Thanksgiving and Christmas at Arbon's Central school, 1915

In the late fall of 1915 the pupils of the Central school, on the north Arbon floor, gave two evening entertainments: a Thanksgiving program on November 25, held in spite of a storm, and a Christmas Eve program of plays, recitations and a cantata. The American Falls Press printed both programs in full, and together they read as a roll of the valley's children that winter.

The school that fall

The Central school of District 12, also known as Green Top, stood on land given by T. B. Evans and served as the community hall of the north Arbon floor. Arbon had been in Oneida County until 1913 and was now in Power County. The Press named its two teachers that winter, Alfred Ray, the principal, and Miss Claudia Cox, the primary teacher, though some of its notes called their school the Bannock school.

In early November the Press reported that Miss Cox was having a vacation because "the school she had at Arbon" was "in the hands of carpenters." The North Arbon column of December 2 added that she had spent a few days with her parents at Rockland while the Central school "was being equipped for winter."

The same column began:

The storms have been quite numerous here lately. We have had some strong winds, which, with the snow, has made it very disagreeable, especially for grain freighters.

The column also reported that T. B. Evans had moved his family into a new home west of the school. A week later, reporting that long-distance service had reached the valley, the Press added that the telephone switchboard had been moved there.

Thanksgiving night

The Thanksgiving program went ahead. It "was well attended Thanksgiving night in spite of the storm," the December 2 column reported. The pupils' program "was excellent and was greatly praised by those present," and "the evening was later spent in a social dance."

On December 9 the Press printed the whole program. A quartet of girls, the Misses Ripley, Keeler, Bailey and Porter, sang. Among the recitations, May Ripley gave "Why We Keep Thanksgiving," Howard Keeler "The First Thanksgiving," Bessie Beebe "Pilgrim Fathers," Orville Porter "Speak the Truth," Leslie Evans "A Country Thanksgiving," Ernest Davis "Dressed Turkey" and Hortense Evans "Thanksgiving Street." Bowen Smith, Thresa Bailey, Walter Evans, Minerva Powell and Joseph Roderick recited too. Eight small girls gave a dialogue, six small children another called "Thanksgiving Goodies," and a group of small children sang "The Happy Farmer." The play of the evening, "Thanksgiving on the Farm," had four girls and four boys in its cast, listed by surname only. A few names are too garbled in the scanned text to read.

Christmas Eve

On December 23 the North Central Arbon column announced: "A fine Christmas cantata is being prepared at the Central school which will be held Christmas eve." The same column reported that Charles Johnson of Twin Falls, a brother of Mrs. Melvin Bailey, had come to live with his sister and was attending the Central school. He was probably the Charlie Johnson who gave the first recitation on the Christmas program, "Daddy's Xmas."

The program appeared on December 30, "Given by the Pupils of the Central School at Arbon, December 24." After a carol by the whole school and that recitation came the first act of a play, "Xmas at Finnegan's Flat." Joe Evans played Pat Finnegan and Bessie Beebe played Biddy Finnegan, with Ernest Davis as Prof. Button, Hortense Evans as Miss Neversick, Erma Bailey as Miss Goodheart, Myron Bullock as Dooley the policeman, and a group of children. The second act followed a song, "Jolly Old St. Nicholas." David Evans recited "The Brave Little Tree," and Fern Bullock "Christmas Long Ago."

A second play, "The Model School," put Nina Keeler in the teacher's place, with eight schoolmates as pupils, among them Paul Ripley and Constance Evans, and five visitors, among them Elizabeth Bailey and Leslie Evans. Edna Bailey gave a recitation whose title is only partly legible, Mrs. Albert Poppy, probably of the valley's Poppie family, recited "Convict's Xmas Eve," and the evening closed with the cantata. Its title appears to be "Santa in Southland," but the scan has jumbled the title and part of the cast; Filmer Roderick, Alta Beebe, Mary Bailey and Welling Evans can be read among them. No account of how the evening went has been found.

The names reach across the valley's families. The Evans children who can be identified belonged to the families of all three Evans brothers: Hortense and, probably, David were children of Dave Evans, who had died in 1913; Leslie, Walter and Welling were sons of L. B. "Ren" Evans; and Constance was T. B. Evans's daughter. Erma, Elizabeth and Edna Bailey were daughters of the postmaster, James R. Bailey, and May and Paul Ripley were children of D. B. Ripley.

That winter

A literary society formed at the Central school on December 7, and by early January the Press counted about 95 people at a meeting. Nina Keeler was its secretary and treasurer, Miss Cox and Mr. Ray sat on its program committee, and the schoolchildren appeared on its programs. In February L. B. Evans told the Press the school was the best they had had in years. "I place our teachers second to none in the county," he said.

Five Christmases later

At Christmastime 1920 the Central school gave its program on a Thursday evening, and afterward pies were auctioned to raise money for the pupils' hot lunches. The Press reported on January 7, 1921:

The Xmas tree was beautifully decorated with trimmings, treats and presents for the school children. One of the candles which was lighted in some way caught a Xmas bell afire on the tree and in a few moments the top of the tree was all ablaze. By quick work of the men the tree was pulled over and the fire extinguished, but not until it had burned about half of the tree and a few presents.

A strong south wind was blowing, the report added, and it "would have soon taken the building" if the fire had grown. The pies brought $14. The Press also printed a verse, "Why We Need the Hot Lunch," probably one of the evening's recitations. In it a child complains that Pa warms milk for the calf and Ma heats food for the chicks, "But my lunch is cold as bricks," until the school begins serving soup "hot as the dickens."

On this site: the Arbon area history; the Evans family; the Bailey family; and the schools of Arbon Valley.