Kirk Dist 82

From the time when kids had to walk uphill both ways in a blizzard to go to school, the Yuma historical society has set out to locate and mark as many county schools as possible

In the fall of 1889, a three-month term of school was conducted in a small frame building about a mile north of the present town of Kirk. There were about seven pupils and studies were the 3 R's. They had planks for seats for children as well as the teacher. In 1890 it was decided that they needed two school houses in the district. They were made of sod. In 1892 a Miss Filkins was hired as teacher and she had a six-month school and her wage was $60 a month. She built fire, was janitor, etc. When the term was three months they had it in the summer because of the cold, severe winters and traveling to school was on foot, horseback or team and buggy.

In 1893 they paid Mr. Kline $5.00 rental for the three-month term. In 1897 the proposition for a fall and winter term was made. In 1908 it was decided to enlarge the school, the district was to buy the lumber and the patrons build the building. Our teacher was dismissed for punishing the students by beating. As early as 1911, the subject of forming a Union High School was debated. The new building was finished in 1910; one of the teachers was Maude Elsey. The teacher had all eight grades and as many as 40 to 60 pupils

In 1923 Kirk was admitted into the Yuma County High School System. The first high school classes were held in 1923 in the Kirk Baptist Church until the new school was built. Miss Helen Finley was the first and only high school teacher at that time and there were only the 9^th and 10^th grades. The school was built where the present school now stands in Kirk. When they moved into the new school, Mr. Aspinwall was principal and Miss Swanson a teacher, and them came Vivian Johnson Amy and Betty Taylor Smith with J. Blair Roush as principal. He was a teacher, coach, secretary and all. The first class from Kirk High School graduated in 1927. There were five, Esther Dietz (Halstine), Jewell Graves, Kenneth Steele, Clarence and Claris Crawford. The old school was moved and became the garage on the corner. The new building was valued at $10,000. There were 15 volumes in the library, the total expense per pupil was $99.38. A full time janitor was hired, a PTA was organized in 1924 with Mrs. Maude Idler and Mrs. Anna Crawford as the first officers. The early meetings were faithful to the concept of the organization and allowed discussions pertinent to school. They purchased things for the school. There was usually entertainment and refreshments. The PTA finally died out in later years. In March 1932 the school burned to the ground. School was held in the John Gulley Store building and the house that Sam Gilberts had lived in the rest of the term.

A new school was built and in use that fall. Kirk never had school buses. In around 1955, Kirk, Joes, Clark, Pioneer, Kechter, Red Top, Fox, Stalker schools all consolidated and the elementary was in Kirk and high school at Joes, and a new building on Highway 66? Was built and it is called Liberty