ATTENDANCE RECORD OF SCHOOL SECTION #1, DUNWICH TOWNSHIP
ELGIN COUNTY FOR 1904
Extracted and compiled by Robert G. Moore
The following list of pupils has been taken from the original “Public School DAILY REGISTER for recording the attendance of Pupils ” in School Section Number One in the
Township of Dunwich. School Section Number One, known as the Port Talbot section and was located on one
half acre of land in the westerly part of the north west quarter of Lot 17 Concession 11. The land was purchased in May 1853 from George McBeth for two pounds and 10 shillings. School sections were set up so that most pupils would not be more than about 2 to 2 1/2 miles from the school. Even that distance would be too far for the little ones to walk thus there was usually a rule that a pupil had be to six years of age before starting school in the fall. (many pupils were often nearly eight before starting school) As Section Number One was a rural community, many of the older children only attended school when they were not required for farm work (planting time in the spring and harvest time in the fall). Although there were eight “grades” in the school, usually two or more grades were would be grouped together as one teacher could only handle so many different lessons in a one room school in a day. Many pupils condensed the eight grades of public school into seven. The grade structure of many rural schools in Ontario which was very similar to Number One Dunwich, changed very little into the 1930s when I attended a rural school in Waterloo County.
Fortunately we have both the 1901 and 1911 census of Dunwich Township to compare the register with but the population of Elgin County continued its transitory nature. The Canadian west was opening up and lure of the big cities of the USA such as Detroit and Chicago was still a drawing card for those families that saw little future as local labourers and small acreage farm owners in Dunwich. Dutton station and the New York Central railway were only a few miles away from Section Number One and afforded easy access to the American west
.
Pupils Attending January to June 1904
Teacher Isabel E McIntyre
Pupils Age in March 1904 unless noted
First Grade
Braddon, George age 8 in June
Halpin, Annie age 7 in June started mid April
Jones, Maggie started June
McIntyre, Wilfred age 8 in June started mid April
Merithew, Alfie started second week of May, age 9 in June
Pettit, Willie age 7 went 4 days end of June
Piper, Archie age 8 in June started mid April
Piper, John age 8 went 4 days in June
Scram, David age 7 started second week in June
Scram, Stanton age 9 started second week in June
Tomlinson, Archie age 8 started second week in June
Tomlinson, Pauline age 6 started second week in June
Junior Second Grade
Lunn, Mabel age 9
Piper, Grace age 10 in June started last week of April
Senior Second Grade
Halpin, Edith age 9
Lilley, Charles age 10 started last week of March
Thompson, Florence age 10
Third Grade
Halpin, Andrew age 11
Lunn, Cessford age 11
Lunn, Arthur age 11
McIntyre, James age 13 in June absent Feb & March
Small, Malcolm age 11
Junior Fourth
Lunn, Archie age 11
Lynch, John age 14
Lynch, Thomas age 11
McClung, Otto age 13
Senior Fourth
Bobier, James age 15
Lunn, Johnnie age 13 left school 3rd week March
Thompson, Elsie age 13 in June
Fifth
Small, Clarence age 14 left School mid May
Attendance Pupil days Average Number of Pupils per day
January 260 13
February 242 11.5
March 284 12.3
April 247 (Easter holidays) 16.46
May 387 18.4
June 394 17.45
August to December 1904
Annie M. Geddes teacher
Fall School term started the third Week of August
Pupils listed in Five classes (youngest to oldest)
Lunn, Nellie attended 2 days in December
Pettit, Willie listed August to October but never attended
Scram, David attended for 10 days in September only
Scram, Stanton attended for 10 days in September only
Tomlinson, Archie attended August, September and first week in October only
Tomlinson, Pauline attended August, September and first week in October only
Braddon, George
Halpin, Annie
Jones, Maggie attended for one week in October only
McInytre, Wilfred
Merithew, Alfie
Piper, John attended for 14 days only
Docker, George started school first week of October
Lilley, Charles started fourth week of November and attended for December
Lunn, Mabel
Piper, Grace
Thompson, Florence
Lunn, Arthur
Lunn, Cessford
Halpin, Edith
McIntyre, James
Halpin, Andrew
Lunn, Archie
Lynch, John attended last week of November and December only
Lynch, Thomas attended last week of November and December only
McClung, Otto
Small, Malcolm
Thompson, Elsie
Attendance Pupil days Average Number of Pupils per day
August 246 19
September 393 19
October 324 16
November 364 17
December 280 17
Entire year 3420 pupil days with 31 different pupils
Highest attendance was Archie Lunn with 203 days, followed by Andrew Halpin with 200 days
and Edith Halpin with 196. At the other end of the scale was Willie Piper with 4 days, Maggie
Jones with 25 days and John Piper with 36 days