Blooming Rose School

Some history about one of our long ago one-room schools.  Blooming Rose was located on Hwy. 838 at the end of Lewis Croft Road.

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Blooming Rose. One of these little schools that very little written history has been found through the years is Blooming Rose School. It's location was about one mile from the Livingston County line and about three miles from Lola in Livingston County. 

 

In April of 1894, in Deed Book 4, page 79, we find that Robert A. Hearell and his wife, Nancy, sold land to the Crittenden County trustees of District 20 for the purpose of a site for a new school house. It would be a one room building and the name of the school would be Blooming Rose. It is thought that this colorful name was because there were many of the little wild pink rose bushes that grew in the fence rows where the school would be built. This was confirmed by two of the past students. 

 

The school had the usual pot-bellied wood or coal stove. The boys cut wood for the wood stove or brought in coals when the county started furnishing the coal.

 

Twenty pupils were the average enrollment for all eight grades. Some of the teachers used punishment such as standing with face to the wall, standing at the blackboard with nose is a ring; some children had to stand on top toes with nose in a ring and there was always the dreaded paddle.

 

The school closed in 1949 and students were sent to Tolu elementary school.

 

This picture was taken from the Crittenden County History Book, Vol. II.