Teacher and pioneer Eliza Mott is credited with founding the first school in Carson Valley, Nevada. Photo credit: Cowgirl Magazine.

There are many amazing pioneer teachers who brought education and culture to the Western frontier. One of the most amazing was Eliza Mott, a remarkable educator who is credited with founding the first school in Carson Valley, Nevada.

In 1852, this enterprising pioneer wife and mother set up her school in her farmhouse kitchen. Her students sat on bare logs around a crude, wooden table. Armed with a couple of McGuffey Readers, a speller, and an arithmetic book, Eliza welcomed boys and girls dressed in plaid shirts or gingham dresses and home-knit stockings. Some were barefoot and some were wearing rough shoes with hard leather soles. The students in Eliza’ s class ranged in age from five to eleven years in age. Some of her pupils were her own children, and some were her nieces and nephews. 

Eliza was born on January 13, 1829, in Toronto, Canada. Her family immigrated to Lee County, Iowa, in 1842, and it was there that young Eliza developed her skills as a teacher. She excelled at academic subjects and vowed to make great strides in the field of education.

At the age of 22, she met and fell in love with Israel Mott, and on April 10, 1850, the pair were married. As soon as they were married, Israel and Eliza decided to go West. The fledgling pioneers set out in a Conestoga wagon pulled by two sturdy oxen. In early 1851 they landed in Salt Lake City, where they joined a Mormon wagon train and headed for California, one of a party of thirty families led by the famous frontiersman Kit Carson. When the caravan stopped to rest at Mormon Station in northern Nevada in July, 1851, Israel decided he liked the area so much he wanted to stay there. The couple homesteaded a 2,100-acre section of land along the Carson River route, and on this homestead Eliza established her school.

As more pioneer travelers established their farms in the area, the name of Mottsville was given to the settlement. It quickly became apparent that a school was needed. In addition to her teaching responsibilities, Eliza still had to run the farm. On an average day, she would rise before dawn to care for her children, milk the cows, cook breakfast for her family and hired hands, prepare lunches for her students, and then complete her lesson plans. By fall, 1855, the Mottsville School had officially outgrown Eliza’s kitchen, and by the next year a schoolhouse was built in town. A schoolmaster was hired from the East, and Eliza resigned as the teacher to care for her family full-time.

This Chalkboard Champion will always be remembered fondly as the founder of the first school in Carson Valley, Nevada. You can read more about her in this story by Chris Enss printed online in Cowgirl Magazine.

Many gifted classroom teachers have proven to be groundbreakers in the field of education. This is certainly true of Kate Vixon Wofford, a high school teacher from Laurens, South Carolina.

Kate was born on October 20, 1894, the eldest of ten children born to John and Cleo (Cunningham) Wofford. As a young girl, Kate attended Winthrop College, where she graduated with honors in 1916.

Kate accepted her first position as an educator at Laurens High School in Laurens, South Carolina. When World War I broke out, the intrepid teacher joined the United States Navy, where she served as a yeoman. She was one of the first women to enlist in the war effort. After the war was won, Kate returned to her classroom at Laurens.

At a time when women were not generally active in the political arena, Kate broke down many barriers. In 1922, she was elected to the position of County Superintendent of Schools, becoming the first woman in the state of South Carolina to be elected to a public office. She served two terms in this position. In addition, she served a term as the first president of the South Carolina State Teachers Association. And in 1929, she was selected to be a delegate to the World Conference in Education held in Geneva, Switzerland.

A lifelong learner, Kate returned to school in 1930. She earned her Master’s degree from Cornell University in 1931, and her doctorate from Columbia University in 1934. Following this, Kate accepted a position as the Director of Rural Education at State Teachers College in Buffalo, New York. An accomplished author, Kate wrote two books about education: Modern Education in the Small Rural School in 1938, and Teaching in Small Schools in 1946. These books were widely acclaimed. She also published pieces for the National Education Association (NEA).

In 1947, Kate was selected to be the Director of Elementary Education at the University of Florida in Gainesville. In 1952, she threw her energy into organizing a program for the Turkish Ministry of Education, successfully gaining funding and then directing a course of study for 25 Turkish educators. Her report of this program, entitled The Workshop Way with Foreign Students, was published in 1954.

Sadly, that same year, Kate learned she had cancer. She passed away at the age of 60 on October 31, 1954, in Gainesville. She is interred at the New Prospect Baptist Church Cemetery in Laurens, South Carolina.

During her lifetime, Kate was a member of the Daughters of American Revolution and the National Council of Administrative Women in Education. She was also a member of the honors association Pi Gamma Mu. To read more about this Chalkboard Champion, see South Carolina Encyclopedia.

Catherine Fiske, an innovative educator from New England, advanced the cause of education for girls during the early 19th century. Photo credit: Public Domain

There are many outstanding educators who advanced the cause of education for girls in the early years of our nation’s history. One of these was Catherine Fiske, an innovative teacher from New England who taught in New Hampshire during the early 19th century.

Catherine was born on July 30, 1784, in Worcester, Massachusetts. Even at a young age, she was a voracious reader. She attended public schools in her home village, until her family relocated to Vermont when she was 12 years old.

Catherine inaugurated her career as a teacher when she was only 15 years old. She taught in public or district schools throughout Vermont, Massachusetts, and New Hampshire. As a teacher, Catherine was well-liked in her schools for her integrity and dignity, but she was also stern and reserved, and she commanded respect. After demonstrating her exceptional skills with classroom management, she became a permanent teacher in Keene, New Hampshire.

In May, 1814, after a career as a teacher that had already spanned 15 years, Catherine purchased a building on a large farm in Keene, New Hampshire. There she established Miss Catherine Fiske’s Young Ladies Seminary. The school was the first of its kind in the state, and only the second like it in the country.

At her school, Catherine enrolled both day students and boarding scholars. At one time, she even opened a class of boys as day students. One year, between 80 and 100 students were enrolled. It has been estimated that more than 2,500 young people became her students over the 38 years the school was open.

With an enrollment so large, Catherine employed and supervised a staff of highly-qualified teachers to help her with instruction. She also ran the household and managed the farm, overseeing every detail. She did this even though her health was frail, and she was in pain much of the time.

Catherine was well-known for her acute business acumen. She charged $50 per term for each student. For younger students, this fee included instruction in reading, writing, English grammar, arithmetic, history, geography., and needle work. For older students, she included courses in politics, rhetoric, philosophy, theology, chemistry, botany, algebra, geometry, and Latin. For an additional fee, students could receive instruction in music, drawing, and painting.

Catherine Fiske passed away in 1837. She was only 53 years old. Following her death, a monument was erected to her memory in Keene.