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| Postcard view from Greenbush St., Cortland, N. Y. |
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| Fine print for various rooms cannot be read in original newspaper scan. |
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| Both Harris photos copied from Grip's Historical Souvenir of Cortland. |
THE NORMAL
BUILDING.
THE
PUBLIC ARE INVITED TO INSPECT IT.
Saturday
Afternoon Between 2 and 5 o'clock the Time Fixed—Facts Regarding the School.
Cortland people feel a very deep interest and
a strong and natural pride in the State Normal and Training school which is located
in their village. For twenty-five years, by reason of this, Cortland has been
one of the educational centers of the state. A large proportion of the young
men and women who have grown up in this place during that period, as well as
hosts of others from various parts of the state, received their education
within the walls of the old building. With that structure, both outside and
inside, they felt very familiar, and many are the pleasant recollections which
they cherish of days spent under its roof. But the school has grown rapidly
within the last few years, and the day came when it would no longer accommodate
the increased number of its pupils. Then the large and new building which now
stands upon the space to the east of the old Normal was erected. The old
building was also entirely remodeled, so that almost the only things that
remain about its interior to recall the old days are the two familiar winding
staircases which still stand as they used to in the east and west halls.
Residents of the village have seen the walls
of the new building rise, have noted some of the changes that have been made
upon the exterior of the old building, and have heard their children tell of the
well arranged, well lighted, well ventilated and well furnished interior, but
only a small number have any idea from personal inspection how the inside of
the building looks. Numerous questions have been asked about it, and many
persons have expressed a desire to go through it, but have not felt at liberty
to do so while school was in session. The local board and the faculty have
therefore decided to open the whole building for public inspection to-morrow afternoon,
between the hours of 2 and 5 o'clock. All who desire to visit it are most
cordially invited to do so. A competent corps of ushers will be in attendance to
assist the faculty in showing visitors about. It is suggested that all enter by
the front door at the center of the new building, and from that point go to
other portions of the building, as may seem desirable.
We publish herewith a cut of the entire structure,
including old and new buildings, and also diagrams showing the arrangement of
the three floors. The STANDARD is
indebted to the editors of the Normal News,
the school paper, for the courtesy of the use of the large cut of the building.
The school opened March 3, 1869, with 135
Normal students. Miss Martha
Roe,
teacher of methods, is the only member of the original faculty who is still in
the school. Miss Mary F. Hendrick, the present teacher of rhetoric, reading,
elocution and English literature, began her work at the opening of the second
term, in the fall of 1869.
The total number of graduates to date is
1,074, of whom 209 are males and 865 females.
Among the students who registered at the
opening of the school were the following well known residents of Cortland at
the pretest time: T. H, Wickwire, H. L. Bronson, C. T. Peck, and S. S. Knox.
The present structure, including both old
and new parts which are joined together in a single building, is three stories high.
The main corridor which extends from end to end is 327 feet long. The greatest
depth of the building is 132 feet. The work of the Normal department, with the
exception of science, is located wholly in the new part. The science department
occupies a portion of the third floor of the old part, and is very complete in
arrangement and equipments.
The building is remarkably well lighted. It is heated by four boilers,
two of eighty horse power and two of forty horse power, all of which are
located in a separate building in the rear of the main building. It is
ventilated by artificial means, the fans being operated by a thirty-five horse
power engine.
The original building cost about $90,000,
but the work of its erection, which was done by contract, was subject to
criticism in many respects. Including the property turned in by the old
academy, both real estate and library and scientific equipment, the value of the
original Normal building, grounds and equipments was estimated at about
$100,000. All this was donated by Cortland to the state, and the village bonded
itself for $92,000 to pay for the building and part of the grounds. It also
raised $6,000 to pay for furnishing the dormitories, into which the third story
of the building was at first divided.
The $92,000 of bonds, which were issued May
30, 1867, by the village to pay for the building and grounds, and which bore 7
per cent interest, have been funded a number of times and reduced until now
only $20,000 of them remain unpaid, $10,000 of which bearing 3 5-8 per cent
interest fall due next year, and $10,000 bearing 3 3-5 per cent fall due in
1896. Counting principal and interest of the Normal bonds, the taxpayers of
Cortland have a large amount of money invested in the institution—and the
investment has been one of the best which a village ever made.
