Document - Historical information/data - Brief history of establishment of Eagan schools -
One of the early concerns of the new settlers was education. Even
before Minnesota became a state, Congress had passed a law which mandated
that the proceeds from the sale of•two sections of land in each township
(sections 16 and 36) be reserved for the support of education. In Minnesota,
the territorial legislature, at the urging of Governor Ramsey, prohibited the
sale of this "school land" for less than $5 per acre, although the price
of land at the time was generally only $1 to $2 per acre. Land values
quickly increased, however, and this proved to be a valuable source of
revenue, with the money placed in a permanent school fund vo be distributed
to aid in the operation of local school districts.
With few exceptions (parochial schools and independent districts in
larger cities), the early schools in Minnesota were organized and operated
under the provisions first set forth by the territorial legislature in 1849.
Known as Common Schools, the County Board of Commissioners established the
district boundaries and appointed a County Superintendent of Schools.
Among the duties of the County Superintendent was the examination and certi-
fication of teachers for the County's schools. There were three levels of
certification, depending on the individual's qualifications: a certificate
valid in the county for two years, a certificate valid in the county for
one year, and a certificate valid in the county for six months.
The operation of each school district, including the hiring of the
teacher, was the responsibility of a 3-member Board of Trustees which was
elected from within the district. In addition to the state aid, a property C
tax could be levied to help finance the operation of these common schools.
Attendance was not compulsory and the schools were free to all those between
the ages of 5 and 21.
The 1881 History of Dakota County gives the following account of the
early schools in Eagan:
District #14 - "The first school in the town was taught by Michael Downing
during the winter of 1859-60, in a small log house 14 x 16 feet, owned
and built by Thomas Farman in the northwest quarter of Section 14. For
a new district the attendance was unusually large, being about forty.
This building was used about two years, when a new one of logs was
built, and located in the southeast corner of the southwest quarter
of Section 23..."
This is the current site of the Northview Elementary School. The
log building was replaced by a frame strucutre about 1875.
District #13 - "The next school was commenced soon after the first in a
house belonging to Bartholomew Daily, in the western part of Section 29.
It was a small log house built as a claim shanty, and was used by the
district for two years, then others until 1865, when a schoolhouse
was erected near the center of section 29..." (Blackhawk Road north
of Cliff Road.)
District #11 - "In October, 1860, a school was taught in the house of
Robert O'Neill, by Mrs. O'Neill for one month, and then the services
of Miss Elizabeth McDermott were secured, and she continued to teach in
the district a number of terms. The next spring an old building was
fitted up and used for a school house, until a log house was built...
in the northeast quarter of section 11. This building was burned
during the spring of 1865, and was replaced by a frame erected soon
after at the same place. The locality was not convenient and the house
was subsequently moved about a mile further west, and during the month
of March, 1881, suffered the same fate as its predecessor."
--This was replaced by a new building in the southeast corner of section
3 (Lone Oak Road and Lexington Avenue). It measured 18 x 26 feet with
a seating capacity for 40 students built at a cost of $600, and at the
time was said to have been the "finest school building in the town."
District #12 - "In 1869, district number 12 was organized, and a schoolhouse
was built. The building is about 16 x 24 feet. The district is the
smallest in town in respect to the number of scholars."
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A few years later, two other school districts were organized within
Eagan.
District #104 - This was a joint district which included a part of both
Eagan and Burnsville. It was commonly referred to as the "Old Blackdog
School" , and the schoolhouse was located by the present intersection
of Beau D' Rue Drive and Gold Trail.
District #106 - In 1898, a brick school house was built at Wescott which
long served as a source of identity for that community. The building
was dismantled in 1956, with part of it used in the construction of a
residential structure on the same site.
These local school districts generally provided instruction for the first
through the eighth grades. As late as 1910, there were still only three
high schools in Dakota County: at Hastings, South St. Paul, and Farmington.
Actually, it was not uncommon for school children from Eagan to travel
into St. Paul to attend high school during these early years.
By the 1950's, consolidation of the common schools was gradually
occurring as Independent School Districts were formed. In Eagan, Districts
11 and 12 became part of the West St. Paul District (#197) in October 1949.
Rosemount School District (#196) expanded to include Districts 13, 14, and
106 in July 1950. And District 104 became part of the Burnsville School
District (#191) in January 1955. As new facilities were built and the means
of transporting students improved, these one-room schoolhouses were eventually
phased out.