St. Croix County Historical Society: The Sixth Street School

Press release from St. Croix County Historical Society:

November 14, 2021

In 1854 and 1855, The Hudson North Star published a column describing the community’s proposal of a new school. Soon after, the first schoolhouse was constructed in the Second Ward on the west side of Sixth Street, between the streets of Vine and Locust. This school was the first structure in St. Croix County built by taxpayer funds for exclusively school purposes. It was originally built as a two-room schoolhouse.

John C. Searle and Miss Melissa Bennet were among the first to teach students in the newly built structure. Melissa was the sister of Nancy Moffat of the Octagon House. These pioneer teachers, Melissa and John, were married in 1857.

The Sixth Street School building was later enlarged to six rooms. It also served as Hudson’s first High School from the late 1870s until 1887.

The school was completely destroyed in a spectacular fire on February 18, 1917. The last event at the school was a party honoring a veteran teacher, Mrs. Mamie Moore Murphy which took place on February 16. One item that found among the ruble was the hand bell that was used by beloved teacher Ann Murphy to summon students in and out of classes. The bell was recovered from the ruins and is now owned by the St. Croix County Historical Society.

Immediately after the loss of the Sixth Street School, concerns for the stability, safety, and construction of future implementations of schools rose. Unfortunately, the city’s funds had been exhausted under the increased expenses. Therefore, the Board’s previous plan to make the school district a unit separate from the city for taxation finally had the momentum it needed to establish an independent entity. On July 2, 1917 Hudson’s School District was formed.

Source: Hudson North Star; April 1855.
Source: The History of the Public School System of Hudson; Edward P. Rock, Star-Observer Printing, Hudson, Wisconsin; June 1949

This press release was produced by St. Croix County Historical Society. The views expressed here are the author’s own.