Early History of Bee County

Beeville Weekly Picayune
March 20, 1908

The first school ever taught in the present town of Beeville was under the principalship of John R. Shook, ably assisted by wife.  This was in 1861. The old court house, which stood about where the Picayune office is now located, was used for a school house and here the writer under Shook received his last schooling.  Mr. Shook was then a young man of superior attainments and had come to south Texas only a short time before going first to Atascosa county, where he invested quite a sum of money in horse stock.  He was in partnership with someone whose name is not now remembered. Mr. Shook not being a stockman let his stock out to others to be cared for while he devoted his time to other pursuits at which he was more successful, one of which was seeking a life partner, whom he found in the person of Miss Dial.  They were married in 1860 and immediately he came to Beeville and secured the school.

Mr. Shook and his wife were capable teachers and strict disciplinarians, maintaining good order and had the love and respect of the entire school. Among the larger pupils the writer remembers J. C. Thompson, J. M. McCullom, Ed Tatum, all deceased, Mat Fuller, son of Sheriff W. I. Fuller, and quite a number of young ladies, only one of whom, so far as the writer knows, is living - Mrs. Henry Ryan, nee Miss Ann Carroll.

J. C. Thompson volunteered in the Confederate army, joining Wood's Regiment, 32nd Texas Cavalry.  Ed Tatum, Jim McCullom and two other young men who did not attend Mr. Shook's school, (George Kibbie and M. V. Wright) joined Terry's Rangers.  They went to the army in Kentucky, while Ed Tatum died in camp near Boling Green.  Jim McCullom's health failed and he was discharged. M. V. Wright was killed in the battle of Missionary ridge.  George Kibbie remained with the command and fought in most of the battles engaged in by the Rangers and returned to Beeville, where he engaged in the mercantile business for while, later going to Marshall, Texas, where he died of yellow fever.  The writer joined Captain M. M. McKinney's Company, 21st Texas Cavalry, where we remained throughout the war and was honorably discharged in May, 1965.  Mr. Shook joined the army and served in Buzchell's Regiment of Cavalry, where he made a good soldier and got to be a lieutenant.  We met him in Louisiana after the battle of Mansfield, when we were driving Gen. Banks back to New Orleans.

But back to the subject.  The next school in Beeville was conducted by Ben Hunt in '62 and '63, after which G. W. McClanahan and wife taught up to shortly before the close of the war.  The first school after the war was conducted by T. S. Archer and Geo. T. Staples.  They ran a very successful school for two terms and were followed by a Mr. Shive.  In the meantime the Methodists had built a church on the block where the S. A. & A. P. depot is now located.  The building was to be used for a school house as well as a church, and all denominations had free use of it when not used by the Methodists.

The next school was taught by T. I. Gilmore and wife, then by J. J. Swan, whom we mentioned in the preceding article as county attorney and who represented the state in prosecuting Ed Singleton, who was the subject of the second legal execution in Bee county.  T. A. Blair then taught the school for a few terms.  He was followed by John W. Flournoy, though a term along about this time (which is the early 80s) was taught by a Mr. Holzclaw, who was an ex-member of Quantrels' famous band during the civil war.  He was an affable gentleman and quite reticent on his war record, and was a capable school teacher.

During Mr. Flournoy's incumbency as teacher the S. A. & A. P. Ry.  was built into Beeville, and the lot on which the Methodist church and school house stood was selected for the depot grounds.  The old building was sold to the negroes for a church and moved across the creek west of town, where it is still used.  The school secured ground north of where the High School building is now located, and put up two frame buildings, one a two-story, where the Beeville High School was established under the guidance of Profs. J. W. and L. W. Bell. Here it remained and under their charge until 1895, when the present High School (new building) was finished, and under the principalship of Smith Ragsdale, for a while, then L. W. Bell, followed by T. G. Arnold, until his health failed.  Since then W. E. Madderra has been at its head.  Under these able men a reputation for efficiency has been established, which places Beeville in the front ranks as an educational center.  In mentioning those who have taught school in Beeville, we do not claim to have mentioned all, for these reminiscences are from memory, but are, as a whole, reliable.

T.R.A. [Thomas Ragsdale Akins, Editor]

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