Custis, John Trevor
ThePublic Schools of Philadelphia; Historical, Biographical, Statistical.
Philadelphia: Burk & McFetridge Co., Publishers, 1897. 680 pp., Illustrated.
Page 7
Prior to the year 1818 meagre provision was made by the State for the education of its youth. The principal schools were private, endowed institutions, which admitted a limited number of indigent pupils free of cost. Some of these private schools were not unimportant factors in the history of education in Philadelphia, being the stepping stones to the adoption of a system of public schools.
Page 8
Many schools conducted on the Lancasterian plan were established under the control and management of Lancasterian societies, organized by the disciples of Lancaster. This system was introduced into American schools during the first decade of the present century (1800-1810), and was adopted by many of the charity schools in Philadelphia before the public schools were opened in 1818.
Joseph Lancaster was born in London, November 27, 1778. He organized a school in 1798, and as neither he nor the parents of his pupils could afford to employ a sufficient number of teachers to assist him, he conceived the plan of making certain of the pupils monitors to instruct other pupils. By this plan one master supervised an entire school.
Page 9
A Famous Society’s Work
An organization in Philadelphia known as the Society for the Promotion of Public Economy, which aimed to ameliorate the condition of the poorer classes, appointed, in 1816, a committee on public schools, of which Roberts Vaux was made chairman. This committee inquired into the workings of the Lancasterian system and was largely instrumental in securing the passage of the law of 1818.
While the law of 1809, with its supplement of 1812, authorized the erection and establishment of schools, it was not until after the passage of the law of 1818 that buildings exclusively for free schools were actually erected, under the direction of a Board of Control
Page 9
The Act of 1818
By the Act of March 6, 1818, “for the education of children at public expense, within the City and County of Philadelphia,” the city and county were to be known as the First School District of Pennsylvania. The District was divided into four Sections, as follows: First Section, the city proper; Second Section, Northern Liberties and Kensington; Third, Moyamensing and Passyunk; Fourth, Penn Township.
City Councils were empowered to elect twenty-four directors, the Commissioners of Northern Liberties twelve directors, and the Commissioners of Southwark, Moyamensing and Spring Garden six directors each. The directors thus chosen were to elect one out of every six of their number to a central board, which was to be organized under the title, “The Controllers of the Public Schools for the City and County of Philadelphia.”
The Lancasterian system was provided for in the schools of the First, Second, Third and Fourth Sections
Page 10
Board of Control Organized
The first Board of Control was composed of nine of the representative men of the city. Roberts Vaux, Thomas Stewardson, Joseph Reed and William Fry represented the First Section. George Boyd and Peter Keyser, the Second Section, Ebenezer Ferguson and James Ronaldson, the Third Section, and David Woelpper, the Fourth Section.
The Controllers were organized April 6, 1818, and elected Roberts Vaux president. Willie Birnie was chosen secretary. The headquarters were in the City Hall. The members lost no time in entering upon their duties, and at once proceeded to establish and open schools as follows: -
Adelphi School, Pegg’s street, between Front and Second, taught by John Ely and Eliza Allison.
Kensington School, taught by Joseph Ketler and Jane Proudfit
Moyamensing School, organized in Paul Beck’s School house, taught by Peter McGowan and Maria Wilson.
Southwark School, Commissioners’ Hall, Second street below Queen, taught by Samuel F. Watson and Elizabeth Millard.
Spring Garden School, Buttonwood Lane, taught by Moses Taylor.
A Model School was next organized on Chester street above Race, and was opened December 21, 1818. It was placed under the charge of Joseph Lancaster, who had been invited here to assist in operating the schools under his own system (The Lancasterian System). The Model School building was the first school-house erected by the Board of Control.
Both boys and girls were instructed in reading, writing and arithmetic, and the girls were also given instruction in needle work.
Page 13
School Directors of 1818
The directors, besides those who were chosen to constitute the Board of Control above named, were: -
Second Section –
John E. Brown,
Jesse Cleaver,
John Kessler,
William Binder,
Jacob G. Tryon,
George F. Goodman,
George Knorr,
John Harrison,
Jacob Johnson,
James S. Stuber,
Page 14
Progress of 1819.
During the year 1819 it became necessary to procure lots and erect two new buildings, one on Lombard street for the children in the southern part of the city and the other for the pupils inKensington and part of the District of Northern Liberties. By the close of the year the total number of pupils had reached 3,268, an increase of 423 over the preceding year.
