The Past
Businesses
Churches
Communities
Community Services
Entertainment
Ethnic Groups
Geography
Heritage Homes
Industries
Organizations
People
Schools
~ Ashton Creek School
~ Enderby
Schools
~ Grindrod
School
~ Hupel-Mabel
Lake School
~ Mara
School
~ North
Enderby School
~ Springbend
School
~ Trinity
Creek School
Transportation
Ashton Creek School was first opened in
1911, and was held in a log house situated south of the Mabel Lake Road immediately
opposite the Ashton-Cooke Road. It was named after the creek of the same name, and both
were named in honor of the first white settler, Charles Ashton, who came in 1877 to settle
on the farm now owned by Mr. and Mrs. Warren McAusland.
The first teacher was Miss Edith Bell, and at the time of opening, some twenty pupils were enrolled. Miss Bell boarded with Mr. and Mrs. Chalres Parkinson who were on the Ashton place, but she lived in a tent as the new house was not ready for occupation, and later in the fall moved to live with Mr. and Mrs. Charles Ashton who now had a frame house on the farm up the hill.
Miss Grace Brett was the nest teacher, and was followed by Miss Fern Pratt, who was a niece of Mr. Avery of Enderby. Miss Lily Terhune taught in 1915-1916, and was followed by Miss Vickers who taught until Christmas 1917. Miss Caroline Paradis (Mrs. H.J. Bawtree) who had come from Saskatchewan with her parents and sisters and had attended Enderby old school as well as new, taught from January 1918 to June 1920.
In 1920, a new frame school was built by much community effort, logs being cut and sold for the lumber, etc., and was finished in time for the Christmas concert 1920 under Miss Mary Dunlop, the first to teach in this new school. In 1953, an addition was built on to the Ashton Creek Hall, and for a year and a half accommodated 14 pupils under Mrs. Pauline Hewatt.
In 1923, a school was built at Trinity Creek, and a few pupils who had been attending Ashton Creek School left for their home school at Trinity Creek.
After fifty three years wear and tear, a new school was built in 1954, with Mrs. Kirkpatrick the first teacher there. But, with an increase in pupils, the old school had to be used again for several years, and an addition was built into which Mrs. I. Simard and her pupils moved in June 1964.
From the first attendance of twenty or more pupils at Ashton Creek School, there are now fifty-none, and some twenty attending High School in Enderby.
Of the present generation attending, four families have grand-parents who also attended Ashton Creek School. The Rabochs now attending have the distinction of having had both grandparents attending the old log school house.
In 1947, a taxi service for High School students was started. This soon proved too small, so a panel delivery half-ton was used for a while, later increased to a larger bus.
During the 53 years the school was in use, there have been some 340 pupils, taught by 37 teachers. Eight of these teachers have been students in Enderby. At first the teachers boarded with families of the district, but in more recent years the teachers have used the school bus or their own cars to travel to school.
In 1948, at the time of the floods, the road was too deep underwater for the bus to drive through, so Marie Blackburn (Mrs. George Olich) drove a team and two-seater Democrat for a couple of weeks, taking the five high school students to Enderby until a detour was made, going up the intake road and along the first old road back of Wightman's place, to join the main road again at Peavince Hill. At this time Alfred Bawtree was going to school in Armstrong, catching the Armstrong bus just south of Enderby; so his father, H.J. Bawtree, drove the John Deere tractor through the water, with Alfred, bicycle and books perched on the hood, after which Alfred proceeded by bicycle to catch his school bus.
In the early 1920's Mr. Bawtree was instrumental in getting a box of books on loan from Victoria Provincial Library for Ashton Creek School, and it was kept for a few months before getting an exchange pf books. This was kept up for several years, and was supplemented by books loaned by the families of the district.
In 1936, a branch of the Okanagan Regional Library was formed, and books for adults as well as for juveniles were kept in the old hall. A locking cupboard was made and set up by W.H. Coole and Harold Bawtree.
Later in 1940, small boxes of books were placed in the schools by the Okanagan Regional Library van, and these were exchanged at Christmas and Easter by Kingfisher, Ashton Creek and Trinity Schools. This was kept up until December 1964. The Okanagan Regional Library no longer leaves books at the schools, but books are exchanged throughout School District #78. The pupils can also borrow books from the Ashton Creek branch of the Library for their supplemental reading, or can get them from the Okanagan Regional Library.
Caroline Bawtree
Schools of Enderby & District, 1965