For small towns across the American west, two institutions were very important to the people: the school (often a room school in which children in all grades were taught) and the general store (a place to buy things as well as find out the local news). The Sherman County Historical Museum in Moro, Oregon, has room displays of both of these institutions.
School Room
According to the museum display:
“The one-room school usually taught students of all grades one through twelve. The sole teacher was most likely a young, unmarried woman; sometimes the students were older and bigger than the school marm. And often the older students attended school only when not needed at home. Teachers often lived with local families, rotating from home to home.
Learning consisted of reading, writing and arithmetic using only the most basic resources of slates, chalk and few (mostly donated) books. The teacher tried to impart ‘good manners’ too.”
General Store
According to the museum display:
“The forerunner of the modern one-stop shopping center, the general merchandise store was central to the lives of early families here. They could receive provisions, mail, news, goods and services for homes, farm and ranches for miles around.
In small town general stores, one could find provisions: flour, bacon, coffee, sugar, and bolts of fabric, thread, clothing, a hat or corset, seed for the fields, tools, lanterns and oil. Larger merchandise that ranged from barb wire to cook stoves, garden cultivators to cream separators, were stored in the larger back rooms. Yes, anything you could desire was available. And merchandise not on hand could be ordered from a catalog.”
Museums 101
Museums 101 is a series of photo tours of various museum displays. More from this series:
Museums 101: Old Time Education (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: The Country School (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: The Cheap Cash Store (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: The Fort Steele Drug Store (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: The Wah Chong Tai Merchantile (Photo Diary
Museums 101: Dalles City Street Scene (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: Settlers in the High Desert (Photo Diary)
Museums 101: The Butterfield Cottage (Photo Diary)