History of Thomaston School began with Thomaston Public School in 1874 with James H. Moore as the teacher. The Thomaston School building was built as a white one-room school house in the town of Thomaston, Texas.
James H. Moore was the first teacher to have educated students and held classes at Thomaston School. James H. Moore taught school there from the latter end of the 19th century to the fledgling 20th century. Mr. James H. Moore taught here until he retired. Mrs. Elmer Luddeke was one of the early teachers of the Thomaston School.
Professor J. W. Carroll was the first principal for the Thomaston School. His daughter, Miss Edna Carroll, taught classes at Thomaston School. Professor J. W. Carroll ran the school on a 9 month school schedule as students had to help their families grow crops during harvest season.
A news article dating back to Saturday, September 18, 1880 in The Cuero Star verifies and claims the caption under the headlines of “Thomaston School Commences Oct. 1, 1880.”. So at some unverifiable point between the years of 1874 and 1880, Thomaston School stopped operating.
The Thomaston School building was also used for church services where Sunday school was held until a church building was built in the year of 1886. Reverend Z. B. Graves held church services inside the Thomaston School building.
1894 is when a new two-room school was built. Thomaston School employed 2 teachers after the year of 1894. From thereon, Thomaston School operated on a 9 month school schedule. Enrollment was as high as 72 students at times. A well was installed on the property in the year of 1903. Thomaston Public School eventually became Thomaston School and later Thomaston Elementary School.
Thomaston Elementary School taught students from 1st grade to 8th grade. After 8th grade, students were transferred into town in Cuero for high school education where students attended Cuero High School in Cuero Independent School District (Cuero ISD). Finances were tight for the small school.
Thomaston School was not a district school until 1906. Thomaston School (Thomaston Elementary School) was not a district school until the 1906-1907 school year in October of 1906. It was very odd for school to start in October as most schools started on the month of September.
A news article dating back to Monday, June 4, 1906 written for San Antonio Daily Express verified that Professor J. W. Carroll was re-elected princpal of the Thomaston School with his daughter, Miss Edna Carroll as the assistant principal. She also served as both assistant principal and teacher.
However, a news article dating back to Wednesday, September 12, 1906 in the San Antonio Daily Express verifies that the Thomaston School and Thomas School District were created in the small town of Thomaston, Texas located inside Dewitt County on the date of September 10, 1906. Thomaston School was a primary school that primary grades which was 1st grade to 8th grade. A news article dating back to Wednesday, September 12, 1906 in the San Antonio Daily Express verified the school opened with the headlines being “Thomaston School opens.”
So that means another “Thomaston School” was opened. This particular “Thomaston School” was opened as the “Thomaston Primary School” and that the town of Thomaston first organized its own school district called Thomas School District on the most likely date of September 8, 1906 prior to Thomas Primary School opening on September 10, 1906. Thomaston School was a primary school that primary grades which was 1st grade to 8th grade. After 8th grade, students were transferred into town in Cuero for high school education where students attended Cuero High School in Cuero ISD.
Thomaston Primary School opened at 10 AM in the morning of Monday, September 10, 1906 with Professor J. W. Carroll as the principal and Miss Jessie Tartar and Miss Edna Carroll both as the teachers teaching grades 1 through 8. Miss Jessie Tartar and Miss Edna Carroll were the first teachers to have taught at Thomaston Primary School.
Professor J. W. Carroll was the first principal for the Thomaston Primary School as well as Thomaston School District. Professor J. W. Carroll and his daughter, Miss Edna Carroll, had both worked for Thomas School District when the school district was first organized.
Thomaston School (Thomaston Primary School) was built on a 5-room plan instead of being built as a one room schoolhouse as most schools located on the rural countryside were at that time in the United States. The Thomaston Primary School building was built as a one story schoolhouse which was painted white.
Thomaston Primary School had a music room with a piano installed on the date the school opened. The school had a library with a nice collection of books added and donated from nearby communities. Grades 1st through 4th were taught in one room and grades 5th through 8th in another room.
The Thomas School District opened 4 schools (as time went alongside) which were the following.: Thomaston Primary School, Thomaston Public School, Thomaston Elementary School, Thomaston White School, and Thomaston Negro School. All of which were most likely K-8 schools that taught 1st grade through 8th grade. After 8th grade, students from these schools were transferred into town in Cuero for high school education. Students attended Cuero ISD schools for high school.
Of course this school and several other Thomaston Schools were opened during the height of segregation when segregation was law of the land in Texas, the West, and the South. So white students attended white school and African American students attended negro schools at that time. No Mexican Schools were found on any maps of Thomaston, Texas. So it is possible that Hispanic students attended the white schools and negro schools.
At some point after 1920 is when Thomaston Primary School downsized from a K-8 school to a K-7 school teaching 1st grade through 7th grade. After 7th grade students would attend school in Cuero. After 1920, Thomaston School only taught 1st grade through 7th grade. School stopped after 8th grade.
Thomaston, Texas failed to maintain its prosperity as a railroad town as US Highway 87 along with a series of other county highways improved and cars made transportation easier. Passenger service for the towns railroad was discontinued in November 1950.
A news article from The Cuero Record on the date of Friday, September 16, 1955 verifies that Miss Murphree and Mr. Bill Milligan were in charge of Thomaston School. So Miss Murphree and Mr. Bill Milligan were the last faculty members of Thomaston School Board members to have been in charge of Thomaston School. Miss Murphree taught school at Thomaston School for 14 years and retired after 29 years of teachers.
Sometime during the 1956-1957 school year is when Thomaston School and Thomaston School District consolidated into Cuero Independent School District. Thomaston School and Thomas School District closed down after a lack of enrollment and lack of funding. Thomaston School District could no longer operate on property taxes, income taxes, or wealth taxes. So Thomaston School District consolidated into Cuero Independent School District (Cuero ISD) where students living Thomaston were sent to complete their education whether it be elementary school education and/or high school education.
Staff member Mrs. Jerry Mauer wrote a news article about the history of Thomaston School and Cuero ISD schools along a series of rural schools in Dewitt County in The Cuero Record newspaper dating to Sunday, March 24, 1957.
Mrs. Jerry Mauer explains “Pupils taught in the Thomaston School received an excellent basic education and were able to enter accredited high schools.” Mrs. Jerry Mauer verified that students from Thomaston now attend Cuero Independent School District schools.
Today no remains or traces of Thomaston School or any of the 4 Thomaston Schools that the Thomaston School District had operated from 1874 to 1956 can be found. The school buildings have been demolished, purchased by private land owners, or vacant on someones farm land in the countryside.
Not much is known about the Thomaston School and not much else can found or researched about this school either. All school records, property records, land deeds, energy bills, building easements, and school board meeting minutes have either been misplaced, lost, shredded, burned, or relocated. Not much is known about the Thomaston School or Thomaston School District either.
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