MUSEUM MATTERS

By Ben Pate on Wednesday, September 15, 2021
  • This group of students above was probably on a fund raising trip, harvesting pecans with the cane poles. Comyn was one of the first schools in Texas to have motorized school buses. Motorized buses allowed the State of Texas to close smaller schools and send students to schools with better facilities. Comyn had a rock school (right) that was very nice for a community of its size. This picture was probably taken in the 1930s. | Citizen staff photo
    This group of students above was probably on a fund raising trip, harvesting pecans with the cane poles. Comyn was one of the first schools in Texas to have motorized school buses. Motorized buses allowed the State of Texas to close smaller schools and send students to schools with better facilities. Comyn had a rock school (right) that was very nice for a community of its size. This picture was probably taken in the 1930s. | Citizen staff photo
  • MUSEUM MATTERS
    MUSEUM MATTERS

    Back at the turn of the century, there were a number of small schools in communities outside of Dublin. In a recent conversation with Mac McKinnon, he said that schools tended to be about 5 miles apart.

    This was so students wouldn’t have to walk more than 2 1/2 miles to get to school. Mac attended Comyn school.

    It was a well funded school district because of the Humble Oil pumping station that was located there. Comyn was able to build a nice rock school building and had excellent teachers. It also was one of the first schools in Texas to be able to afford school buses. He said that things started to change in the 1920s.

    Those school buses ended up playing a big part in that change. Students could live 5, 10 even 20 miles from the school they attended because the more efficient buses could easily make the trip in a short amount of time.

    Because of this, the smaller schools started being closed by the Texas Education Agency.

    In 1953, Comyn had at least 2 elections asking citizens where they wanted their students to go. The Texas Education Agency was pushing to close the school.

    Comyn citizens wanted to keep their school and voted against sending their students to De Leon or Dublin.

    In the end, the school was closed by the state and students were sent to Dublin, and De Leon based on where they lived.

    Mac said that he was taught in the 3rd grade by Mrs. Mollie Grisham in Comyn. She eventually came to Dublin along with many Comyn students when the school closed.

    Mrs. Hazel Moss who taught junior high math in Dublin had taught at Alexander school. She eventually came to Dublin several years before the Alexander school was forced to close.

    In an earlier day, Upper Greens Creek and Lower Greens Creek had separate schools. They were combined into one school and eventually it closed and students were moved to Dublin.

    As time passed, schools in Edna Hill, Purvis, Bunyon, Roch, Clariette and others were closed and the students bused to Dublin.

    Whether they want to admit it or not, every student loves their school and feels an attachment to it. So it was painful for students to be forced to leave and go somewhere else. Even today, some still have mixed feelings about busing and school consolidation.