Historic Sites of Manitoba: Sperling Consolidated School No. 1488 (Sperling, RM of Morris)

Link to:
Principals | Vice-Principals | Teachers | Photos & Coordinates | Sources

The original Sperling School District was organized in April 1909 at Sperling in the Rural Municipality of Morris. It became Sperling Consolidated School through the consolidation with Garnett School No. 210, Tremont School No. 1127, and Lone Star School No. 1629. A two-storey, four-classroom brick structure was erected in 1910. The building was destroyed, by a fire started in coal stored in its basement, on 23 May 1924. It was replaced by a one-storey, four-classroom building, designed by Winnipeg architect Alexander Melville, that opened in November 1924. In January 1968, it became part of the Midland School Division. The former teacherage was sold in 1974 for use as a private residence. The school closed in 1987 and the building was demolished in early 2006 after standing vacant.

Its corner stone and some bricks from the building are preserved in the wall of a picnic shelter in a public park at the site. A commemorative plaque was installed by the municipality in 2015.

Principals

Period	Principal
1910-1912	Joseph Hurl
1912-1914	Frederick Leopold Johnston (1884-1961)
1914-1915	Joseph James McLaughlin
1915	G. J. F. Vanstausk
1916-1918	William Henry Fenton (1872-1974)
1918-1919	Mrs. Elmah Tench
1919-1920	Winfred Elmore Marsh (1872-1932)
1920-1921	James Thomas Hulme (1864-1938)
1921-1924	Arthur Victor Pigott (1900-1987)
1924-1928	Neil Albert McIntyre (1888-1972)
1928-1932	George Edgar Haywood (c1902-1985)
1932-1934	Orville Ernest Holmes (1905-1987)
1934-1940	Frank Alywin “Andy” Anderson (1907-1972)
1940-1944	Abiah Davies Morgan (1899-1967)
1944-1952	Donald Richard Thom (1908-1988)
1952-1955	Henry Royal Dwyer (1905-1996)
1955-1958	Frank P. Giesbrecht
1958-1963	James Maxwell Taylor
1963-1967	Pat Anderson Jenkins
1967-1971	Miron Paul Swintak (1935-1987)
1971-1980	Jean Jackson Anderson
1980-1986	?
1986-1987	Joyce Foote Nicolajsen

