Retta Hurlburt, Kansas Schoolteacher

 A banner stretched across the education exhibit at the Lyon County Fair on a bright, mild, day early in October 1878.

      “Our Schools Are Our Pride.” 

     There were three divisions within the exhibit - Rural Schools, City Schools and School Supplies. Within the display for city schools was Miss Retta Hurlburt’s class, District No. 3, Fremont Township outside of Emporia, Kansas. The next day, the newspaper announced Miss Hurlburt’s class won second place in the Scientific Display category. 

     Retta was 33, a native of Indiana and an 1867 graduate of Western Female Seminary in Ohio, the “Mount Holyoke of the West.” Her family story was typical of the time and place. She came from people of New England roots, the descendants of Puritans, who began moving west from Connecticut, first settling in Miami County in northeast Indiana. Connecticut Yankees tended to take education seriously, and in 1850 five-year old Retta and her four-year old brother Gus were already attending school. They were the only four- and five-year old children in the neighborhood who were. They must have been considered advanced and very well-behaved. The Hurlburts were prosperous enough at farming to be part of the new “middling class.” They were able to educate their daughter beyond a common school education and give her the equivalent, even, of a college degree. 

     Western Female Seminary was in Oxford, Ohio. After Retta’s lifetime it became Western College for Women. In order to be admitted, Retta had to pass exams in English grammar, modern geography, U.S. history and “mental and written” mathematics. Admission was on a probationary basis for six weeks. But she proved herself, and as a senior, Retta studied Virgil, Loomis’ Trigonometry, Geology, the history of literature, Haven’s mental philosophy, Wayland’s moral science, Butler’s analogy, the Bible (prophets and epistles) and composition. She probably also had instruction in vocal music and drawing, which came with an extra cost. The school was intended to outfit middle-class girls for teaching jobs in the west, and missionary work. To have as much education as she did, she was a fortunate young woman indeed. 

     Right after her graduation her parents uprooted from their home in Miami County and decided to try life in Kansas. Retta went with them and they settled on a farm outside Emporia. 

     Yet three years after graduating, Retta wasn’t teaching. On the 1870 census she and her sisters, Allie who was 17 and Rhodie who was 20, all of teaching age, were living at home with their parents and none of them working outside the home. The census could be misleading, however, just one snapshot on one day, and it was taken in summer. Still, Retta wasn’t in a situation where she absolutely had to work to survive. In the 23 years she lived after her college graduation, she only taught for 12 years. Professionally, she was busiest in the 1880s.

A Teacher’s Teacher 

     The earliest newspaper mention of Retta teaching wasn’t until 1879. Her sister Allie was teaching, too. There were 65 applicants for a teaching certificate and exams for certification were held in August. Potential teachers were licensed as “A” grade, first-class and second-class teachers. One could be hired as a second-class teacher, but of course a higher rating was more employable. Only four applicants received the highest score for “A” grade, and two of them were Retta and Allie. In 1885 she took another certification exam and again was one of a small number achieving the highest score. Her Western Female Seminary education was no doubt a help.

     The 1880s found her very busy not only teaching, but frequently presenting at the local teachers’ association institution – what we would call professional development today. “She has been prominent in various lines of educational and literary work,” a newspaper account said. She presented on topics like “Home Reading to Children” and “The First Day of School.” She was elected treasurer of the Teachers’ Library Association. 

     At age 40, Retta was boarding with the William Scheel family in Fremont, Kansas, 10 miles outside of Emporia, and teaching school. The Scheels were neighbors she’d known for a long time. Their 19-year old daughter Lottie was also teaching. Lottie would marry in 1890, but Retta never would.

     It was not unusual for a girl from her seminary class to remain unwed. In the 25th anniversary program of the Western Female Seminary Class of 1867, Retta was one of nine unmarried women versus 12 who married.

Outside of School

     True to their New England roots, the Hurlburts were very active in the Congregational Church. Retta publicly proclaimed her faith in 1863 at age 18. Her father Talcott was a deacon in the Emporia church. 

