Learning in a “U.P.” Country School: Learning a "U.P." Country School

Many readers will recall Parts 1 and 2 of this school memoir that attracted many positive comments and remembrances. The piece was written by Reino “Ray” Peterson, a child of Finnish immigrants who was a student in the 1920s. If you would like to refresh your memory, here is a link to the previous stories. Going to School 100 Years Ago, Part 1 and Going to School 100 Years Ago, Part 2

Part 3 continues that tale that took place in the Upper Peninsula of Michigan. The U.P. is the part of the state that lies above Wisconsin, a place of natural beauty with shores on both Lake Superior and Lake Michigan. The Peterson family lived in the far-north Keeweenaw Peninsula where snowfall regularly exceeds 300 inches a year. 

A Typical Day at School
 The Mornings
 Each morning, the janitor lit a fire in the stove before the teacher arrived. He also brought in a bucket of water for drinking from the schoolyard pump. On winter mornings, it was frequently too cold to study, so the children played follow the leader up and down the aisles until the stove warmed the classroom. Even then, those seated in the front desks typically roasted while those in the back froze.

​When it was time for school to begin, the teacher rang a handbell, and the day started with the Pledge of Allegiance (old version).

The Pledge of Allegiance: The Pledge was inaugurated in 1892 on the 400th anniversary of the discovery of America (quadricentennial), known as Columbus Day. The words of the original Pledge of Allegiance were:
 
"I pledge allegiance to my Flag and the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."
 
In 1924, the original words of "my flag" were changed to "the flag of the United States of America". The text of the modified Pledge of Allegiance words:

"I pledge allegiance to the Flag of the United States of America and to the Republic for which it stands, one nation, indivisible, with liberty and justice for all."

Its words were officially recognized by Congress in June 1942. Then, in 1954, the words under God were inserted after one nation.

Recess and Lunch
Students had a recess period in the morning and one in the afternoon. Because children got plenty of exercise working at their daily chores at home and walking to school, they had no gym class. The only playground equipment was a baseball and a bat.

Those periods were spent in the winter by making snow forts and snowballing. Good-natured jousting and “King of the Hill” often took place. Kids would also lie in the snow and make snow angels. In the summer they played bat-and-ball games like “Swede” or “Flint.” If students tired of that, they would go into the woods near the school and make a “lean-to” or other kind of shack. Climbing trees and bending them to get into the next nearest tree was competitive. The one who could get into the most trees and travel the farthest was the winner. If you fell, you were disqualified. This was good winter fun as you could always fall into a snowbank.

Lunchtime was spent in similar activities. Those who lived too far to go home for lunch carried sandwiches. Milk was usually carried in a clean French’s mustard jar. Students had a picnic outdoors most days, but during the winter they ate lunch in the school’s warm furnace room.

It was not difficult to be excused from class during the spring planting season or potato-picking time in the fall. Just about everyone lived on a farm and their help was need at home. Sometimes classes would be suspended for a few days.

You also could always tell when the trapping season started by the aroma in the school. Most boys trapped skunks in the fall before the skunks went into hibernation. Traps were checked before going to school each morning. If the boys got sprayed by a skunk, they had to go home and change and bury the smelly clothes for a day or two. It wasn’t always possible to change shoes as most were lucky to have even one pair of shoes.

School Holidays
Washington and Lincoln’s birthdays were honored individually with special projects relating to each president. Valentine’s Day was a bit more special as a box was set up to receive the cards which would be distributed later. Many cards were hand-made. Some companies such as Sears and Roebuck would send out free catalogues of wallpaper samples, so the kids would cut out hearts, cupids, or other shapes from the paper. Pasting was done with a gooey blend of wheat, flour, sugar, and water. There were some real original one-of-a-kind cards.
 
At Halloween, classes would be suspended for a couple of hours to bob for apples. They didn’t have pumpkins, but they did make paper silhouettes of scared black cats, witches, and orange pumpkins.

At eleven o’clock on each November 11 (Armistice Day, now Veterans’ Day) students would have a moment of silence, stand with their right hands over their hearts, face the east and the flag while reciting the Pledge of Allegiance. Sometimes they would read or recite “In Flanders Fields.”

Christmas time was special at school, not only because it promised a short vacation, but also because of the festivities. A cast was selected to put on a program which often included a play, recitations, and songs. Three or four of the bigger boys would be assigned to find, cut, and bring back the school Christmas tree. Others got busy cutting out Santas, angels, or other suitable decorations and there were a few “store-bought” decorations. Popcorn was strung and if anyone found wild cranberries in a swamp, or rose hips, they would become part of the decorations.

Students could barely contain themselves as the night of the Christmas program approached. Parents were invited and those who lived farther away, would come by horse and sleigh. The expression “came with bells on” really applied as each horse would have the musical bells attached to their harness to warn other travelers in the darkness.

It was a Currier and Ives scene to behold with the bells ringing and each parent and child scrubbed “squeaky clean” and dressed in their best “bib and tucker.” There was no electricity in the school. Candles, which had been kept in the cold air outside to burn longer, were lit as were the kerosene lamps, so—Let the festivities begin!

There weren’t any gifts nor were refreshments served but sincere well wishes meant more than any sensual pleasure. If oranges were handed out, the boys would squeeze the peel so the juice would squirt into the flame of a candle and produce miniature fireworks.

With several horses and sleighs tied outside, the older boys couldn’t resist switching the reins so the horses would go left instead of right. After a little confusion, things returned to normal.

The kids would bask in the wonderful feeling of looking forward to Christmas at home. On the journey home they would snuggle in their warm blankets, listening to the music of the bells while the bright stars twinkled and seemed to be sending code messages to each other.

* * * * *
This story has been adapted from a story of a Finnish-American family.
The book title is A History of the Peter and Sofia Peterson Family,
published in 2022.


The author of the school chapter was Reino“Ray” Peterson,
second-youngest of the family’s nine children. Ray dedicated
his writing about school to his two older sisters, Olga (Ollie) and Marie.
He recalled that they took time to read to him before he could read.
They showed him “how magical it was to be transported to exotic lands
or float down the river with Tom of Huck.”

Submitted by Greta Nagel, niece of Ray Peterson, and
​Co-editor, A History of the Peter and Sofia Peterson Family