Teachers

School Year	Teachers
1910-1911	Joseph Hurl (room 2), Miss Minnie Stewart (room 1)
1911-1912	Miss Helen Brunt (room 1), Joseph Hurl (room 3), Miss Minnie Stewart (room 2)
1912-1913	Frederick Leopold Johnston (room 3), Miss Sarah C. MacLean (room 2), Miss Delle Myers (room 1)
1913-1914	Frederick Leopold Johnston (room 3), Miss Sarah C. MacLean (room 2), Miss Delle Myers (room 1)
1914-1915	Joseph James McLaughlin (room 4), Miss Delle Myers (room 1), Miss Adeline Helen Strachan (room 3), Miss Mary S. Thomson (room 2)
1915-1916	Violet Clements (room 1), Mary Dobson (room 2), William Henry Fenton (room 4), Miss Barbara C. MacLean (room 3), Miss Delle Myers (room 1), Miss Adeline Helen Strachan (room 3), Miss Mary S. Thomson (room 2), G. J. F. Vanstausk (room 4)
1916-1917	Violet Clements (room 1), Irene Dobson(?), William Henry Fenton (room 4), Miss Edith Greenwood (room 2), May MacKenzie (room 3), Miss Barbara C. MacLean (room 3), Miss Ellen Whitmore (room 1)
1917-1918	William Henry Fenton (room 4), Miss Edith Greenwood (room 2), May MacKenzie (room 3), Mrs. Elmah Tench (room 4), Miss Ellen Whitmore (room 1)
1918-1919	Jane J. Gordon (room 2), Miss Violet MacKenzie (room 2), Ida Norman (room 1), Mrs. Elmah Tench (room 4), Miss Myril E. Vanwyck (room 3), Sarah Willett (room 3)
1919-1920	Mary Delgaty (room 3), Miss Olive MacDonald (room 3), Winfred Elmore Marsh (room 4), Ida Norman (room 1), Miss Nellie Palmer (room 1), Miss Edith Waddell (room 2), Ethel M. Wilson (room 2)
1920-1921	Mary Delgaty (room 3), Laura Etselle (room 1), James Thomas Hulme (room 4), Muriel Rankin (room 1), Grace G. Rouse (room 2)
1921-1922	Margaret Arthur (room 3), Arthur Victor Pigott (room 4), Grace G. Rouse (room 2), Miss Annetta Wiechman (room 1)
1922-1923	Miss Delle Myers (room 1), Annie Phillips (room 3), Maude Phillips (room 2), Arthur Victor Pigott (room 4)
1923-1924	Elizabeth King (room 1), Miss Delle Myers (room 1), Annie Phillips (room 3), Maude Phillips (room 2), Arthur Victor Pigott (room 4)
1924-1925	Laura Courtney (room 1), Neil Albert McIntyre (room 4), Annie Phillips (room 3), Maude Phillips (room 2)
1925-1926	Pearl Bell (room 3), Ethel Lowry (room 1), Neil Albert McIntyre (room 4), Cliffie M. Woodworth (room 2)
1926-1927	Ethel Lowry, Tena H. McDonald, Neil Albert McIntyre, Cliffie M. Woodworth
1927-1928	Ethel Lowry, Tena H. McDonald, Neil Albert McIntyre, Cliffie M. Woodworth
1928-1929	George Edgar Haywood, Alice Henderson, Fanny B. H. Stirling, Cliffie M. Woodworth
1929-1930	George Edgar Haywood, Alice Henderson, Fanny Stirling, Cliffie M. Woodworth
1930-1931	Gladys Copeland, George Edgar Haywood, Alice Henderson, Florence McKillop, Fanny Stirling, Cliffie M. Woodworth
1931-1932	Gladys Copeland, George Edgar Haywood, Fanny Stirling, Cliffie M. Woodworth
1932-1933	Gladys Copeland, Orville Ernest Holmes, Fanny Stirling, Ethel Wilson
1933-1934	Winnifred Cook, Gladys Copeland, Orville Ernest Holmes, Fanny Stirling, Ethel Wilson
1934-1935	Frank Alywin “Andy” Anderson, Etta Fewster Gehring, Beth Mitchell, Ellen North
1935-1936	Frank Alywin “Andy” Anderson, Etta Fewster Gehring, Beth Mitchell, Ellen North
1396-1937	Frank Alywin “Andy” Anderson, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Etta Fewster Gehring, Beth Mitchell
1937-1938	Frank Alywin “Andy” Anderson, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Etta Fewster Gehring, Beth Mitchell
1938-1939	Frank Alywin “Andy” Anderson, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Charlie Bell, Etta Fewster Gehring
1939-1940	Frank Alywin “Andy” Anderson, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Charlie Bell, Etta Fewster Gehring
1940-1941	Pat Anderson Jenkins, Violet Anderson, Mary Cowan, Abiah Davies Morgan
1941-1942	Violet Anderson, Mary Cowan, Minnie Douglas, Abiah Davies Morgan
1942-1943	Mary Cowan, Minnie Douglas, Abiah Davies Morgan, Elizabeth Nash
1943-1944	Mary Cowan, Abiah Davies Morgan, Elizabeth Nash, Nellie White
1944-1945	Mary Cowan, Ruth Fallis, Donald Richard Thom, Nellie White
1945-1946	Ruth Fallis, Bernice Fines, Donald Richard Thom, Nellie White
1946-1947	Ruth Fallis, Bernice Fines, Donald Richard Thom, Nellie White
1947-1948	Evelyn Griffiths, Inez Helgason, Joyce Sutton, Donald Richard Thom, Nellie White
1948-1949	Inez Helgason, Jean Jackson Anderson, Joyce Sutton, Donald Richard Thom
1949-1950	Inez Helgason, Jean Jackson Anderson, Velma Adell Motheral, Donald Richard Thom
1950-1951	Dorothy Elliot, Fran Fleming, Ruth King, Velma Adell Motheral, Donald Richard Thom
1951-1952	Dorothy Elliot, Fran Fleming, Ruth King, Velma Adell Motheral, Donald Richard Thom
1952-1953	Henry Royal Dwyer, Marion Hammond, Ruth King, Audrey McRorie, Ivy Patterson, Norah Stewart
1953-1954	Henry Royal Dwyer, Doreen Fewster, Ivy Patterson, Phyllis Pulfer, Melva Skeavington, Joyce Sokol, Edith Thompson
1954-1955	Henry Royal Dwyer, A. Fraser, Ivy Patterson, Kay Pogson, Phyllis Pulfer
1955-1956	Evelyn Bridgeman, Donelda Cook, Keith Fleming, Frank P. Giesbrecht, Ivy Patterson, Kay Pogson, Lancelot William Stephens
1956-1957	Joyce Bowman, Frank P. Giesbrecht, Kay Pogson, Harold Stewart, Lancelot William Stephens
1957-1958	Lena Allison, Frank P. Giesbrecht, Elizabeth Menzel, Myrtle Munday, Isabell Robertson
1958-1959	Lena Allison, Katie Cook, Elizabeth Menzel, James Pollock, Isabell Robertson, James Maxwell Taylor
1959-1960	Lena Allison, Doreen Fewster, Morris Hykaway, G. J. Gommerman, Elizabeth Menzel, J. Pollock, Betty Rance, Isabell Robertson, James Maxwell Taylor
1960-1961	Esther Hildebrand, Morris Hykaway, Pat Anderson Jenkins, J. Pollock, Isabell Robertson, James Maxwell Taylor, Merle Taylor
1961-1962	John Cesmystruk, William George Cooper, Morris Hykaway, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Isabell Robertson, James Maxwell Taylor, Merle Taylor
1962-1963	John Cesmystruk, Morris Hykaway, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Lois J. Malach, Donna McLean, James Maxwell Taylor
1963-1964	Betty J. Gross, John F. Gross, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Lillian Munro
1964-1965	Janet Alexander, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Sandra Kulbaski, Don Wrobleski
1965-1966	Audrey Gilman, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Sandra Kulbaski, Don Wrobleski
1966-1967	Irene Belcher, Sandra Delaloye, Pat Anderson Jenkins, Brenda Porter Peters
1967-1968	Jean Jackson Anderson, Sandra Delaloye, Fern Rose, Miron Paul Swintak
1968-1969	Jean Jackson Anderson, Sandra Delaloye, Fern Rose, Miron Paul Swintak
1969-1970	Jean Jackson Anderson, Sandra Delaloye, Fern Rose, Miron Paul Swintak
1970-1971	Jean Jackson Anderson, Sandra Delaloye, Fern Rose, Miron Paul Swintak
1971-1972	Jean Jackson Anderson, Bob Cain, Fern Rose
1972-1973	Jean Jackson Anderson, Bob Cain, Fern Rose
1973-1974	Jean Jackson Anderson, Bob Cain, Fern Rose
1974-1975	Jean Jackson Anderson, Heather Lovatt, Fern Rose
1975-1976	Jean Jackson Anderson, Dorothy Biggar, Fern Rose, June Stockford (music)
1976-1977	Jean Jackson Anderson, Dorothy Biggar, Ann Hamilton (music), Fern Rose
1977-1978	Carol Anderson, Jean Jackson Anderson, Dorothy Biggar, Neil Martin (physical education), Carol Ross-Boggs (music)
1978-1979	Jean Jackson Anderson, Dorothy Biggar, Barbara Leslie, Neil Martin (physical education), Carol Ross-Boggs (music)
1979-1980	Jean Jackson Anderson, John Hildebrand, Barbara Leslie, Carol Ross-Boggs (music), Gordon Stobbe (physical education)
1980-1981	Francine Adelman (music), Joyce Foote Nicolajsen, John Hildebrand, Barbara Leslie, Gordon Stobbe (physical education)
1981-1982	Francine Adelman (music), Alice Elias, Joyce Foote Nicolajsen, Brian Reid (physical education), Lee Wallwin
1982-1983	Francine Adelman (music), Alice Elias, Joyce Foote Nicolajsen, Brian Reid (physical education), Lee Wallwin
1983-1984	Francine Adelman (music), Alice Elias, Joyce Foote Nicolajsen, Brian Reid (physical education), Lee Wallwin
1984-1985	Francine Adelman (music), Alice Elias, Debbie Nairne, Joyce Foote Nicolajsen, Brian Reid (physical education)
1985-1986	Francine Adelman (music), Joyce Foote Nicolajsen, Brian Reid (physical education), Debbie Russell
1986-1987	Francine Adelman (music), Heather Bunka, Joyce Foote Nicolajsen, Brian Reid (physical education), Debbie Russell