     One year, the Ladies Aid Society sponsored a fundraising Dickens Carnival. The beloved author’s works and characters were as familiar to virtually everyone then as “The Simpsons” is to Americans today. “Mr. Pickwick” sat on stage as one Dickens character after another approached him, thirty in all, each person in costume, and was introduced by an emcee. Retta was Peggoty from David Copperfield and Gus was Barkis. Rhoda and Allie were Pecksniff’s lovely daughters from Martin Chuzzlewick. No doubt it was all to the delight of the audience – which numbered 400 attendees. 

     The characters sat with “Mr. Pickwick” while other church members read selections from David Copperfield and Dombrey and Son. Finally, there was a tableaux vivant performance of four scenes from the novels. Tableaux performances were extremely popular from about 1830 to 1900. In them, costumed actors would create a scene and freeze for about thirty seconds as if they were a living picture. Sometimes there was music and narration, and in some cases a huge picture frame was even held up in front of the actors. 

     The evening finished with a supper served during which one woman and two men took turns regaling the crowd with selections on the organ. The church grossed $126 (equal to roughly $4,000 today) from a memorable evening that was probably talked about for years. It was such an appealing idea that the story about it went out over the wires and was repeated in other newspapers in Kansas.

     With her brother Gus, Retta also joined the Neosho Grange. Teaching, church, the Grange and doing things with family and friends filled her life. 

Retta’s Untimely Death

     In November 1890, Retta went to All Saints Hospital in Kansas City for an operation for a fibrous tumor in her abdomen. She was accompanied by her sister-in-law Eva, Gus’ wife. The tumor was a large one that had been growing for years according to a newspaper account. The operation began at 11:30 in the morning, and by 3:30 she was dead. 

     “Nervous shock,” according to her obituary. Retta knew the surgery was risky and had no illusions about how things might turn out. Before leaving home she sat down and wrote individual letters to her family and friends, telling them how much they meant to her and assuring them of her faith. It was typical of her “customary strength and thoughtfulness,” an item in a Congregational newspaper said. 

     “As a teacher, she ever won the respect and affection of her scholars,” the writer said. “As a neighbor and friend, always helpful and true. In her family she was a perpetual inspiration and support. As a Christian, her whole life was so molded and inspired by the generous, gracious, earnest spirit of her Lord, that all recognized in her the power of her Christian faith.”

     Retta was 45. The Emporia Republican said “throngs” of buggies and carriages lined the streets to First Congregational in both directions approaching her funeral. Her casket was covered in white floral wreaths and green vines, and the minister read from one of Retta’s last letters. 

Euretta “Retta” Hurlburt (1845-1890) – Teacher – Daughter of Talcott Ledyard Hurlburt, granddaughter of Rhoda Barber. Retta fits in my family tree as follows: My great-great-great grandfather, Myron Fitch Barbour, and Talcott Hurlburt, were first cousins. Retta was Myron’s second cousin.  

 

Sources:

     “The Dickens Carnival: Large Attendance and Great Success,” Weekly News-Democrat (Emporia, Kansas), 28 June 1878, p. 3.

     “The Lyon County Fair,” Weekly News-Democrat (Emporia, Kansas), 4 Oct 1878, p. 3.

     “Educational Exhibit,” Weekly News-Democrat (Emporia, Kansas), 11 Oct 1878, p. 3.

     “Our Teachers,” The Evening News (Emporia, Kansas), 16 April 1879, p. 3.

     “Report of Bunker Hill School,” The Evening News (Emporia, Kansas), 13 May 1880, p. 1.

     “Teachers’ Association,” The Evening News (Emporia, Kansas), 21 Sept 1880, p. 3.

     “Teachers’ Institute,” The Evening News (Emporia, Kansas), 23 July 1881, p. 4.

     Elected President of Library Association: Emporia Daily News, 30 July 1881, p. 4.

     “Teachers’ Meeting,” The Evening News (Emporia, Kansas), 22 March 1884, p. 1.

     “The Teachers’ Examination,” Emporia Daily News, 8 Aug 1885, p. 4.

     “Program of Teachers’ Association,” The Weekly News-Democrat (Emporia, Kansas), 4 Oct 1888, p. 2.

     “Death of Miss Retta Hurlburt,” Emporia Weekly Gazette, 29 Nov 1890, p. 7.

     “Obituary. Miss Retta Hurlburt, Emporia, Ks.” The Congregational Telephone, 1 Dec 1890, p. 4. 

Copyright Andrea Auclair  © 2024