Zenith School Records

Collection — Box: 1

Identifier: OGLMC-1452

Scope and Contents

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The Zenith School Records consist of the scrapbook "Lignite." The scrapbook is 34 pages long and contains many photographs of the school, students, and teachers. Each section of the scrapbook focuses on a different aspect of the educational experience at Zenith School. It contains of a brief history of the school and a description of the various activities. Organizations such as the Board of Education, Parent-Teacher Association, Hot Lunch Club, Current Events Club, athletics and school government helped provide students with the best education possible. The scrapbook tells of the three horse-drawn buses and the men who drove them. Zenith offered their students a broad education by providing music and writing classes. Students performed in Christmas, Halloween, and Thanksgiving programs, which were attended by the entire community. At the end of the each school years, students looked forward to commencement and a picnic. Between 1922 and 1924, Zenith experienced a decrease in attendance. Most of the former students either moved away or were needed at home. The school tried to combat this by ending the scrapbook with a section titled "Why Stay at School," emphasizing that education plays a key role in developing good citizenship. Zenith believed "good citizens have a wholesome influence on the economic and social welfare of the country. Young people who are well trained are able to look ahead, and build up better standards of living throughout the country."

Dates

created: 1922-1924, 1970
Other: Majority of material found in 1922-1924
Other: Date acquired: 07/29/2002

Conditions Governing Access

Open for inspection under the rules and regulations of the Elwyn B. Robinson Department of Special Collections.

Biographical or Historical Information

The town of Zenith is located in western North Dakota in Stark County. It was founded in 1902 by Henry Truelson, who believed that Zenith could have been another Duluth because of the coal deposits that surrounded the town. The floods of 1906 and 1907 signaled the end of the rapid growth for Zenith. Zenith School was one of three schools in South Heart School District No. 9. It had three main rooms: primary, intermediate, and high school. Next to the school was a teacherage, a residence for teachers. Zenith offered their students a wide variety of activities from athletics to Hot Lunch Club. On December 13, 1946, the main building of the Zenith School was destroyed by fire. The cause of the fire was a defective chimney. The remaining school term was held in the teacherage.

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