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The First Public School on the

Robert E. Lee Campus 1884-1912

          The first free public school in the City of Denton opened its doors in April, 1884, in a handsome three-story brick building on the campus of what is today the Robert E. Lee elementary school. It comprised both the elementary and high school departments. Although two other ward schools were subsequently built, the high school department of the public school system remained at this location until the fall session of 1912. The events narrated in this chapter deal with this period of time, 1884 to 1912.
          Once the decision had been reached to levy a tax for the support of a free public school in the City of Denton and bonds had been ;authorized by the taxpayers of the municipality, the question of the location of the school arose. The City Council, now City Commission, appointed a committee to study possible sites and recommend a location. The recommendation made was for the site directly east of the Methodist Church and known to the townspeople as the Odd Fellows School Ground. There were two main factors in favor of this location. It was centrally situated, being just one block off the public square and equally accessible to all parts of the town. Then, too, the City School Board in office in 1881 had been given a deed by the IOOF Lodge, No. 82, for this plot of land to be held in trust for the schools of the town. The Odd Fellows School Ground, therefore, was the logical site for the location of a central public school for the town.
          The minutes of the City Council of Denton show that when the bonds for building the schoolhouse were put up for sale a question arose concerning the title to the lot. The County of Denton was asked to make an additional deed to Lots 2, 3, 4, and 5 of Block 23, to the City of Denton for school purposes. In order to do this a special land commissioner with authority to convey land had to be appointed. At the August term of the County Commissioners Court, 1883, J. W. Jagoe was appointed Land Commissioner with authority to convey land to D. A. Robinson, Mayor of the City. A deed from the County of Denton to the City of Denton of Lots 2, 32 4, and 5 "for exclusive use and benefit of the schools of Denton" was given in August, 1883, and recorded in the County Clerk's records. The transaction gives weight to the theory that this block of land was originally set aside for school purposes and that the IOOF Lodge, through the construction of a school building, was given title to the land by the county, and the records destroyed in the courthouse fire of 1875.

          Further complications in clearing the title to the proposed school grounds were also encountered. Lots I and 6 of Block 23, fronting on South Locust, originally were not separated from the other lots on the block. According to Dr. C. A. Bridges, the street directly back of the Methodist Church was opened around 1871 across what was then the property of the Church. A narrow strip of land east of this street joined Lots 2, 3, 4, and 5 but still remained the property of the Church. In order to gain a clear title to the lots surveyed for the school building, the City Council appointed a committee to solicit funds to purchase the narrow strip of land from the Methodist trustees, and this was done, the sum being $150. The bonds were then sold.
          All was then in readiness for the construction of the new school building. W. S. Parker was chosen as architect for the building, and T. W. Abney and F. M. Faught, local trustees, served as building committee. A handsome three-story brick structure was erected. There were twelve rooms and an auditorium which at that time was the largest assembly room in Denton. The people of the town were very proud of the handsome structure, which was the largest schoolbuilding in North Texas.           All of the private schools in the town were now consolidated in this new public school. Morgan H. Looney, who had formerly been the principal of a large school at Gilmer, was employed as principal. he had a number of handbills printed describing the school, and one of these is now on display in the Tax Assessor and Collectors office of the Public School Administration of Denton.
          According to this handbill, the staff was to comprise Morgan H. Looney, principal, and Professor E. B. Keyte, Professor L. H. Ford, Professor H. M. 1vy, Mrs. Annie Hogg, and Miss Miranda Bass. Mrs. Cora E. Looney, wife of the principal, was to be music teacher. Some changes, however, must have been made in the actual operation of the school; W. L. McCormick, who was a pupil during this first term, listed three other additional teachers in his notes: Professor S. A. Moreland, a Professor Leonard, and Miss Ella Davidson.(1) Professor Ivy was not listed as a teacher. Since the enrollment during the first session was 42,5, more teachers than originally planned for were perhaps needed.
          Since the available money would support only a short term., the school was to be opened on March 17 and close on July 4, 1884. Children between the ages of eight and fourteen, whose names were enrolled on the Tax Assessor's list, were to attend without paying any tuition, except for an incidental fee of fifty cents for each pupil. To those not entitled to share in the public school fund, a charge was to be made depending upon the type of instruction desired:


1st class -$4 monthly. This included instruction in Higher           Mathematics and Ancient Languages, etc.
2nd class-$3 monthly. Included English grammar, Geometry,           Natural Philosophy, Chemistry, Arithmetic, Elements of           Algebra.
3rd class-$2 monthly. Including Spelling, Reading, Writing,           Primary Arithmetic, Grammar, and Geography.
Music - $5 monthly (with use of instrument extra).
          