In 1891 the legislature appropriated $55,800
for the erection of the new building and $16,000 for repairs upon the old
building. In 1892 there was appropriated $26,000 for boilers, heating, etc, and
$18,110 for furniture, etc. for the building. In 1894 the legislature made the
further appropriation of $14,000 to complete the repairs upon the old building,
provide quarters for janitor, grade and improve grounds, paint and finish
interior walls of new building, and for furniture, books, supplies, physical
and chemical apparatus. The total appropriation during these years thus
amounted to $129,910. While this may seem large, it does not by any means equal
the amount which the state has put into some other of its Normal schools.
It must be borne in mind also that from the
time the Cortland school property was accepted by the state, Dec. 16, 1868, only
one special appropriation for repairs was made, and that was in 1889 and was
for $10,000—$3,250 of which, however, was to pay for an addition to the
grounds—though a small portion of the appropriation of $10,000 made for putting
in a system of ventilation and for other purposes in 1888 went for repairs and
improvements. Every other Normal school in the state, except Plattsburg and
Oneonta, which were only recently established, had received large
appropriations for additions and improvements to their buildings before
anything in this direction was done for Cortland, though this school has always
been among the largest of its kind.
It is only just, in mentioning these recent
appropriations, that the credit for securing those of 1890-91 should be given
to Mr. Hugh Duffey of the local board, and for the one of last winter to Hon.
B. F. Lee, our present member of assembly, both of whom devoted much time and
effort to urging the needs of the school upon the law-making powers.
During the past winter the secretary of the
local board, Mr. John W. Suggett, also prepared and secured the passage and
signature of two very important bills affecting Normal schools, one removing
the limit of $75,000 to which heretofore insurance of Normal property was
authorized and the other making the insurance money immediately available in
case of fire, for repairs or rebuilding, without the necessity of applying to
the legislature for a special appropriation of it for these purposes.
The annual state appropriation for the
support of the school is now $24,000. How the income of the school compares
with the income of other Normal schools in the state may be judged from the
table given below, which shows the total number of Normal pupils registered in
each Normal school in the state in the year 1893—the reports for 1894 are not
yet published—the receipts from tuition for the same year, and the annual
maintenance appropriations made by the legislature of 1894. Brockport and
Fredonia, the total number of Normal students in attendance upon which is not
given in the annual report, are both smaller schools than Cortland. The total
number registered in the Normal at Cortland this year, 495, places it nearly at
the head of the list in point of attendance, though its income, as will be seen
from the table, is considerably less than that of several other schools. The
reason of Cortland’s receiving no income from tuition is that a clause was
inserted
in the
deed of gift of the original Normal building and grounds to the state providing
that instruction in the primary, intermediate and academic departments shall be
given free to students residing within the corporate limits of the village of
Cortland. Following is the table:
In view of the registration of 495 students at
the Normal this term Cortland is entitled to have its annual maintenance fund
considerably increased in order to place it on an equality of income with other
Normal schools of its size.
The growth of the school of late has been
very rapid. The present entering class numbers 165 Normals, which is unprecedented.
The total registration of the Normal at present is just 495, of which 90 are
academic students, which is at least one hundred more than two years ago, had
ever been known at this time of the year. The class entering next February will
increase this number at least 50 or 75. Normal hall is seated with 364 single desks,
and the extra number of students in attendance have to double up with others.
There is space to crowd into the hall about 400 single desks, which at the time
of building was believed to be as many as would ever be needed.
In the intermediate study hall there are
sittings for 214 pupils, and there are just 200 pupils in attendance. The primary
department has a seating capacity of 198, and 181 are registered. The total
number of students now in attendance in all departments of the school is 876.
The faculty of the Normal was never stronger
than at the present time, and is as follows:
Francis J. Cheney, A. M., Ph. D., Principal,
psychology and philosophy of education.
Darwin L. Bardwell, M. A., natural sciences.
J. Edward Banta, M. A., Latin and Greek.
William A. Cornish, A. B., mathematics.
Martha Roe, methods and superintendent of
schools of practice.
Mary F. Hendrick, rhetoric, reading,
elocution and English literature.
Clara E. Booth, geography, French and German.
Mary E. Trow, A B., history, civics and school
law.
Helen M. Goodhue, industrial drawing.
Carrie Monell Curry, A. B., English, Latin,
science.
Minnie M. Alger, vocal music and methods in
music.
Grace K. Duffey, principal and critic in
Intermediate department.
Emily C. Ormsby, methods and critic in
Intermediate department.
Mary L Eastman, principal and critic in Primary
department.