Page 15
Another building was erected in Southwark in 1820 to accommodate the rapidly increasing number of pupils. At the end of this year the number in the public schools was 5,369, an increase of 2,101 over the preceding year. But here was a great falling off in attendance in 1821, the annual statement at the close of the year showing a total of only 2,969 pupils.
The increase of manufactories in Philadelphia and its vicinity has produced a great demand for the labor of young person, and has consequently withdrawn many children from the public schools.
First voices of compulsory education were starting
In 1822 first colored school opened with 200 pupils. A few years later a 2nd school opened for coloreds in Northern Liberties.
First signs of the defects of Lancasterian System (monitors were trained but it was time for them to leave the school since they were finishing up, call for permanent monitors “teachers”).
Page 15-16
In 1829 Infant schools were established (primary schools) and in 1832 the Board of Control took action by establishing a Model Infant School in the Model School Building. This spread to the whole district by 1836 with 30 primary schools. The teaching in these schools originally started out as principally of a moral and religious nature.
Page 16-17
Schools Used as Hospitals
From 1832 to 1836 there was little of note aside from the erection of several school buildings and the establishment of more new schools. During the Summer of 1832 when the Yellow Fever was prevalent, the school-houses were used for the accommodation and relief of the sick.
The year 1836 marked the close of an epoch in the history of the public schools. The following year saw the opening of the schools to rich and poor alike, and the abandonment of the Lancasterian system of instruction, which had come to be regarded as extremely faulty and even pernicious.
The Schools of 1836.
Tenth Section: -
Marlborough Street School,
Master Street School,
Master Street Infant School,
Total number of students for all of Philadelphia was 7,127 (this includes the 2,500 pupils in the 26 primary schools)
School Law of 1836
Page 17-18
New school law of 1836 went into effect consolidating and amending the number of laws already on the books. Great improvement over what existed. Cornerstone of Public School Law. Done away with the system of charity schools, which is what public schools up till this time were little better then. Rich and Poor alike would go to the new schools.
School system went from being looked at with contempt to one of respect.
Page 18
Corner-stone of Central High School laid.(Opened in 1838)
Increase of students from a little over 7,000 to 17,000 in a single year (1836-37).
Need for several new schools to be built. Hiring of many more teachers due to abolishment of Lancasterian system.
Page 21
1845 the Controllers were made a “body politic” under the name of “The Controllers of the Public Schools of the First School District of Pennsylvania,” and all property held for school purposes in the county was vested in them as a corporate body.
Page 22
Statistics of 1850
256 schools, 727 teachers, 45, 383 students (?)
Night school opens
By 1855 50,000 night school students(?)
A new school building was erected for the Normal School on Sergeant Street above Ninth
Act of Consolidation of the County into the City occurs in 1854. Each ward would constitute a School Section. All school property became vested in the City of Philadelphia.
First Board of Control After Consolidation, 1854-55
Fifteenth Section – Andrew H. Manderson
Sixteenth Section – Charles Cliine
Seventeenth Section – George W. Burr
Eighteenth Section – Edward W. Gorgas.
Nineteenth Section – Saml. S. Warthman
Page 26
Controllers of 1868
Fifteenth Section –John W. Clark
Sixteenth Section –Stephen H. Smith
Seventeenth Section –J. Macavoy, M.D.
Eighteenth Section –Charles M. Lukens
Nineteenth Section – Stephen Taylor
Page 28
Board of Controllers changed to Board of Public Education (1870)
Page 29
Two new wards were formed in 1875, the 30th, which was previously part of the 26th, and the 31st, taken from the 19th. The Controllers appointed for the two new Sections were William J. Pollock and James Milligan, Jr
Page 30
Alexander Adaire sat on committee that considered a readjustment of the course of study in the elementary schools. Advice was put into operation in 1877.
Page 34
Cooking Schools introduced, one of them was Rutledge Schoool, Seventh and Norris
Page 36
During the Summer of 1895 the yards of public schools in thickly-settled sections of the city were kept open as playgrounds for poor children. They proved so popular and were apparently productive of so much good that the twelve yards were thrown open the following summer. The custom has doubtless come to stay.
In 1895 the Legislature passed a compulsory education bill. It had been talked about since the times of Roberts Vaux (1820).