I Remember When

By E. H. Barringer for the Livonia Gazette, 25 March 1927

Rediscovered by Betty White Greene.

As I was running over the pages of a recent issue my eye caught the heading, “I Remember When ...”

If you will loan me a little space I will try and draw you a picture of Marrowback and the school a notch farther back than this letter of Mr. Herbert L. White of last week.

I landed on Marrowback in the middle of the winter of 1868 and 69. My grandfather, Rev. William Peck, owned the Pine Woods farm at that time and that was my home for nearly ten years. As to the school house, I saw it last summer and it looks the same as the first time I saw it. Now I will try and tell you where these youngsters hail from, beginning at the south.

Where Charles Holmes lives was Horace Taylor; S. Barker, Richard May, I. W. Philhower, S. Compton, Willard Cole, Rev. William Peck, Andrew Ingles, Phebe Ingles, H. Kenion, William Pickering, Edger Wilbur, Rensslaer Sherwood, George Matthews, Patrick Ryan, Albert Daniels, Asa Trescott, Garrett Daniels, Almond Lockwood, Seymore Daniels. Down west of the Pine woods where Charley now lives was Horatio White, his father; across the way was Jane Sylvester. From this number of residents I think it would be easy to pick thirty to thirty-five pupils for the winter school.

For winter entertainments we had school exhibitions, spelling schools, with a little strife between old No. 7 and the McNinch district where Scott often held out as teacher in the winter. Then there was singing school, with Billy Alger at the head and, O boys! if we only had broad-casting at that time. Then writing school, with Prof. John Moot to lay down the rules.

Now back to school, I will give you the names of teachers we almost graduated under: Sarah Sherwood, Margaret Barlowes, Susan Webster, Laura Trescott, George Matthews, Sr., Adelbert Moot, Orneldo Morris and W. H. Peck. The woods spoken of back of the school house came in handy with its second growth to help emphasize the rules of the school - where I did my share of clearing cutting good straight ones without ringing them.

In summer, to keep our young minds right, we would have Sunday school with the most able talent. I will give you the names of a few of our superintendents: Samuel Compton, Joseph Bilson, Wilbur Payne, William Pickering and Albert Daniels. And after our winter training under Billy Alger, with Eyk Philhower as chorister, we sure could do some singing at Sunday school. Then they would, once in a while, hold revival meetings with some of the good old-fashioned preachers like Elder Miner, Wright, Harris, Bennett and Elder Peck. Once in a while John Lawrence or Fred Woodruff would come and give us a little good advice, of which we were most always in need.

Now I guess this will be enough for this time. Must own I am on that has drifted away, but I still cherish those happy boyhood days and enjoy a hearty handshake with any that helped to make Marrowback what it was from 1868 to 1878.