Blackfoot School, Spring Hollow Township
The first Blackfoot School was located in Township 34N, Range 17, Section
10, west of Lebanon on one acre of land. The land was acquired from
James Atchley in 1867. Land for the second school was acquired
from James' son, John B. Atchley in 1884, and land east of the school
from Jim P. and Etta Vernon.
The History of Laclede County, Missouri 1979 describes the schools as
follows: Four known buildings have housed the students of Blackfoot.
Two being of round log structures. The logs were hewed on the ends and
fitted together. The floor was of dirt and it had a large fireplace in
one end. It was furnished with tables made of split logs and benches
made in a similar fashion. The legs on the benches were stuck in the
underneath side.
Blackfloot School about 1895
The picture below was provided by Ted Stout, Jr. The back of
the picture reflects "Blackfoot
School". Judging by the ages of three of the children he knows, in the
picture, it was taken about 1895. The girl sitting second from the left is
his great aunt Myrtle Stout who married Joseph Mills in Dallas
Co. MO in 1903. The two boys seated on the ground from
left are Alex Stout and Curtis Stout her two brothers. The
man standing to the right looks like their adult brother, my grandfather
Hubert Stout. He knows the family moved
in the 1890s from Stoddard Co. MO and ended up near Long Lane which is in
Dallas Co. near the Laclede border. The GNIS search engine only turns up
five schools named Blackfoot school. One in Idaho, one in Laclede Co. about 4 miles east of Bennet Springs
and three in Montana. The one in Laclede is the only one that fits where this family might have
been around that time.
If you recognize any of the other pupils in this picture,
please let me know so that I can indicate their names here.
