Historical Images of Porter County

Crisman School Classroom
Crisman, Indiana

Date: Circa 1920
Source Type: Photograph
Publisher, Printer, Photographer: Unknown
Postmark: Not Applicable
Collection: Steven R. Shook
Remark: A log school house measuring 18 feet by 24 feet stood on the site of the school seen here. This log structure was used for about nine years. The first term of school at Crisman was taught by Elder Bartlett, a Baptist minister. Later teachers at this school, in order, included Cyrus Sales, Christina Fry, Emily Gerhart, and Chancey Gaylord. Gaylord was a cripple and the last to teach in the log school. A frame building followed the log construction and the brick building, seen here, was erected in 1879. In January 1909, the Crisman School began providing for high school education; prior to this time, the school district did not provide high school education and local students would have to travel and board elsewhere to achieve a high school education. Around 1919, an addition was made to the brick building. Soon afterward, in 1922, the first gymnasium, a frame building, was built at a cost of approximately $12,000. The school's enrollment then expanded rapidly with the industrialization along the Lake Michigan shoreline, and a new high school physical plant was completed in the fall of 1929 at a cost of $90,000 to accommodate this growth.

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Image and related text prepared by Steven R. Shook