          The handbill also included information about the town, the techniques of instruction, and other items of interest. Professor Looney's comments are reproduced below:
          

Denton is a beautiful and flourishing town of 2500 individuals. The health of the locality is equivalent to any in the State of Texas. Society is excellent, and a genuine spirit of education pervades the people. Church privileges are equal to any town of its size in the country. The school building is one of the finest in all North Texas.
          The methods of instruction will be impressive and thorough. Particular attention will be given to the idiosyncrasy of the pupil. While the tendency is to develop talent, it shall not be to stifle genius. In fine, everything here shall be favorable to the health, morals, and advantages of the student.
          The discipline will be mild but firm, and no infringement of the regulations will be allowed with impunity.
          Board at good homes may be had at from $10 to $12 per month.

          According to the Minutes of the City Council of Denton of March 15, 1884, the school building was completed and the keys were ready to be turned over to the Board of Trustees. Morgan H. Looney then assumed work as principal of the school, in March, 1884, and according to a photostat of the No. 1 voucher for the City of Denton Public School was paid $400 for the month ending April 11, 1884.(2) This voucher was signed by J. R. McCormick, Secretary of the Board of Trustees and countersigned by T. M. Yates, Auditor, with an affidavit signed by Morgan H. Looney and T. M. Yates, County Judge of Denton County. These figures show that Professor Looney was paid a handsome salary for his day and time.
          Of the 425 pupils who attended the first four-month session, a large percentage of them were not on the Tax Assessor's list and therefore paid tuition. According to certified reports in the State Department of Education in Austin the number of scholastics in Denton in 1884 was only 270 whites, and 44 colored.(3) The Denton school with its then superior facilities was, however, a mecca for students over a wide area. The late H. T. Stewart, father of Mrs. Len Henderson of Denton, was one of the many county students who either rode horseback to school or boarded in the town. Living two miles west of Argyle, he was outside riding distance and in 1884 boarded with R. J. (Roundabout) Edwards father, the late pioneer doctor, J. R. Edwards. In 1885 he boarded with the A. D. Delos Miller family.(4) Almost fifty per cent of the pupils in 1884, the data indicate, paid tuition. The total amount apportioned to the school in Denton by the State was $1,413, in comparison with the sum of $958 paid in 1883 to the various private schools operating in the area.(5)
          Diligent research has developed some information concerning Morgan H. Looney, the first principal of the Denton Public School. He was a native of Franklin, Georgia, and a graduate of the University of Georgia.(6) He married a young lady in this state but she later died, leaving Looney the care of two small daughters. His second marriage was to another Georgia girl. Sometime after the Civil War he moved to East Texas where he was first a teacher in private school and then became superintendent at Gilmer of a large school developed through a stock company.
          Professor Looney came to Denton through his kinship with a pioneer Denton family. He was the nephew of J. M. McNeil, and one of the McNeil boys attended the school in Gilmer, Texas. It is the recollection of Mrs. J. E. J. Ford, one of the McNeil girls still living, that Professor Looney was doing private tutoring in Denton at the time he was selected to be the principal of the first public school held in Denton.(7)
          Professor Looney taught the first four-month term, but did not apply for the position another year. The Board of Trustees waited for his application, and when it did not come elected another teacher in his place. According to family reports, Mrs. Looney was homesick for her native home, Georgia. She loved the "piney woods", the rolling hills, the wild berries in the woods, and the dogwood thickets. East Texas, in many ways was a replica of the Georgia environment, and it is said that the family's return to East Texas was due to her insistence.
          Professor Looney was noted for his silver-tongued oratory. It was his practice on Saturday afternoons to deliver orations on various subjects at the school building and these were open to the public. Many of the pupils in the schools attended and learned valuable lessons in "elocution." A clipping from an old paper contain the following note from S. W. Blount of Nacogdoches:
         

