Historic Sites of Manitoba: Grosse Isle School No. 698 / Grosse Isle Consolidated School No. 1975 (Grosse Isle, RM of Rosser)

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Principals | Vice-Principals | Teachers | Photos & Coordinates | Sources

The original Grosse Isle School District was established in August 1891 and a one-room schoolhouse operated at SW4-13-1E. In May 1919, it became part of the Grosse Isle Consolidated School District based in Grosse Isle, in the Rural Municipality of Rosser, combining the original Grosse Isle District No. 698 with that of Kensington School No. 787. The new consolidated district was re-designated Grosse Isle School No. 1975, and district ratepayers approved a new $18,000 school site, structure, and furnishings in August 1919. The new schoolhouse, built on designs of Winnipeg architect J. H. G. Russell, was officially opened on 22 October 1920, with noted guests in attendance including Professor Perry from the University of Manitoba, Rev. Tomkins of St. John’s Cathedral, Canon Alexander Matheson of St. John’s College, and MLA Arthur John Lobb.

Principals

Period	Principal
1920-1921	Kathleen Mary Matheson (1864-1947)
1921-1922	E. Alice Robinson (?-?)
1922-1924	Clara M. Allingham
1924-1927	Miss Margaret E. Wilson
1927-1928	Elsie K. Gardner
1928-1929	John Blain Stewart (1882-?)
1929-1932	Miss S. Eggertson
1932-1933	Florence Irene Robinson Hayter (?-1948)
1933-1934	Margaret Scott Fraser
1934-1936	Marguerite Andres Oastler
1936-1937	Louise McPhedran
1937-1939	Florence Anne Simpson
1939-1940	John Archibald “Archie” Carmichael (1916-2001)
1940-1941	Ruth Annie Fairlie Henderson (1904-1992)
1941-1943	George Lecoq (1905-2000)
1943-1944	Wilma Brusch
1944-1946	Wilham Humkewich
1946-1948	Alexander Russell “Alex” Paterson (1882-1958)
1948-1948	Evelyn Marie Lord
1949-1949	Marjorie Ann Dewar (1916-2011)
1949-1950	Caroline Cumming (1885-1979)
1950-1951	Miss Lina Tillie Kuzyk
1951-1961	William John “Bill” Dutka (?-2008)
1961-1968	?
1968-1981	William M. A. Campbell
1981-1982	Marie Isabel Cosens (acting)

