Sep 1, 2024
Another Medfield school year is now underway marking nearly 370 years since the first schoolhouse was built on North Street in 1655 – evidenced by a historical marker where the new 21 North restaurant is now located. And while much has changed with education over time, some aspects of it have stayed the same. After all, lessons on reading and arithmetic have yet to go out of style.
In Massachusetts, laws were passed early on and over time mandating the education of children, although schools were not always available to certain segments of the population.
Some key Massachusetts dates to set the stage for Medfield education history:
- Boston Latin School was the first public school, established in 1635.
- Harvard College was founded about seven years later in 1642.
- Colonial law of 1647 mandated that every town of at least 50 households was ordered to have a school for teaching basic reading and writing, and towns of 100 or more households were required to have a “grammar school” providing more advanced preparation.
- Horace Mann (1796-1859), while serving on newly created Massachusetts Board of Education in 1837, created the first school system that ensured every child could receive a basic education funded by local taxes. A year later, he established the first state-sponsored “normal school” for teacher training.
- Massachusetts was not only the first state to enact a compulsory education law in 1852, it was (and still is) consistently ahead of other states with its ratings for educational excellence.
Helping to illustrate the saying, “The more things change, the more they stay the same,” Tilden marks earlier moments in time in his book, History of the Town of Medfield, Massachusetts, 1650-1886. Here are examples documented by Tilden and other sources that help to illustrate past and current comparisons:
Adapting to Changing Enrollment and Needs – Medfield used a variety of structures and locations for educating children throughout its history as the town grew and prospered, starting with homeschooling, followed by the first school built in 1666, plus use of local churches and other buildings. Traditional schools, both small and large, were also established in different sections of town to ensure proximity to young students. At times, whenever additional educational space was needed, school buildings were either expanded or built new. For example, Tilden notes that in 1760, new schoolhouses were needed in the north and south districts, “that perhaps the schools had outgrown the sixteen by eighteen (foot) buildings erected in 1732. Decades later, even an additional six feet of space for two Medfield schools was considered a welcome addition. Today, with shifting school enrollment across the grades, Medfield Public Schools looks at ways to chart the best path forward. (Town Historian Richard DeSorgher published this Hometown Weekly article in 2019 with more details about Medfield’s educational roots into recent times: https://hometownweekly.net/medfield/old-town-back-school-education-roots/.)
Recycling Materials – Old, decommissioned schools were often sold to residents for private use, repurposed by the town, or when demolished, the materials were reused in the building of new schools. One of the most notable examples was in 1859, when an old school was sold to T.L. Barney and moved to the corner of South Street to be expanded for use as a store and dwelling, according to Tilden. In an earlier example of revolutionary recycling, in 1778, wood that was cut from burial land was sold to generate town funds, and town steel was recovered and made into three axes for three schoolhouses. In current times, the Medfield Transfer Station & Recycling Committee is actively engaged with encouraging recycling efforts with students and implementing a school-based composting program.
Minimizing School Cost Impacts to Taxpayers – Over the course of Medfield’s early history, it was common for the proceeds from land sales to be deposited into a special town fund dedicated to schools. Tilden points out examples of numerous town-owned lands sold for that very purpose with “Centre Meadow,” “Bridge Island,” “woodland in the southern part of town,” and property at Dale and Frairy Streets noted across a variety of years. At 2024 Medfield Town Meeting, a new school fund was established to support a future school building project, with sales of any town-owned land intended to help boost the fund balance.
Recruiting Quality Educators (with students who ultimately benefited) – With the establishment of Harvard College in 1642, Medfield took advantage of its location relatively close to Cambridge to recruit highly educated school leaders and teachers. Tilden points out that in 1711, “Thomas Chaney kept school six months,” and that “He was a recent graduate of Harvard College, as were most of those mentioned as schoolmasters about that time.” Tilden also tells the story of the 1811 college graduation of Dr. Joseph Allen as being “a great event in a small country town for one of its farmers’ sons to graduate from Harvard with high honors, and great preparations were made for the occasion.” Beyond Harvard, Tilden provides other examples of multiple “scholars” recruited over the years to lead or teach within Medfield schools – a priority that has not dramatically shifted over the years as quality educators continue to be hired into the district.
Valuing Music Education – While Lowell Mason is likely the most well-known music educator from Medfield history, Tilden himself was both a music educator and long-time Medfield School Committee member. In 1822, town money was appropriated for the establishment of a “singing school.” However, as late as 1805, Medfield resident Amos Albee had established his own popular singing school, with Lowell Mason as one of his students who attended at the age of about 13. Other singing schools were created in Medfield over time, with numerous individuals noted by Tilden as instructors. Over the ensuing years, numerous professional musicians have called Medfield home, with resumes that include roles in professional orchestras, as well as internationally recognized compositions. With numerous awards earned by vocal and instrumental ensembles, the Medfield Public School music program continues to be well respected across the Commonwealth.
Additional resources:
https://medfieldhistoricalsociety.org/school-life-in-medfield-200-years-ago/