Exhibit reflects on education in North East from one-room schools to science labs

MILLERTON — From home-schooling to private academies to one-room schoolhouses to sophisticated modern schools, North East’s drive to educate its children has evolved significantly.

The North East Historical Society has created an exhibit showcasing more than two centuries of local school history. The exhibit will be on display at the NorthEast-Millerton Library from October 5 through November 30.

The presentation reflects schooling from Colonial times into the long era of one-room schoolhouses where eight grades shared one classroom, and beyond that to the development of high schools and specialized instruction. Teachers faced many challenges, and many went beyond traditional reading and writing lessons to teach character.

Included are nineteenth- and twentieth-century images of the many one-room schools in the town, with some still existing today repurposed for other uses, as well as photographs of the town’s main school, including its first high school, that used to be near the checkerboard turn in Millerton just before the start of the last century.

The exhibit also has some fun elements like tongue twisters that students once had to recite to improve their elocution.

Overall, the presentation demonstrates North East’s aspiration to keep improving educational opportunities for all of its children.
Library hours are 11 a.m. to 6 p.m. Tuesday to Friday and 10 a.m. to 3 p.m. on Saturday. The library is closed on Sunday and Monday.

Meg Downey, secretary of the North East Historical Society, is also a board member of LJMN Media, the nonprofit that publishes The Millerton News.