Teachers

School Year	Teachers
1920-1921	Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-5), Kathleen Mary Matheson (grades 6-10)
1921-1922	Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-3), Rita L. McBratney (grades 4-7), E. Alice Robinson (grades 9-11)
1922-1923	Clara M. Allingham (grades 8-11), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-3), Rita L. McBratney (grades 4-7)
1923-1924	Clara M. Allingham (grades 8-11), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-3), Rita L. McBratney (grades 4-7)
1924-1925	Constance E. Chambers (grades 4-6), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-3), Margaret E. Wilson (grades 7-11)
1925-1926	Constance E. Chambers (grades 5-8), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4), Margaret E. Wilson (grades 9-11)
1926-1927	Miss S. Eggertson (grades 5-8), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4), Margaret E. Wilson (grades 9-11)
1927-1928	Lena M. Copeland (grades 5-8), Elsie K. Gardener (grades 9-11), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4)
1928-1929	Lena M. Copeland (grades 5-8), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4), John Blain Stewart (grades 9-11)
1929-1930	Miss S. Eggertson (grades 9-11), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4), Gladys M. Whitmore (grades 5-8)
1930-1931	Miss S. Eggertson (grades 9-11), Laura Lovatt (grades 5-8), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4)
1931-1932	Miss S. Eggertson (grades 9-11), Laura Lovatt (grades 5-8), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4)
1932-1933	Laura Lovatt (grades 5-8), Katherine Mary Madill (grades 1-4), Florence Irene Robinson (grades 9-11)
1933-1934	Margaret Scott Fraser (grades 7-11), Edith Winnifred Tait (grades 1-6)
1934-1935	Marguerite Andrews Oastler (grades 7-11), Edith Winnifred Tait (grades 1-6)
1935-1936	Marguerite Andrews Oastler (grades 7-11), Edith Winnifred Tait (grades 1-6)
1936-1937	Louise McPhedran (grades 7-11), Edith Winnifred Tait (grades 1-6)
1937-1938	Florence Anne Simpson (grades 7-12), Edith Winnifred Tait (grades 1-6)
1938-1939	Kathleen Ellen Avery (grades 1-6), Florence Anne Simpson (grades 7-12)
1939-1940	Frances Eliza Campbell (grades 1-6), John Archibald “Archie” Carmichael (grades 7-12)
1940-1941	Frances Eliza Campbell (grades 1-6), Ruth Annie Fairlie Henderson (grades 7-12)
1941-1942	George Lecog (grades 7-11), Margaret Helen Martin (grades 1-6, 1941), Christine Mary Tyler (grades 1-6, 1942)
1942-1943	George Lecog (grades 7-11), Christine Mary Tyler (grades 1-6)
1943-1944	Wilma Brusch (grades 7-11), Christine Mary Tyler (grades 1-6)
1944-1945	Wilham Humkewich (grades 7-11), Bernadette Perron (grades 1-6)
1945-1946	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-6), Wilham Humkewich (grades 7-11)
1946-1947	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-6), Alexander Russell “Alex” Paterson (grades 7-11)
1947-1948	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-4), Alexander Russell “Alex” Paterson (grades 9-11), Hazel Lillian Marie Taylor (grades 5-8)
1948-1949	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-4), Marjorie Ann Dewar (grades 9-11, 1949), Lillian Evelyn Reid (grades 5-8), Evelyn Marie Lord (grades 9-11, 1948)
1949-1950	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-4), Isabel Anne Cheyne (grades 5-8), Caroline Cumming (grades 9-11), C. Hall (grades 9-11, substitute), K. W. J. Pomeroy (grades 9-11, substitute), E. Mankor? (grades 9-11, substitute)
1950-1951	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-4), Isabel Anne Cheyne (grades 5-8), Lina Tillie Kuzyk (grades 9-11)
1951-1952	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-4), Isabel Anne Cheyne (grades 5-8), William John “Bill” Dutka (grades 9-11)
1952-1953	Hazel Blanche Aldcroft (grades 5-8, 1952) Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-4), William John “Bill” Dutka (grades 9-11), Jean Veronica King (grades 5-8, 1952), Beatrice May Siska (grades 5-8, 1953)
1953-1954	Lillian Euphemia Campbell (grades 1-4), William John “Bill” Dutka (grades 9-11), Margaret Jane Viola Gemmill (grades 5-8)
1954-1955	William John “Bill” Dutka (grades 9-11), Donna Vivian Hogg (grades 1-4), Roy Raymond Sontag (grades 5-8)
1955-1956	William John “Bill” Dutka (grades 9-11), Donna Vivian Hogg (grades 1-4), Roy Raymond Sontag (grades 5-8)
1956-1957	William John “Bill” Dutka (grades 9-11), Roy Raymond Sontag (grades 5-8), Gwendolyn Esther “Gwen” Thomas (grades 1-4)
1957-1958	William John “Bill” Dutka (grades 9-11), Joyce Arlene Sandmoen (grades 1-4), Roy Raymond Sontag (grades 5-8)
1958-1959	William John “Bill” Dutka (senior grade/grades), Ella L. J. McLaren (grades 1-4), Eleanor Jean Vanwyck (grades 5-8)
1959-1960	William John “Bill” Dutka (senior grade/grades), Ella L. J. McLaren (grades 1-4), Eleanor Jean Vanwyck Bond (grades 5-8)
1960-1961	William John “Bill” Dutka (grade 11), Dorothy Laser (grades 1-4), Rhonda Eileen Cruickshank (grades 9-10), ? (grades 5-8)
1961-1962	Dorothy Ruth Riddell (grades 1-4), ? (other grades)
1962-1963	Dorothy Ruth Riddell (grades 1-4), ? (other grades)
1963-1964	Dorothy Ruth Riddell (grades 1-4), Harry Frank Tiessen (grades 5-8), ? (other grades)
1964-1965	Dorothy Jean Palmer (grades 7-8), Dorothy Ruth Riddell (grades 1-3), Beatrice May Siska (grades 4-6)
1965-1966	Ned Michael Derkach (grades 7-8), Dorothy Ruth Riddell Gross (grades 1-3), Beatrice May Siska (grades 4-6)
1966-1967	Ned Michael Derkach (grades 7-8), Carole Rumak (grades 4-6), Meryl Yvonne Sheldon (grades 1-3)
1967-1968	Brenda Jean Buchanan (grades 1-3), Ned Michael Derkach (grades 7-8), Merle Irene McKinnon (grades 4-6)
1968-1969	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Carole Dorothy Grant (grade 5), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 6), Harold Reginald Syrett (grade 7), ? (grades 1-4)
1969-1970	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Joan Dianne Carlson (grade 5), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 6), Harold Reginald Syrett (grade 7)
1970-1971	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Barbara Jean Cannons (grade 5), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 6), Nancy Marie Roshon (grade 7)
1971-1972	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Marion Irene Cramer (grade 5), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 6)
1972-1973	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Janet Victoria McComb (grade 5), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 6)
1973-1974	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Janet Victoria McComb (grade 5), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 6)
1974-1975	William M. A. Campbell (grades 7-8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 6), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 5)
1975-1976	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Janet Victoria McComb (grade 6), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 5)
1976-1977	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Audrey Helen Watson (grade 6), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 5)
1977-1978	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Audrey Helen Watson (grade 6), Edna Shirley Noren (grade 5)
1978-1979	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Audrey Helen Watson (grade 6), Edna Shirley Noren (grades 4-5)
1979-1980	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 7), Audrey Helen Watson (grades 5-6)
1980-1981	William M. A. Campbell (grade 8), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 6-7), Audrey Helen Watson (grade 5)
1981-1982	William M. A. Campbell (grades 7-8, 1981), Marie Isabel Cosens (grade 6), Donna Amy Friesen (grade 5), Nancy Lynn Lillebo (grades ?), E. Masters (grades 7-8, 1982), Audrey Helen Watson (grades 7-8, 1981)

