Establishing School Districts
In 1862, the county selectmen divided Summit County in to school districts; at the time, schools were funded in part by a toll collected by the territorial government on the Brizzee Bridge across the Weber River. On 26 April 1865, the county court allocated a 50 dollar annual salary for Alonzo Winters as the new county superintendent of schools for 4 years. Thomas Bullock, Redden A. Allred and Hans Young formed a board of examiners for school teachers.
Generally, each town comprised a district of its own, with its own number:
- Henneferville, Number 1
- Coalville, Number 2
- Wanship, Number 3
- Peoa, Number 4
- Kamas, Number 5
- Park, Number 6
- Upton, Number 7
- Hoytsville, Number 8
The pattern of small school districts, which first originated in New England, was particularly effective in a place like Summit County, where individual settlements were scattered across the valleys and traveling from one town to another was difficult.
The principal school officer in Summit County was the appointed superintendent. Each individual school district had its own 3 member board of trustees, which allocated funds and oversaw the building of new schools, hired teachers, and furnished equipment such as books and desks.
Traditionally, books were owned by families who passed them down the line as each child advanced to a higher level; it wasn't until after 1900 that the district offered school books. As towns grew, they built bigger schools or added rooms to existing buildings. (excerpt from A History of Summit County by David Hampshire, Martha Bradley and Allen Roberts. Copies available for purchase from the Summit County Courthouse).