Remembering CDHS

By Bill Petherick

Interest is mounting as the 100th anniversary of Campbellford District High School (CDHS) gets closer. Starting July 13th, a variety of events will take place where students of the past will meet in Campbellford to renew old friendships. Some may have returned periodically for visits with relatives or former school friends, but some will arrive for the first time since they left CDHS. I still remember a tap on my shoulder at the 75th reunion in 1998. I turned to see a woman who lived next to our farm as a child. She had moved to Campbellford, then to Vancouver after marriage and hadn’t been east since. This will happen this summer to many people who want to get back to their roots.

As an 88-year-old former student of CDHS, I am almost as old as the school itself and can share some history that brought us to this celebration. Specific dates I use are from the book Gleanings: A History of Campbellford/Seymour which is a must for people who want to know the history of this area. Any errors or omissions in my own personal anecdotes are the result of my advanced age.

The first high school was built in 1877 on the grounds of the present-day Hillside Gardens Park at the corner of Bridge and Booth Streets. It was replaced in 1890 on adjacent land after fire destroyed the original. In 1923, this building became part of the elementary school system (Bridge Street Public School) on the completion of the 1923 building on Ranney and Market Streets where I attended. This building has had additions and renovations in 1960, 1963, 1970, and in 1988, the 1923 section was torn down and a new structure was built to link with the previous additions.

I started at CDHS in September of 1947 at 12 years of age. In town, you started kinder- garten at age five followed by eight years of elementary school, which qualified you to enter high school in your 14th year. In contrast, in the rural one-room schools, there was no kindergarten. You didn’t have to attend until age six. Also, rural teachers with eight potential grades could, on occasion, accelerate pupils if they could cover three years of curriculum in only two years. It meant that we could be eligible for high school at less than 13 years of age.

One big problem faced by rural high school students was how to actually get there! In our area, you were on your own. My mother, who lived on what is now called “Catchmore Road” south of County Rd 8 in the English Line community, said she and her sister wanted to go to high school but her father simply couldn’t take them every day and they were too shy to board in town. Instead, her father offered to take them into town for piano lessons which were only once a week. This worked out well for them as they both became very proficient piano players. Some pupils flagged the train at Westwood and Godolphin. Up to 40 students arrived at the Campbellford station at 9:40 am, walked to school by 10 am, and were picked up on the return trip at 7 pm. In the 1930s, the train service was withdrawn and in 1933, two high school bus routes started. The buses were to arrive in Campbellford by 9 am and leave for the return trip at 4 pm. I was lucky because a neighbour and fellow student, Blanche (Reid) Foote was old enough to drive and took Fern Tinney, Clair Irwin, and me to school in our Grade 9 year. That’s why I always called her “my first bus driver.”

As I recollect, Grade 9 was rather uneventful unless it was the dislike most of us had towards “Latin” class which was first thing in the morning. Like all our classes that year, it was compulsory and not a good way to start the day. Floyd Blake sat in the back seat in the corner behind Charlie McCoun. He often had a ‘snooze’ during class. One day, the teacher came back and asked Floyd if he was not feeling well. Floyd replied, “I’m tired.” The teacher then asked, “Do you think you will feel better for the next class?” Floyd quickly answered, “I think so.”

My Grade 10 year saw some important improvements. The decision had been made to bus all high school pupils from the rural areas. The bus I took started in Campbellford and headed out to Petherick’s Corners, then went north to Crowe River, then west to Trent River Village, and south on Highway 30 to Campbellford. It was a long ride, but I got to know where the students lived, and many friendships developed. The McCulloch clan was numerous at that time; I think nine of them got on the bus that year. The other important happening in Grade 10 was that I no longer had to take Latin. I didn’t shed many tears over that.

Grade 11 meant that bus routes had changed, and I rode from Petherick’s Corners to Burnbrae, Menie, Hoard’s Station, and then headed up the highway through English Line to Campbellford. That route was full of Grills and Stephens! Many people who had started with me in Grade 9 had dropped out after Grade 10 which was customary in those days.

In Grade 12, I had the same bus route as the previous year but eventually got my driver’s license so could drive occasionally. My best sport was softball, and the Grade 12 team did well. For readers much younger than me, Booth Street in the 1950s extended all along the school property and ended at Front Street north. The backstop was right at the intersection of those two streets (very close to the far end of the current school field). The high school baseball field was well-used by all the community as it was the only ball diamond in town. Cars could park on both Booth and Ranney streets. The old Seymour Softball League that I played in used to fill that whole area, especially on Saturday night which was the prime shopping time. As for winter activities at school, the outdoor rink was in the area where the technical wing is now. Except for removing snow, the ice seemed to stay from late December to mid-March. During my Grade 12 year, the hockey team was very strong and never lost a game. Players such as Paul Bennett, Bill Hay, Ron Dooher, Jim Dunk, Ray Read, Ken Forde and others made it easy for Floyd Blake and me who took turns playing goal.

CDHS was very fortunate to have two outstanding teachers who started their careers in the original 1923 building: Kathleen Ferris, the English teacher, and Kathleen O’Shaughnessy, the French teacher, both taught there until retirement. In Grade 12, Miss Ferris was my home-room teacher and one day, she came to my desk: “Bill, I can’t understand how you get 75 to 85% in French but only 55 to 60% in English Composition and 40 to 50% in English Literature.” She was particularly concerned because passing both English courses was a must to graduate Grade 12. Miss Ferris then asked, “What can I do to help you?” I promptly answered, “It’s not your fault, Miss Ferris. I know you are a good teacher. It’s my fault I hate William Shakespeare and I can’t concentrate enough to improve my marks.” At year’s end, my report card said, “Pass to Grade 13 except Grade 12 English will have to be repeated because of a final mark of 44 in English Literature.”

About a month before school, the principal, Mr. Keith, came into our class and asked who intended to return to complete Grade 13. About 50% of the class indicated they wished to return and then he asked sev- eral students not returning what their plans were. When he asked me, I said I was returning to help my father on the family dairy farm with the intention of owning a farm of my own in the future. He said that was an occupation that would always need young people and asked if there were any others in that category. About three or four other students expressed interest in leaving Grade 12 to work on the family farm, Neil McCulloch being the one I remember. Before Mr. Keith left, he made a comment that I will never forget. To paraphrase him, ‘you gathered here for four years, made new friends, mastered problems in different subjects, and now the end of school is close. I want you to know that the object of coming here was to prepare you for living and working in the world in the future and I wish you success.’ My immediate reaction was that Shakespeare wouldn’t be much help on the farm and I was ready for the end of school. Many decades later, I wouldn’t change a thing about my career choice.

If you are a student who walked through the hallways at CDHS at some time in its history, you have your own memories and experiences. I hope you register for the reunion and encourage some of your former classmates to do the same. When you gather in July, you can visit some old friends, reminisce about your classes and teachers, extra-curricular activities, and any adventures (or misadventures) you shared, and get caught up on what you have done since leaving CDHS. I have registered for the reunion, but my age group is not too dependable due to age and health problems. I am very thankful for the opportunity to attend one last reunion and hope to enjoy a walk down the halls of CDHS once again.