San Luis Obispo County History

Transcribed by Peggy Hooper

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Source:
A Memorial and Biographical History of the Counties of Santa Barbara,
San Luis Obispo, and Ventura, California
by Yda Addis Storke
Published in 1891 in Chicago by the Lewis Publishing Co.


SCHOOLS

The first school in San Luis Obispo, under the new regime, was opened in 1850, in a 
room of the mission building, the Spanish language being the medium of instruction. 
The teacher was Don Guillermo Searles, born in Chili, of English parents. This was a 
gentleman of education, and his administration gave satisfaction. The population being 
then very sparse, the one school district covered the whole county. Searles' successor 
was Michael Merchant, an Irishman, who came thither via Mexico. He taught in 
Spanish. It appears that during his administration the county fund failed, and the 
pupils were required to pay $5 per month tuition. Mr. Merchant was succeeded by 
Mr. Parker, who, instead of teaching in Spanish, and simply repeating the lessons, 
required his pupils to translate from one language to the other, they attaining to con- 
siderable progress by the drill. In 1854 Mr. D. F. Newsom was the teacher, and he gave 
his instruction in English, and required his pupils to translate the lessons into both 
languages. At that time there were in the county but forty children able to speak Eng- 
lish. To Mr. Newsom is due the honor of having organized the schools of San Luis 
Obispo upon the basis followed until now. At this time the assessor was ex-officio super- 
intendent of schools, but little or no attention was paid to the department until Mr. 
Newsom's incumbency. 

The progress of the schools was slow during the first decade, and there was but one 
district until 1861, when San Simeon district was formed where several American 
families had settled on a small area of Government land along Santa Rosa Creek. The 
two districts comprised the county, the dividing line being entirely indefinite. There 
were now 735 children of school age, and 230 under the limit, that is, a total of 965 
children under eighteen years old, in the county. Of these, sixty-two attended the 
mission district school, and thirteen the San Simeon school in 1861. The records are 
much broken up to 1866, since when they are complete. 

In 1870 there were 1,275 children of school age in San Luis Obispo County, of 
whom 566 attended the public, and 109 attended private, schools. In 1880 the total 
number of school census children was 2,752, of whom 1,805 were in the public, and 
seventy-eight were in private, schools. In twenty years the number of public schools 
here increased from two to fifty-three, the corps of two was enlarged to one of fifty- 
nine teachers. In 1863 the appropriation from the county for the school fund was 
$613; the county tax rate for this purpose in 1882-'83 was fixed at twenty and one-half 
cents on each $100. 

The school reports for June 30, 1890, show there are 4,733 census children in San Luis; 
the total enrollment to 3,845; the average number belonging, 2,515; average daily at- 
tendance, 2,307. The number of districts has increased to ninety-two, with 112 teach- 
ers, of whom the men receive an average salary of $75, and the women $63. The 
total amount received from all sources, for school purposes, for this year, was 
$93,822.10. 

The districts are all well supplied with good school-houses, barring such as come 
under the law of one year's probation. The buildings are neat in style, and some care is 
had with regard to the condition of the grounds. The best edifices are those of San 
Luis, San Miguel (where the main building cost $10,000), Paso de Robles, which town 
has lately expended $8,000 upon two buildings, and Nipomo, where the school-house 
cost $5,000.