In September, 1870, 1 was a schoolboy attending the school of Morgan H. Looney at Gilmer, Texas, and upon the death of General Robert E. Lee, funeral ceremonies were held throughout the South, and among other places at Gilmer. On this occasion, Morgan H. Looney, who was then the principal of the school, which was then one of the largest in the state, delivered the memorial address, a most eloquent and beautiful tribute to the character of the dead chieftan.(8 )           

         W. C. Potter, one of the early Denton settlers, remembers hearing his father liken Professor Looney to William J. Bryan in forensic ability. Although the data concerning this early Denton educator are scanty, there is sufficient evidence to indicate that he was a well-educated scholarly gentleman fully capable of the duties of principal of the Denton Public School.
          Professor E. B. Keyte was an able assistant to Principal Looney, and is said to have been one of the best educated of the teachers who came to the Denton area from the "old states." He was a graduate of Yale University, a native of Brunswick, Missouri, and had taught in Fayetteville, Arkansas, for one year before coming to Texas. He taught one year in Kaufman and one in Hillsboro before coming to Denton in 1875 where he taught in the Masonic Hall from 1875 until 1884 when he transferred to the then new public school building on the Lee school lot.(9) Professor Keyte remained with the public school and served as superintendent from 1893 to 1894. His wife and daughter, Miss Jennie, also taught in the Denton Public School, Mrs. Keyte being very proficient in music. The family continued to make their home in Denton after Mr. Keyte's retirement, and he is remembered by many Denton people as one of the best-loved schoolmen of the town.
          Professor Ivy, in the notes of W. L. McCormick, did, not join the staff of the first school as contemplated. Professor Ford was known as a "classical scholar." Mrs. Hogg was the widow of Judge Hogg, a brother of Governor Hogg of Texas. Miss Miranda Bass, a native of Tennessee, was the sister of R. L. Bass, father of R. W. Bass, of Denton. She was educated in a college in her native state.           

          In the fall of 1884, two former Confederate officers were elected to head the Denton Public Schools, Captain E. F. Comegys and Colonel R. W. Pitman, superintendent and principal respectively. No data are available on Captain Comegys other than that he was a "classical scholar" and a fine school administrator, but Colonel Pitman was a graduate of Peabody University of Nashville, Tennessee. Captain Comegys moved on to other fields after his work in the Denton school but Colonel Pitman remained in Denton. Colonel Pittman was the grandfather of the late L. R. Woodson, Denton printer, and the great-great grandfather of R. Ogden Woodson, printer and publisher of this study of the Robert E. Lee school. Colonel Pitman has many descendants among the people of Denton today. Other teachers added at the beginning of the 1884-85 session were R. J. Yeats, Mrs. Helen Smith, and Misses Naomi Baker, Maggie Morgan, Ella Hundley, and Alice Piner.
          The first graduating class of the Denton Public School made its bow in the spring of 1886. Its members were as follows:
          
