A History of Star School: (
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Early in 1898 a small group of homesteaders gathered at the C.H. Lovelady home to discuss forming a new school district and the building of a school house. Elijah G. Wood volunteered to donate land and it was decided to make the building of stone as plenty of stone was available from the foundation of the Fort Bent building which had already been dismantled.
All, who could, agreed to donate Wednesday of each week to help bring the stones to the building site.
The ladies did their part by taking dinner to the Copeland home where all workers were served. Neighbors from the Enterprise District, also, came and helped. All work was donated except one stone mason was hired to lay the outside walls, a carpenter to do the woodwork and a plasterer to do the plastering.
The building was completed the latter part of August 1898.
In order to officially organize the new district, certain requirements had to be met. Ten children of school age had to live within the boundaries of the proposed new district and the residents had to hold four months of school at their own expense. Miss Fannie Brown (who, later, became Mrs. George Paterson), agreed to teach a four month school in her own home until the new building could be equipped. The people of the district agreed to pay Miss Brown's salary of forty dollars a month out of that year's crops.
As soon as the requirements had been met a new district was officially organized and was called Star and was number eleven in Bent County. This district extended over most of the southern half of township twenty-two with the Arkansas River as the southern boundary. The first school board consisted of Elijah G. Wood, Charles H. Lovelady and John Wilson.
Church services were held in the building until the Brethern Church was built in Wiley in 1907.
Approximately forty teachers taught at the Star school. Their school terms varied from 6 to 9 months and their salaries varied from forty dollars a month to two hundred and forty dollars a month. The first teacher was Mr. Charley Johnson and Mrs. Grace Johnson was the last teacher. The school consolidated with McClave in 1952.
It can be truly said that the cooperation of parents, students and teachers at Star school resulted in peace and harmony enjoyed in the Star School District. ~A History of Bent County