In 1873 the annual report of School District No. 8 showed ten boys and eleven girls residing in the district of school age, and six boys and twelve girls of school age attending the school and two under five years of age. Sixty days of school were held during the term, as reported by David Barrick, director, on April 5, 1873, and the teacher was Rebecca

Hilerman, who served for $30 per month. Expenditures for the term were teacher $59, with $31 due, fuel $15.

The families living in the district, in 1873 who had children of school age were:

SCHOOLS OF WOOD RIVER

As early as 1864 there was instituded a school at Old Wood River with an attendance of from five to ten pupils. This school was continued until some years later it was organized into Distirct No. 5. It was not until 1872 that the settlement was advanced sufficiently around the present site of Wood River to organize a school. In that year District No. 8 was organized with Hi Jones, David Barriek and Joseph Dunphy as a board of trustees and Miss Rebekah Hileman (later Mrs. Hi Jones) was installed a teacher in a little school house just outside the present corporate limits of Wood River, and eleven pupils were enrolled. Following Miss Hileman, John Allan, so well known to Hall County people for his long faithful service as clerk of the district court and abstractor in years since then, "taught the young idea how to shoot." In 1882 Charles Thompson was elected principal and Mrs. Anna Budenburg assistant, with two additional teachers. It was in this year that the large frame school build-

ing was commenced, it having at that time four rooms. Prof. Thomoson was succeeded by Prof. F.L. Morris who had charge of the schools from the fall of 1883 to the fall of 1885, when Prof. Thompson was again elected principal and served in that capacity until 1888 when he was succeeded by Prof. W.L. Sprague, who continued at the head of the school until 1894 when he accepted a position as cashier of the Citizen's State Bank. Following Prof. Sprague came Prof. A.H. Seymour, and in 1895 he was succeeded by Prof. J.H. Ellison who taught for one year, and his successor was Prof. J.A. Beard, who stayed four years. Prof. Baker, 1902-1907; Stephenson; 1907-1909, Hull; 1909-1912; Vance, 1912-1913; Colbert, 1913-1914, and in 1914, Prof. Julian who is still in charge of Wood River's schools came.

In recent years Wook River has erected a splendid school building, modern in every respect.