 Walter Abney      Sterling P. Jackson
 Norma Frame  Lee Jackson
 Asbury A. Abney   Mattie Nichols
 Jessie Brown   Frank Piner
 C. M. Burton  J. N. Rayzor
 C. L M. Crowder  Ida Shreeves
 Azro Coleman  Ada Terrill
 Denia Cobb      George Taylor
 James Evans                 R. S. Tyom
 Texie Egan  Emma Wheeler
 Lula Frame  Virgie Williams (10)
          Two of these graduates, C. L. M. Crowder and J. N. Rayzor, and probably some others, went before the County Judge and were examined in orthography, reading, writing, English, grammar, composition, geography and arithmetic. On the basis of this examination, the County Judge issued a certificate of competency to teach, valid for one year, and these boys began teaching. The early certificate of Mr. Rayzor, which was renewed from year to year, is in the possession of the Rayzor family today. Thus the Denton Public School began to fill the gap for teachers urgently needed in the county and State under the new public school laws of 1884 wherein county districts, as well as municipalities, could vote taxes for the establishment and support of the public schools. Even before that, students from the school had entered the profession of teaching, one of these being Miss Annie Victoria Haynes, an 1884 student, who was teaching in Smithfield, Tarrant County, Texas, at the time she married W. L. McCormick.(11)
          Professor Comegys served as superintendent of the Denton Public Schools from 1884-85 until 1890, when he resigned to accept the position of superintendent of the Gainesville schools. He was succeeded by Colonel R. W. Pittman who served from 1890-91 until 1892. Professor J. W. Conway became superintendent in the fall of 1892 but he became ill in the spring and Professor E. B. Keyte served out his term and for the following years, 189394. Professor D. C. Limbaugh was superintendent of the Denton Public Schools from 1894 - 95 until 1896. He is well remembered by many of Denton's senior citizens because of his strict discipline and his enthusiasm for the hickory switch as a medium of enforcement. Professor E. C. Snow, M.A. was elected superintendent of the school in 1896 and served through the spring of 1899.(12)
          In 1898 Superintendent Snow published a small pamphlet which has preserved much valuable information on the Denton Public School from its beginning in 1884 until 1898. In this pamphlet Superintendent Snow listed the faculty in 1898, described the course of study, and gave statistics from copies of reports made by the different City Superintendents to the State Superintendent of Instruction. The faculty of the school in 1898 was as follows: E. C. Snow, M.A., W. N. Masters, B.A., B.S.,B. F. Sisk, M.Sc, Professor 1. C. Warren, and Misses Hattie Donnell, Effie Jones, Eula Piner, Lula Watson, Mable Chinn, Ida Evans, Ola Anderson, Maggie McNeil, and Ella McMurray.
          Members of the School Board in 1898 were Hon. E. C. Smith, Hon. 0. P. Poe, Hon. I. D. Ferguson, C. F. Witherspoon, Dr. S. P. O'Dell, J. W. Ripy, Dr. J. M. Inge, and Dr. E. W. Fritz.
          There were seven graduates of the public school in 1898. The statistics presented on the schools, 1884-1898, inclusive, are most interesting. They are reproduced here as taken from the pamphlet.

Statistics on City Schools of Denton 1884-85 Through 1897-98
 
1884-85
1885-86
1886-87
1887-88
1889-90
1890-91
1892-93
1894-95
1896-97
1897-98
------

      
623 
601 
656 
609 
653 
677 
635 
604 
602 
679 
674
 
454
399 
440
422 
419
411 
409
-----
511 
602
563
 
11
9 
10 
10 
10 
10 
10 
9 
10 
11
12
 
$5582.50 
5220.00 
5490.00 
5715.00 
4770.00 
4770.00 
4840.00 
4680.00 
4680.00 
5310.00 
5985.00
 
$1500.00 
1234.56 
1000.00 
1350.00 
1350.00 
1350.00 
1150.00 
1350.00 
1125.00 
1125.00 
1125.00

 

 

          The foregoing statistics are not for the first four-months of school, but begin with the regular term of 1884-85. As shown the teachers in the public school received an average of $507.48, while the superintendent received $1500. The salary of the teachers, however, varied: Dr. C. A. Bridges in reporting the salary schedules for teachers in the Denton Public School for 1890 stated that the high school teachers received more than the elementary teachers who received only $50 a month salary.(13)
          The 1890-91 year was the low point in salary. This, no doubt, was due to the fact that the per capita apportionment dropped from $5.00 the previous year to $4.00 in 1890.
The teacher load, as shown by the figures, is interesting. For the years shown, 1894 through 1898, the average number of pupils per teachers was 62.3. Considering that present practices try to hold the load to approximately 30 pupils, some idea of the task confronting the teachers may be gained.
          A gradual decrease in the amount of money paid to the superintendents is noted in the statistics given by Superintendent Snow. Morgan H. Looney, as the No. 1 voucher for the public schools shows, received $400 per month for his services. In 1884-85 the superintendent received $1500 per year but this decreased to $1125 in 1895 and remained at that point in 1898.
          Superintendent Snow gave the Course of Study of the public schools during his incumbency. In the "General Remarks" regarding the Primary Department he wrote:


The instruction in this department is characterized by its concretness. Objects and events, real or vividly pictured, appeal to the children in their earlier years. The teachers in the first grades will, therefore, avoid formal definitions and the statement in technical language of general principles and moral precepts.

