CHAPTER III,-THE SCHOOLS.
St. Agatha seems to have had a parish school as
early as the time of Father Wiriath, i.e., about 1835. The log
building served as a school for Catholics and non-Catholics and also as
a church and priest's quarters for many years.
The first stone building was erected in 1854,
through the untiring efforts of Father Ebner. It is still standing, but
used only for meetings. The present school in connection with the
Orphanage was erected of stone in 1875, and this was enlarged in 1890.
As to teachers it is difficult to give the
names and the order of their succession for want of old records.
As far as could be ascertained, the following gentlemen wielded
the rod here: Peter Wirtz, Joseph Strub, John Gatchene, Nicolaus Sorg,
Wendelin Schuler, Carl W. Leverman, Antony Elmlinger, August Kaiser,
Peter Brick, Peter Schmidt, August Meyer, and Linus Tschirhart.
In 1871 the Sisters took charge of it and are still there.
Josephsburg has another school about three
miles north of the church whose supporters are nearly all Catholics,
but have a public school. Mr. Von Neubronn taught here for a
number of years during the 60's, then at Hamburg, and afterwards in
Berlin.
At Bamberg there is another Separate School of
which the most of the pupils belong to St. Agatha. At New Prussia
the Jesuits organized a Separate School in the latter 40's. The
building was also used for church purposes until the colony dwindled so
much that the school had to be abandoned.