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school uniform schoolwear : United States -- activities walking to school
U.S. School Activities: Walking to School--Rural Areas
Figure 1.-- Here two boys are retuning home after school in Breathitt County, Kentucky during September 1940, the beginning of a new school year. Notice they are dressed more like city boys and not wearing overalls which were still common at rural schools in the 1930s, although they are barefoot. One boy may be wearing his shirt over his overalls, but this was virtually unheard of through the 1930s. The pail he is casrryinh is the traditional way of brining lunch to school. They are following a creek bed, perhaps the most direct route home. After World War II almost all children in rural areas were provided with bus transport and began dressing like city children. Source: Library of Congress LC-USF33-031082-M2.
The biggest problem for children in getting to school was in rural areas. Unlike the situation in Europe where many farmers lived in villages and worked often small plots, American farm familiies lived on the farm, often sizeable plots. This made for widely dispersed rural populations. The American answer for this was to build small, in many cases, one-room schools in rural areas. This was part of the Northwest Ordinance from the very beginning of the American Republic (1787). Govenment land sales included a sector for a school. This left most farm children within reasonable walking distance of a school. This was especially serious for youngr children. Walks over a mile were common, sometimes 2-3 miles. These long walks could be gruling during the winter especially in the North with severe winter weather and snowfall. These school walks werevgenerally manageable east of the Mississippi where the population density reduced the length. There were exceptions such as areas of Appalachia where farm land was more limited. Notice theboys here are from Kentucky (figure 1). Omce one moved beyond the Missippi, especially the first tier of Great Plans states, population density fell and rural schooling became more of a problem because of the dstances involved. Even in well populated areas, the children would simply stay at school when a blizzard struck. (Rember that weather reporting did not brcome common until well into the 20th century. The first school bus appeared in London (1810s). Horse drawn carriages were being used in America (1880s). They first began used in the Northeat and gradually spread west. Motor vehicles appeared (1910s). Most rural children still walked to work. Funding a school bus fleet was a challenge for many rural school systems. After World War II the yellow school bus became a standard item both in rural and suburban schools. All children living beyond a certain distance with very few exceptions wee provided transport to school.
Destinctive American Experience
The biggest problem for children in getting to school was in rural areas. Unlike the situation in Europe where many farmers lived in villages and worked often small plots, American farm familiies lived on the farm, often sizeable plots. This made for widely dispersed rural populations. Yet the United States was an earlier adopter of free public education. Along with Germany leading all other countries. The Unites States began its effort at vpublic education at a time when the vast vmajority of Americans lived in rural areas, almost all east of the Mississippi River.
First American Answer: Small Rural Schools
The American answer for educating children in rural areas was to build small, in many cases, one-room schools in rural areas. This was part of the Northwest Ordinance from the very beginning of the American Republic (1787). The Northwest Ordinance was arguavly the most important act of thhe Congress of the Confederation of the United States. It was passed as Constitutional Convention was drafting a new Contitution in Philadelpphia. It created the Northwest Territory, the first organized territory of the United States. As such it only covered lands beyond the Appalachian Mountains, between British North America (modern Canada) and the Great Lakes to the north and the Ohio River to the south. This meant the northern Ohio Valley and what we now call the Upper Midwest. The upper Mississippi River formed the territory's western boundary. (At the time the land west of the Mississippi was Spanish territory.) Spanin was invaded by France and transferred what becanme known as the Louisiana Territory back to France (1801). It did not become American teritory until the Louisiana Purchase (1803). While the provisions of the Northest Ordinamce ititially were limited to that area, it would become the system by which future states would be admitted to the Union and how the land would be legally parcelled out to settlers. Govenment land sales included a sector for a school. The school sector was used not only as a site for a school, but land that could be sold to pay to build the school. Public education developed differently south of the Ohio River because the Northwest Ordinance did not apply to the southern states. And because the river became the boudary between slave and free states. A major change to Federal land policy did change until the passage of the Homestead Act in the middle of the Civil War (1863). Any adult citizen, or intended citizen, who had never borne arms against the U.S. government could claim 160 acres of surveyed government land.
The creation of of schools in rural areas throughout the country beginning with the Northwest Ordinance (1787) left most farm children within reasonable walking distance of a school. This was especially important for youngr children. How many modern parents would send a 6-year old on a long walk to school. Walks over a mile were common, sometimes 2-3 miles. These long walks could be gruling during the winter especially in the North with severe winter weather and snowfall. These school walks were generally manageable east of the Mississippi where the population density reduced the length. There were exceptions such as areas of Appalachia where farm land was more limited. Notice the boys here are from Kentucky (figure 1). And of course the South where the Northwest Ordinance did not apply. Once one moved beyond the Mississippi, especially the first tier of Great Plans states, population density fell off and rural schooling became more of a problem because of the distances involved. Even in well populated areas, the children might have to stay at school when a blizzard struck. (Remember that weather reporting did not brcome common until well into the 20th century.) Rural children until after World War II (1939-45) mostly walked to school. Some states began to employ school busses before the War, but the major changes came after the War.
Of course another major change was demographic. Industrialization was not only making America rich, it was changing the face of the country. After World War I, the America population crossed the rural/urban divide. For the first time, the majority of the population lived in urban areas. As rural populations declined, the small rural schools with only a handful of children became increasingly expensive to maintain, but closing them would mean increasung the distances rural children had to walk to school. And World War II accelerated this movement. Until World War II, very large numbers of Americans still lived in rural areas. And at the time the rural life style was very different. This began to change dramastically. Ford had already brought mobility to the countryside and made tractors available to modest family farms. President Roosevelt's New Deal included major programs to address the problems of rural America. Especially important
was the Rural Electrification Administration which began to bring electricity to rural areas. And World War II drew large number of people from rural areas to cities for war work. Huge numbers of rural men and women were drawn into urban areas to fill the jobs needed to build the war winning Arsenal of Democracy. Few were willing to return to rural areas where decent paying jobs simply did not exist. As a result of this and mass media, the detinctions between rural and urban life began to disappear. Before the War adults and children in rural asreas dressed differently than people in the cities. This difference rapidly diusappeared. The rural poor gravitated to the cities. Farmers with adequate acerage inceasingly mechanized operations and were able to enjoy prosperous lives.
Second American Answer: The School Bus
The second American answer was the school bus. Here we can thank Hery Ford and the Model-T Ford. The first school bus appeared well before the Model-T in London (1810s). Horse drawn carriages were being used in America (1880s). They first began used in the Northeat and gradually spread west. Motor vehicles appeared in number and cost (1910s). This was the result of Ford and the Model-T and other manufacturwrs that followed Ford's business model. This was inexpensive, mass produced motor vehicles that workers could afford. This also lowered the cost so that school systems could afford busses.
Most rural children still walked to work through the 930s. . Funding a school bus fleet was a challenge for many rural school systems. After World War II the yellow school bus became a standard item both in rural and suburban schools. All children living beyond a certain distance with very few exceptions were provided transport to school. It was in many ways an economic matter. Bussing children became less costly than maintaining large numbers of one one-room scholls with only bandful of children.