          In the first grade, the course of study included spelling, language, numbers, nature lessons, memory gems, writing, singing, and the simple laws of health. The literature selections required were "Little Red Riding Hood," "The Lion and the Mouse," and "The Little Match Girl" for the first term, and "The Four Musicians," "The Proud Apple Branch," and "The Ugly Duckling" for the second term.
          For the second, third, and fourth grades the subjects were the same as in the primary grade except that geography and arithmetic were added. In each instance, the course of study was prescribed and textbooks listed. "Robinson Crusoe" was supplemental reading for the second grade. For the third grade, there was this notation: "See that no pupil passes through this grade without knowing the multiplication table."

          The instructions for teaching geography at the third grade level are interesting in view of the general opinion that early schools were just "recitation" arid textbook study. For the second grade there were these requirements;
1. Teach the cardinal points.
2. Have each pupil draw maps of school room, locating furniture. Draw ground plan of entire school building. Locate each object by measurements. Make map of school campus in sand or other material.

          In the third grade, the requirements for geography were:
1. Draw a map of Denton beginning with Oak and Jail streets drawn at right angles to each other. Locate prominent residences and public buildings by reference to these streets.
2. Draw a map of Denton County locating railroads and water courses, and principal towns.
3. Make a separate study of the timbered and prairie sections of the county, the differences in their products. Show leading industries.

          In the Intermediate Department, Grades Five through Seven, the course of study included reading, spelling, arithmetic, geography (map making), literature and history. In the other grades, history and physiology took the place of reading. In each instance, the textbook was prescribed as well as the number of pages to cover.
The High School Course of Study was divided into two sections, the Classical and the Scientific. Subjects for the different grades are shown as follows:
8th. Grade:
Latin
Mathematics
History and English
Science Miscel.
First Steps in Algebra
First Book
Phys. Geog.
Rhetoric Literature
Ele. Physics Zoology Botany

9th Grade:
Gradatim Caesar
Elements of Algebra
Plane Geometry
American Literature Essays
Civics
Geology
Chemistry
United States History

