha (Jones) McMahan. Shown at left, the store sold lunch items, candy, supplies, and provided a place to convene for many activities. Known as "Big Bertha" was a force to be reconned with in many respects. Memories of the store stock include: Baby Ruth, Butterfinger, Heath Bar, salted peanuts, licorice twists, Juicy Fruit and Dentene, Nehi, CocaCola, Grapette, books, and paper. Thanks to Dr. Kennedy for use of the photograph.
Present Day Campus	Today's Konawa Public School campus is the pride of our community. Constructed through out the seventies, eighties, and nineties, these buildings are described at length on separate pages. To read about our present campus, return to the school index and look for links in the facility column.