Sara A. Saunders, methods and critic in Primary
department.
The management of the school is vested to
the superintendent of public instruction, Hon. James F. Crooker; and the
following members of the local board: William H. Clark, chairman; John W. Suggett,
secretary; Hon. Lawrence J. Fitzgerald, treasurer; Messrs. James S. Squires,
Hugh Duffey, Theodore H. Wickwire and Hon. Orris U. Kellogg of Cortland, Hon.
Israel T. Deyo of Binghamton and Mr. Salem Hyde of Syracuse.
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| David B. Hill. |
SENATOR
HILL.
Passed
Through Cortland and Made a Short Speech.
Senator David B. Hill opened the Democratic campaign
at Syracuse last night and passed through Cortland this morning on the
vestibule train on his way to Binghamton where he speaks to-night. Word was
sent down to Cortland and an effort was made to get up a little demonstration at
the station to meet him.
Ten members of the City band were brought
together and they paraded through Main-st. to draw the crowd to the station. A
laughable feature of this was the fact that the band halted at four different
times upon the street to look for a Democrat to lead them and head the
procession, but not one could be found. The supply of Democrats has been
steadily running down in Cortland and elsewhere in proportion to the decrease
of work. After election we question whether a band or a sheriff or even Senator
Hill himself can find a leader for a Democratic procession.
The band finally proceeded without a leader
to the station, where upwards of two hundred men were assembled. It was a
noticeable fact that Republicans were quite as numerous in the crowd as
Democrats.
As the train came in the band began to play
and the crowd surged toward the parlor car, through whose windows could be
distinguished the form of the senior senator from New York, accompanied by
Messrs. Hugh Duffey and John Courtney, Jr., both of whom had attended the rally
at Syracuse last night. Senator Hill appeared upon the rear platform of the car
and a mild cheer was raised. Whether it was due to the presence of numerous Republicans
or the scarcity of Democrats or the lack of enthusiasm in the adherents of that
party, can hardly be determined, but certainly there was none of whoop-er
up-for-Hill spirit which has always heretofore greeted the senator in Cortland.
The senator spoke for five minutes to attentive
listeners. Among other things he said that he should pass through Cortland on his
way to his old home in Elmira to speak there on the evening of Nov. 3, and he
hoped then to stop off here and speak more at length upon the issues of the
campaign.
The senator said that, "the country now
stands upon the eve of a period of great prosperity and this will be due to the
splendid tariff bill which has just become a law. Under this law not a
workingman in the country will be thrown out of work, and not a workingman in
the country, will have his wages lowered."
The
people will gladly welcome such a period of prosperity as the senator prophesies.
His opinion seems to have changed somewhat from the time when he said in the
senate that if this bill did become a law it would cost the
Democratic
party the loss of the states of New York, New Jersey and Connecticut. The
senator's prophecy that no workingman would be thrown out of employment or
would have his wages cut down hardly accords with the facts of the industrial
situation since Oct. 1, as noted in an editorial in The STANDARD of yesterday.
He could not speak long for the bell began
to ring, the conductor shouted "all aboard," and with a graceful
adieu he was borne away as the train moved on to Binghamton.
BREVITIES.
—Daniels' orchestra of six pieces plays in
Slaterville to-night.
—The funeral of Flora C. Lathrop, who died
October 10, of tubercular consumption, aged 20 years, will be held from her
late residence on Evergreen-st., at 9 A. M. to-morrow. The remains will be
taken to Marathon for burial.
—We begin to-day the publication of two
thermometers at the head of the brevity column—one showing the temperature of
the past twenty four hours as heretofore, and the other showing the temperature
of the corresponding day of last year.
— A recent issue of the Worcester, Mass., Spy contains a four column article upon
the village of Cortland, N. Y., from the easy pen of [Cortland native and freelance
writer] Mr. George A. Benham, in which the various industries, schools and
different people here in the place are treated upon in a highly complimentary
way.
—We have lately made a change of the "Events
of To-night" to "Coming
Events"
at the head of the brevity column, the idea being to call attention to all events
which will occur on the following day before The STANDARD goes to press, which
under the former heading we were unable to mention, as well as giving previous
notice of the events of the following evening, so that people may make their
plans for the next day and evening accordingly. Several of our readers who have
observed the change in the notices have failed to note the corresponding change
in the heading and have thought we were constantly making mistakes. The date
follows all events of the morrow. We think that this will prove an added
convenience to all readers of The STANDARD.
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