Berryhill School is one of the many rural schools and community schools located in the State of Texas. Berryhill School served a portion of Shackelford County. Lueders ISD once operated Berryhill School.
Berryhill School was established in Lueders, Texas during the 1900s in a single story wood frame building. Berryhill School was a 1-8 school that educated students in grade 1 through 8. After 8th grade is when students transferred to Lueders High School. School ran on a 9 month session which was uncommon among rural schools.
Berryhill School was located in the Berryhill School District which Shackelford County Common School District oversaw. There were two teachers for 21 students making it a 21:2 student-teacher ratio along with a principal and vice principal. Berryhill School District was a 46 square-mile area which Berryhill School was located in.
What’s unique and interesting about Berryhill School is that this school had a storm cellar prepared for weather emergencies such as rainstorms and tornados. The storm cellar was 20 feet deep and 10 feet across. A large coal burning stove kept students warm.
Berryhill had a lot of oil wells in its district in the 1930s and 1940s. The school was located near the oilfield. Berryhill's oil prosperity dates from discovery of the Ivy Oil Field in 1937. There were approximately 65 producing oil wells of the Ivy pool at one time.
In 1938, Berryhill had 39 students and 3 teachers. Elmer Cox became the bus driver for this school district. Board Chairman E. W. Carlson says the school owns $5,000 in war bonds during 1939.
The old frame building burned in 1940. After the building went up in smoke, nothing was left. A new school building was much needed for the Berryhill School District. Construction of the new school building was begun in the spring. It was replaced by the present limestone structure we see today.
In the 1940s, Alexene Rodriguez was the principal, Aileen Alexene Rodriguez was the vice principal and teacher, and Mrs. Bess Wood was the teacher for grades 1st through 3rd. Aileen Alexene Rodriguez was the teacher for grades 4th through 8th.
Trustees had provided some transportation in the fall of 1945. Students rode a Packard station wagon to and from school. The Packard station wagon was radio equipped. The two teachers, Alexene Rodriguez, principal, and Mrs. Bess Wood, alternate as drivers every other day. They traverse a 26-mile route It is divided into two loops, and two trips must be made to get all the students to school and deliver them home
(Ref: Abilene Reporter News, Page 1, Sunday, April 21, 1946)
In 1949 Gilmer-Akin Law required school districts to consolidate with a contiguous school district. Berryhill School merged into Lueders ISD and Albany ISD in 1950. However several Berryhill families moved into Lueders, Texas in Jones County so their children could attend the Lueders School (and Lueders schools) which was only 3 miles from Berryhill. Berryhill School continued its elementary school classes for its elementary school students.
Lueders ISD continued to maintain Berryhill School after consolidation in. After the school closed, school reunions, family reunions, and other social functions were held there until the 1990s. By the 1990s, this school was abandoned.
In 2007, the roof caved into the storm cellar. Nature elements such as vegetation has now filled the storm cellar. The Berryhill School House is still standing.
Berryhill School is located at the intersection of CR 174 & CR 175, Lueders, Texas, US 79533.
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