Among the other teachers at Grosse Isle School were Muriel E. Johnston (1913), John M. Lewis (1913), Ethel J. Angst (1914-1915), Pauline C. Whitmore (1915-1916), M. McDonald (1916), Margaret L. Frayne (1916-1919), Themla Coleman (1919), and Pauline Johnson (1919-1920).

Photos & Coordinates

The newly constructed Grosse Isle Consolidated School (1921) Source: Archives of Manitoba, George Harris Fonds, Acc. 1979-141, P7447, Album 2, Page 28. Grosse Isle School (no date) by H. D. Cumming Source: Archives of Manitoba, School Inspectors Photographs, GR8461, A0233, C131-3, page 70. Grosse Isle School (no date) by H. D. Cumming Source: Archives of Manitoba, School Inspectors Photographs, GR8461, A0233, C131-3, page 70. Grosse Isle School commemorative monument (August 2010) Source: Gordon Goldsborough Grosse Isle School commemorative monument (May 2023) Source: Rose Kuzina Entrance to Grosse Isle School (May 2023) Source: Rose Kuzina Site Coordinates (lat/long): N50.06315, W97.44509 denoted by symbol on the map above

Sources:

“Voting in Rosser,” Manitoba Free Press, 18 July 1919, page 13.

“Notice - Rural Municipality of Rosser,” Manitoba Free Press, 26 July 1919, page 17.

“Tenders [Grosse Isle School],” Winnipeg Tribune, 25 August 1919, page 13.

“Tenders for school vans,” Manitoba Free Press, 12 May 1920, page 18.

“Formal opening of Grosse Isle Consolidated School,” Manitoba Free Press, 28 October 1920, page 8.

Manitoba School Records Collection, GR0474, Grosse Isle School District No. 689 Daily Registers, Archives of Manitoba.

Manitoba School Records Collection, GR0474, Grosse Isle School District No. 1975 Daily Registers, Archives of Manitoba.

School division half-yearly attendance reports (Schedule: E 0757), Archives of Manitoba.

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

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.

We thank Rose Kuzina for providing additional information used here.

This page was prepared by Nathan Kramer and Gordon Goldsborough.

Page revised: 11 May 2023

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