One-Room Country Schools: History and Recollections from Wisconsin [Paperback]

Jerry Apps (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: December 27, 2004

From 1791, when the first school was established in what is now Wisconsin, to the 1960s, when consolidation was finally complete, the one-room school’s history has been one of growth and change. In One-Room Country Schools, this history along with unique memories and shared recollections from the people who learned and taught in the one-room schools of Wisconsin tell the story of these institutions of learning.

Editorial Reviews

From the Publisher

Distributed for the author 1996, The Guest Cottage, Inc.

About the Author

Jerry Apps was born and raised on a central Wisconsin farm, a mile from the Chain O’Lake one-room country school where he attended eight years. Professor emeritus of education at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, he devotes most of his time to writing about rural America, especially the upper Midwest. Apps has also written several education books including Teaching From the Heart, Mastering the Teaching of Adults, and Study Skills for Adults Returning to School. Among his many popular books about Wisconsin’s heritage, the most recent is his Ames County series, starting with The Travels of Increase Joseph.

Product Details

• Paperback: 240 pages
• Publisher: Amherst Press (December 27, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0942495535
• ISBN-13: 978-0942495539
• Product Dimensions: 9.9 x 7.1 x 0.8 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (4 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #622,697 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

10 of 10 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars This book on country schools is historical and informative., December 31, 1998

By A Customer

This review is from: One-Room Country Schools: History and Recollections from Wisconsin (Paperback)

For those who attended one-room country schools, this book, combining history and personal recollections, will bring back fond memories of a different era. Children were well-educated in these schools; many of them only completed eight grades, but they could read, write, spell, do math, think, and reason. They also developed social skills and were kind to one another. I would recommend this book to anyone who ever attended a one-room school or who is in the field of education.

3 of 3 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A nostalgic history of these yesteryear institutions, February 12, 2001

By 

Midwest Book Review (Oregon, WI USA) - See all my reviews

This review is from: One-Room Country Schools: History and Recollections from Wisconsin (Paperback)

The first school in what was to become Wisconsin was established in 1791. The one-room school became a part of every Wisconsin community during the state's formative years. Now they are a nostalgic memory as the state's population outgrew their utility with the completion of consolidated school districts in the 1960s. In One-Room Country Schools: History And Recollections From Wisconsin, Jerry Apps presents a collection of unique memories and shard recollections from a wide diversity of people who learned and taught in the one-room schools of Wisconsin, thereby presenting an informative, entertaining, nostalgic history of these yesteryear institutions -- the one-room school.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars You have to be curious about one room schools, June 9, 2008

By 

jakintex "Macintex" (Spirit resides in WI, body in Texas) - See all my reviews

This review is from: One-Room Country Schools: History and Recollections from Wisconsin (Paperback)

I bought this book for my mom who went to a one room school in rural Wisconsin in the 20s and early 30s. It took her a couple days to read (she reads a LOT!). When asked if she liked the book, her reply was "ehh". Translated from "mom-speak", that was "it was better than looking out the window".