Photos & Coordinates

Sperling School (circa 1910) Source: Education Department Report, 1910, Manitoba Legislative Library. The original Sperling School, destroyed by fire in 1924 (June 1911) Source: Archives of Manitoba, School Inspector Photos GR2664, C65. Sperling School, constructed in 1924 (no date) by D. S. Woods Source: Archives of Manitoba, School Inspectors Photographs, GR8461, A0233, C131-2, page 126. Sperling School (circa 1986) Source: Historic Resources Branch, Public School Buildings Inventory, slide 721. Sperling School (circa 1986) Source: Historic Resources Branch, Public School Buildings Inventory, slide 722. The corner stone from Sperling Consolidated School, built in 1924 (October 2010) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Sperling Consolidated School commemorative sign (July 2020) Source: Rose Kuzina Site Coordinates (lat/long): N49.50527, W97.70476 denoted by symbol on the map above

Sources:

“Tenders for Sperling Consolidated School,” Winnipeg Tribune, 4 July 1924, page 16.

Annual Reports of the Manitoba Department of Education, Manitoba Legislative Library.

Tales of Sperling, circa 1970. [Manitoba Historical Society Library, 971.27Spe]

One Hundred Years in the History of the Rural Schools of Manitoba: Their Formation, Reorganization and Dissolution (1871-1971) by Mary B. Perfect, MEd thesis, University of Manitoba, April 1978.

A Study of Public School Buildings in Manitoba by David Butterfield, Historic Resources Branch, Manitoba Department of Culture, Heritage and Tourism, 1994, 230 pages.

Furrows in the Valley: A History of the Municipality and its People compiled by the Morris History Book Committee, edited by Lenore Eidse, 1980.

Aerial photograph A11638-199 [1948], Manitoba Air Photo Library.

Obituary [Velma Adell Motheral], Winnipeg Free Press, 18 February 2023.

We thank Patricia Tennent, RM of Dufferin, Suzanne Schroeder, Ed Leask, Glenn Peckover, and Rose Kuzina for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 18 February 2023

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