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Reno County KSGenWeb Project |
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Reno County KSGenWeb Project |
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Phillip's Grade School Days Written and submitted by Phillip Harrison Pitzer On Tuesday, September 8, 1942, I would have been 5 years old. School always started on Tuesday, the first day after Labor Day. We would visit school on the Friday before to meet the teacher, learn where our classroom was and acquire a list of material we would need for the coming school year. I remember this well, because there was only one place in Hutchinson, Kansas where one could find all the supplies needed for the upcoming school year and that was "The Book and Art Store" between Third and Fourth street on Main Street, west side. There always was a line out the front door and down the side walk on Labor Day, because it seems like everyone put off shopping for school supplies till than. My first day at Kindergarten, Winians Grade School at 800 East B, Hutchinson, Kansas will always be in my memory. In 1942 my mother Bessie and her children that were living at home at the time lived, at 1000 East First Street, Hutchinson, Kansas. The house did not set on First Street, I do not know to this day why it had the address 1000 East First? The house faced the West and the street that ran North and South in front of the house was Clay Street. We lived just south of the Santa Fe Railroad tracks. To get to school we crossed the tracks, and that is where First ended. In 1942 there were four Pitzer boys attending Winians Grade School. My self and three older brothers, Clarence, Jim and John. I am not certain, would guess, Clarence was in the 3rd grade, Jim was in the 5th grade and John was in the 6th grade. What I do remember was that my brother John took me to my kindergarten class, not like today where mother has to enroll her 5 year old in his/her first day of school. As I remember kindergarten was a lot of fun. We had our little blanket where we took our naps. They provided us with a carton of milk each day. We got to go outside and have recess and play on all the neat things which I did not have access to at my home, like swings, slides, and other playground equipment. I only attended kindergarten class a half a day. First semester I think was in the mornings and the second semester was in the afternoon. For all the other grades it was school from 8:00 am. till 12: noon, and 1:00 pm. till 4:00 pm. We had a one hour lunch period where everyone went home to eat. There were no meals served at school like today. erhaps, some kids brought a sack lunch and ate it at school, but I never did. We would walk seven blocks to school and back for lunch than seven blocks back in the afternoon and seven blocks home after four pm. I attended Winians Grade School for the first eight years of my schooling. Kindergarten one year, first through sixth grades for six years and I took the third grade twice, which makes eight years. It was the spring of 1950 when I last attended that school. I do not remember all my teachers I had, but do remember some. The second grade teacher was Miss Handle, she was not married. One day she ask me to come over to her house to rake leaves and clean out flower beds. Looking back, I do not think she needed my help, she felt sorry for us poor Pitzer kids and wanted some good reason to give me a little money. Anyway, I remembered it and I am thankful for her thoughtfulness. Later years in 1956 when I was married Miss Handle had retired and she and her brother and another sister opened a small Grocery store about 1000 East 4th Avenue, it was just across from where Carol and I had our first home, a 35 foot mobile home. Back then it seemed pretty good size, but today it would be called a camper. My third grade teacher was Miss/Mrs. Glaze (I do not know if she was married or not). Glaze was an older lady, at least back than she seemed old to me. I have always been weak in the English reading and spelling, that is why I failed the third grade I am sure. Because I spent two years in the third grade and liked math and learned the very basic fundamentals very well I excelled in math, that was always my easiest subject in school. Also I use the excuse that I failed the third grade, because I started working at the bowling alley, sitting pins in the evenings 6:00 pm till 12:00 pm. every other night, while in the third grade. In the fourth grade I had Mrs. Stedman, she was a wonderful teacher. She thought I had talent as an artist. There was a city wide contest for fire prevention week. While in the fourth grade I won that contest competing against all other fourth grade students in Hutchinson, Kansas. The prize was a free lunch in the Wiley Tea room for Mrs. Stedman and me and a new two dollar bill. I think that was the first time I ever ate out at a restaurant. The Wiley Tea room was a pretty swanky place and I was impressed. My table manners were probably not to good, with the fine china and table cloth and all. In the fifth grade I can not remember my teachers name, but do remember she was some what younger than most of my previous teachers. She too thought I had talent as an artist and encouraged me to draw. I was big into drawing outdoors scenes, trees and wildlife. I was pretty good at drawing horses. At least my fifth grade teacher thought so. While in the fifth grade, my teacher had me take my picture to the sixth grade classes to show them off. I remember the teachers pointing out to the class how I use shading of the tree trunks to show from where the sun was shinning. You know, I can not remember anyone telling me how to do that, it just seemed natural to me. Drawing horses always seemed very hard for me to get them just right. It seemed the head, legs, body and other features were not the right proportion. I admire any picture of horses created by hand, knowing how difficult it was for me to do. As a fifth grader my teacher said I did them very well. One thing I remember about my fifth grade teacher was she bowled and was one of my customers at the bowling alley once a week. You see she bowled on a womens league one night each week. In the sixth grade I had Mrs. Peckham. I thought the world of Mrs. Peckham, she was always giving me extra things to do. One of the task was Joyce Mitchell and David Holoubek and I were the 16mm movie projector operators. We were given special training and would run the projectors for our class as well as for other classes. We had an official billfold card which said we were qualified and had been trained. In 1952 when we were in Mrs Peckham's sixth grade class, I remember her talking about how we would live to see the Twenty irst Century. At the time it seemed like it would be a long time in coming, but you know, it now seems like only yesterday. Mrs Peckham's 1950 6th Grade Class |
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