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Lincoln School reopens for holidays
FORT SCOTT, Kan. -- Visitors on the Homes for the Holidays tour won't want to miss the old Fort Lincoln School, at the northeast edge of the Fort Scott Community College campus, at the corner of Horton and 18th Street.
For the tour weekend, volunteers from the Bourbon County Association of Retired School Personnel open the school for viewing from 1 to 5 p.m.
The school, built in 1864, first stood just south of the settlement of Fort Lincoln in northern Bourbon County. The fort, established by Union Gen. James Lane on Aug. 17, 1861, consisted primarily of a stockade, a block house, and entrenchments. A settlement grew up around the fort and, according to Charles E. Holstein, an abstractor of the time, it was connected with the pre-Civil War border conflicts.
In his book, "The Fort Lincoln One Room School 1863-2001," Fort Scott resident Gene DuVall provides a short history of the fort and the town. He writes of a fateful night in September 1861, when Lane and about 1,000 of his men retreated from superior Confederate forces and gathered there during a rainstorm, where Lane thought he could make a better stand if they were attacked. However, the rising waters of Big Drywood Creek prevented the Confederates from crossing; both Fort Lincoln and Fort Scott were spared from attack. Over the years, the settlement grew into a town just north of the Little Osage River, three miles west and three-quarters of a mile north of what would eventually be the town of Fulton. This area was the site of several skirmishes during the Civil War years, in which homes were destroyed and men were killed or wounded.
On March 23, 1863, area citizens organized Bourbon County School District No. 49. Even before a schoolhouse was built, the district hired Mary E. Metcalf as its first teacher for a three-month term, at a salary of $15 a month.
The school board chose a building site on the south bank of the Little Osage River on an acre deeded to the district by owner Lucy Hotchkiss. Construction was completed in 1864, and teacher D.B. Jackman was hired for a term of six months at $30 a month. The teachers changed every year for the first few years. In December 1880, the school board voted to move the schoolhouse to a new site three-quarters of a mile south. Another school was built a half-mile north and a mile east of Fort Lincoln. These changes eliminated the danger of students having to cross the river from the north to go to school and made it possible for students to walk no more than two miles to attend classes. The Fort Lincoln School's new site was deeded to the district by owner Anna Warrington.
By the year 1930, Fort Lincoln School was among about 149,000 one-room schoolhouses across the nation. But their number declined as consolidation gained in popularity due to the widely-held belief that larger schools provided students with better educational opportunities. In 1943, Fort Lincoln School saw its last class.
Citizens of the area, however, formed a community organization and used the old schoolhouse for their meetings and get-togethers, starting in 1945. Over the years, little maintenance was done, and the schoolhouse began to deteriorate.
In the early to mid 1970s, an American Bicentennial celebration was being planned in Bourbon County. DuVall, as chairman of the county Bicentennial Com-mittee, requested financial aid from the state and national commissions for restoration of a one-room schoolhouse, and he also asked for help from the local FFA chapter. He told the Fort Lincoln Community Club about the restoration plans, and they agreed to donate the building, which they no longer used.
To help with further fund-raising and collection of needed materials for the restoration, a Bourbon County School House Preservation Association was formed. Help also came from the FFA, the American Association of University Women, and the Bourbon County Retired Teachers' Association.
In early 1974, DuVall received approval of the Fort Scott Community College Board of Trustees to use the northeast corner of its campus as the site for the Fort Lincoln School building. Work had already begun, by then, preparing the building to be moved. The association purchased desks, and other 1800s-era school artifacts were donated. The building was moved into town and, on Sept. 25, 1976, it was officially dedicated at its current site.
From 1-5 p.m., Saturday and Sunday, during the Homes for the Holidays Tour, members of the Bourbon County Association of Retired School Personnel will serve as guides at the Fort Lincoln School.
Other stops on the Homes for the Holidays tour will include the Stocking Stuffer at FSCC Arnold Arena, the Scottish Rite Temple, 110 S. Main St., the Nate Lyons home, 750 S. National Ave.; the Larry and Pat Lyons home, 742 S. National Ave.; the Cynthia Levine home, 747 S. National Ave.; the 1800s-era Christmas Ball from 1-3 p.m. Dec. 8 at the Fort Scott National Historic Site; and a holiday music venue from 11 a.m. to 3:30 p.m., Dec. 8; and 2-4:45 p.m. Dec. 9, at the Liberty Theatre, 113 S. Main St.
Homes for the Holidays tour tickets are $8 each and may be purchased at the Country Cupboard, 12 N. Main St., or at the Fort Scott Area Chamber of Commerce, 231 E. Wall St.
No tour tickets are required for admission to the Stocking Stuffer and The Christmas Ball. These events are open to the public, free of charge.