Stillwater School History
When the Stillwater Township Elementary School first opened in 1941 as the “Stillwater Township Consolidated School,” it brought under one roof the students from five one-room schoolhouses in the area: Mt. Holly, Mt. Benevolence, Middleville, Swartswood and the Stillwater School on Maple Avenue. The new school on Stillwater Road had only four rooms, but it provided modern luxuries unknown in previous schools. The students enjoyed indoor toilets, oil heat, and even drinking fountains. The initial enrollment was 91. Upon graduation the students would attend Newton High School which had opened in 1916 and where the muscular farm boys distinguished themselves as outstanding members of the wrestling team. Kittatinny Regional High School opened in 1975.
Education in the Early Days
1822
Historians have discovered the existence of one-room schools in log cabins scattered across the Stillwater area as early as 1800. The first framed schoolhouse appeared in 1822 and was built near the German Reformed Church in the neighborhood of today’s cemetery. Samuel Waddell was the first teacher.
1842
The Academy. In 1842 Stillwater’s second school opened on the corner across from the Presbyterian Church in the Academy building where the Stillwater Historical Society is located today. Two years earlier, the Trustees of the School District had purchased the property for $300 from William Shafer, who had inherited it from his father, Casper. Isaiah Condit, the first teacher, was responsible for 79 students, according to 1849 enrollment records. Thamer Snover, a civil war veteran, was a particularly renowned teacher and became the principal in 1880. The two-story building was heated by a large fireplace on the ground floor. There was no indoor plumbing. The Academy served as the town’s center of education for sixty-some years.
1909
Maple Avenue. The Trustees grew concerned about the building’s deterioration and proceeded to purchase a three-acre property on Maple Avenue around the corner. The previous landowner was the grandfather of Lawrence W. Earl. The young Lawrence, who had attended the new school himself, related that it was built by his father, the lowest bidder, who constructed it for $1,500. Like other schools at that time, the building had no indoor plumbing or electricity. An abundance of windows provided natural light and the classroom was heated by a coal stove. The older boys hauled coal from the shed outside and drinking water for the neighbor’s hand-dug well. Among the teachers were Raymond Main (1909-1914), Mary Vail (1919-1921) and Rev. Dr. James Dalling (1924-1941) who was also the pastor of the Presbyterian Church.
1941
Stillwater Township Consolidated School. The consolidation of five one-room schoolhouses in the townships was part of a county-wide movement to improve education for children in rural areas. Originally the county had 120 one-room schoolhouses, combining children of a wide range of ages. When Ralph Decker, the County Superintendent for forty years (1903-1942) ended his tenure, the total number had been whittled down to eighteen. The last one-room schoolhouse, located in Vernon, closed in 1958.
1975
Kittatinny Regional High School opened in Hampton Township to serve students from seventh to twelfth grade from the townships of Fredon, Hampton, Sandyston, Stillwater and Walpack. In 2020 there were 908 students enrolled.
Additional Resources
- Ralph Decker, “Stillwater Township Schools” from THEN and NOW: Forty Years in the Schools of Sussex County (publication date unknown)
- Wayne McCabe, “Sussex County Lost, July 23: The Stillwater Academy,” NJ Herald, July 23, 2017
- Jennie Sweetman, “Lawrence Earl: Stillwater resident shares memories of days gone by”, New Jersey Herald, January 10, 2015