Wise County, North Texas
Pecan School
Email - Sue@WiseCountyTexas.info
We have a few pictures and yearbooks from the following other schools. Contributions to these pages are greatly appreciated.

Pecan School was Northeast of Decatur. See short history below.
Click on the images to see them FULL SIZE.

Early 1900's - Picture of the OLD Pecan School

Picture sent in by Alton Cook booksco@cox.net . Click to Enlarge.
He writes, "This is a photograph of the old Pecan School. I do not know the date, but it must be fairly early judging by the children's clothes as well as the fact that I have snapshots of the new Pecan school from the 1920's. This is from the collection of my grandfather, B.W. Cook. All of his children went to Pecan School as did the children of his brother, W. A. Cook. This is the school Jewell Cook went to."
(See Cook Family on page http://www.wisecountytexas.info/families/green.htm )

1912 or 1913 - Class Picture from the Old Pecan School
  
Picture sent in by Andrea Lloyd andeelane5@gmail.com  Click picture to Enlarge.
She Writes, "Here is another photo for your website. It's of the Old Pecan School probably 1912-13. I know you have another photo on your site and I believe that one is probably 1913-15. My family is the Bowen family and Faybelle was born in 1899 and Leuada born in 1909. Leuada seems to be about three or four in the photo I am sending. The photo on your site is a year or two after my picture." Names on picture -

Back Row:
L.B. Stevens
F. Belle Bowen
Thelma Tuchett
Carl Harder
Bascomb Perkins
Fred Bastian
Pauline Harder
Top Center:
Privitt
Jess Bowen
Waldo Boyd
Lower Middle:
Clyde Privitt
Carl Bowen
Ruby Gene Bowen
Leavida Bowen
Miss Williams
Anna Stevens
Bottom Row:
Bonita Williams
??
Beatrice Perkins

1916 - Oak Grove Church Singing Group (Old Pecan School Area)
  
Another picture sent in by Andrea Lloyd andeelane5@gmail.com  Click picture to Enlarge.
She writes, "Here is another photo of Faye Bell Bowen/Campbell's (b. 1899), my great-grandmother's, collection from her youth. I've also shared a story she wrote about her meting her future husband (William Roscoe Campbell) and him coming to hear her singing group at Oak Grove Church. It probably was about 1916 when they met as they were married in February of 1918."
"I met Roscoe in the Dallas Train Station. Annie & Ben Bruton & I had been to the Dallas Fair and we were catching the train back to Decatur & Roscoe & Joe Shaw were on the train coming in and Ben & Annie knew Roscoe & Joe & introduced me to them. Then the following Sunday I was at a country singing convention at the Oak Grove Church when I saw Roscoe & Joe come in & had to stand in back as all seats were filled. After it was over they asked me to go to Bridgeport with them to pickup a teacher who boarded at the Campbell’s and taught at the little school by their house (Scratch-out). I did & then on Wednesday I got a letter asking for a date. On Sunday evening Ben & I was on a fighting binge so I told him yes. I thought it would bug Ben & from then on it got to where we were going steady before we knew it. We went together from October 2016 ‘til February a year later when we married one sunny Sunday afternoon, February 10^th in Rhome, Texas at a Methodist parsonage."
About this picture, Alton Cook writes, "The Oak Grove Singing Group is not at either of the Pecan or Oak Grove Church buildings.  They were wooden structures. This is a school class in front of one of the entrances of the old brick Decatur school building now torn down.  The teacher or maybe principal on the right is the same man in the photo of the Decatur class of about 1916 I sent in. My mother Alta Mae Hilton was a neighbor of the Bowen family when she was growing up and was a good friend of Faye Belle and Ruby Gene. "

1913 or 1915 - Class Picture from the Old Pecan School
  
Picture sent in by Alton Cook booksco@cox.net . Click to Enlarge.
He Writes, "I have another picture of Pecan School made I think in 1912 or 1913 (? See dates in picture above).
It is accompanied by a list identifying the students.  The list was hand written by my mother, Alta Mae Hilton Cook,
and I have transcribed it:

From the left
1^st row   Huffman – Huffman -  ?  - Doc Cook  -  Waldo Boyd  -  ?  - Walter Gilliland  -  ?  -  ?  - Paul Boyd
2^nd row  -  ?  - Annie Cook  - Leota Hughes – Matilda Bastian  -  ?  -  ?  - Lottie Huffman  - ?  -  Ruth Cook  - Lola Mae Boyd  -  ? 
3^rd row   - ?  -  Carl Bowen  -  ?  -  Archie Fullingim  -  Logan Mills  -     Mills  -  Jesse Bowen  - Ford Fulligim  -  Fred Bastian  -  Ruth Gilliland  - Bell Cook  -  Dale Stevenson
4^th row  Mr Wilson (teacher) -  ?  -  Lowell Cook  -  Eva Barrett  -  Bertha Bastion  -  Jewel Cook  - ?  - Huffman  -  Lena Fullingim  -  ?  -  Faye Belle Bowen  -  Beulah Cook

Mid 1920's - Pictures of the NEW Pecan School
  
Pictures sent in by Alton Cook booksco@cox.net . Click to Enlarge.
He Writes, "Here are two snapshots of the new Pecan School taken in the mid 1920's.
The girl in the dark dress getting a drink at the pump is Alyeen Barrett and
the guy is Marcus Stevenson. I don't know about the couple in the other photo."

Short History of the Pecan School
from The History of Wise County, A Link with the Past

PECAN SCHOOL
   All that remains today of the old Pecan School is a concrete slab located between Aubrey Deaton's and Virgil Parsons' homes about four miles northeast of Decatur, and memories of years past.
   Memories such as Mrs. Annie Milligan riding to school from Decatur on a horse each morning to teach, and then she bought a car in 1921 to make her trip a little quicker. Other teachers were: Mamie Hughes Cates, Ester Gregg. Hattye Jarnagin. Lois Hunt, Vera Walker, Matilda Bastian, Marjorie McCracken , Johnnie Stone , Alma Tackel and Fred Bastian, all these taught in the two-room school house. Some of those teaching in the old building shown with the children were: Electra Pickett, Myrtie Collins , Frances Fullingim and a Mr. Wilson. It is believed the first school was held in 1890.
   Friday afternoons were often given over to spelling matches or picnicking on the "holler" north of the school, known as Hales' Holler. Games were enjoyed, and there were grapevine swings, persimmons, and several colors of clay that could be used for modeling.
   Lumber for the two-room school was from the Pecan Cumberland Presbyterian Church which was erected in 1903 near the school site. The school was built about 1918. The school consolidated with Decatur Independent School District July 15, 1930.