10 Grade:
Caesar
Cicero
General History
Physics
Bookkeeping
Commercial Law

          In spite of this course of study including scientific subjects, the school had no provisions for laboratories. There was no library in the beginning, but a start was made by asking the children to bring donations for the purchase of books. Miss Edna Haynes McCormick remembers how very proud she was of her fifty-cent contribution. Classics comprised the first library offerings and these were shelved in a small room where the janitor kept his supplies.
          According to an interview with the late Will Williams, "noon time at the school came in the middle of a nine or ten- hour day."(14) Its advent meant a lunch of fried egg or sausage between the halves of a biscuit or a single big sweet potato. Mr. Masters, one of his pupils recalls, brought his lunch in a neat wicker basket with a lid that fitted securely down. One April's Fool Day some of the boys hid the lunch basket in the stove. A spring norther blew up that morning and Mr. Masters, unaware of what had --- happened to his lunch basket, directed the boys to build a fire. The boys demurred but when a direct order was given the fire was built and the Professor's basket, lunch and all, went up in smoke.
          In view of the small salaries paid the teachers, the caliber of the teaching personnel of the school in its early years is surprising. Many of the teachers were professionally trained in northern and eastern universities. Proof of their scholastic ability and educational leadership is shown in the fact that as early as 1890 the Denton Public School was granted "auxiliary" affiliation with the University of Texas whereby its graduates were accepted as students in this institution. (15) This was a highly prized honor. In 1894 while E. B. Keyte, graduate of Yale, was superintendent of the Denton Public School, this affiliation was made official. At this time there were only fifty-six high schools in Texas with affiliation with the University of Texas, a fact that indicates the excellency of the personnel and teaching in the Denton school.
          Many other outstanding educators were members of the faculty in the Denton Public School at various times. W. N. Masters, who later became Director of the Science Department of North Texas State College and recognized as one of the great science teachers in the State, began teaching in the Denton Public School in 1898. Professor Sisk, who taught English and History, was later author of Sisk's Grammar, a widely used text in the Texas public schools. W. C. Potter, one of Professor Sisk's pupils, remembers him as one of the most outstanding teachers in the school system. As a teacher of English, he had an uncanny ability to inspire gawky, seventh-grade boys with a desire to learn and love poetry. As most teachers at this grade level realize, this is no easy task. Among other distinguished teachers serving on the faculty of the school were Miss Maud Bruce, A. Logan, B. W. Miller, J. W. Beaty, Ross Compton, R. E. Jackson, and A. 0. Calhoun.
          Recreation in the early days on the school campus was mainly unorganized play. Miss Rosa McNitzky remembers that the girls played ,"skip the rope," "ante,-over" ball, and "house." The boys played ball, whipcracker, and various types of running games.
          As the town grew, the school population increased rapidly, and Superintendent Snow in his report of 1898 mentioned that the building was overcrowded. A new ward building was constructed in the north portion of the city in 1898 and the first classes held here in 1899. At this time Professor J. S. Carlisle assumed the post of superintendent of the Denton public schools. In 1905 another ward school was built in the western part of Denton, and the school on what is now the Robert E. Lee campus, was called "Central School" to distinguish it from the North and West Ward as these schools were then called. Superintendent Carlisle, it is said, lacked the professional training of some of his predecessors, but he was an able administrator, and the schools steadily grew under his supervision.

          On October 18, 1908, the Central School building, which had been the pride of Denton, burned to the ground. Coming near the beginning of the session, the loss of the building worked a great hardship on the school. The upper floors of the county courthouse were used for classes the remainder of the year, the high school pupils attending in the mornings and the elementary pupils in the afternoon.
          In view of the expansion of the school system, the construction of another building was no easy task from the standpoint of finances. The Record- Chronicle of March 11, 1909, reported that the school board, after a long session, had accepted the plans of C. H. Page and Brothers of Austin for construction of a new Central building to cost $28,000. Finances available were not sufficient to include plumbing and heating, arid board member C. F. Witherspoon spoke out strongly about the added expense necessary for later installation. Mrs. William (Billie) Woods, one of the mothers active in the Mother's Club which began to function while the first building was still in use, remembers that she taught in the place of Superintendent Carlisle while he took the older boys and helped in digging out the foundations of the burned building in order to reduce expense in rebuilding.
          The new building when completed was a very handsome structure. It was brick, modern in style, and included two stories and a basement, with a large auditorium located on the first floor. After it was completed, mothers, teachers, and pupils combined efforts in clearing the grounds and disposing of rocks on the school campus.
          The new building, too, was the first to bear the name of Robert E. Lee. In 1909, Mrs. Maggie Yancey, former teacher in the school and member of the Daughters of the Confederacy, went before the Board of Trustees and asked that the schools of the city be given names of distinguished men of the South. The request was granted and North Ward school became the Stonewall Jackson School, West Ward, the Sam Houston School, and the Central School, the Robert E. Lee School. One of the pioneer teachers in the Odd Fellows Schoolhouse first on the campus was a Miss Fannie Lee; an unconfirmed story is that this fact was instrumental in the new school being given the title of the greatest soldier of the Confederacy, Robert E. Lee. The Robert E. Lee schoolhouse was dedicated on October 14, 1909. William Jennings Bryan was the speaker for the occasion.
          The year, 1909, was a critical one for the Denton public schools' administration. The added buildings, the demand for new equipment, some repairs, and for additional teachers stretched the operating budget almost to the breaking point. In order to meet the situation, the school board decided the only alternative was to reduce the salaries of the teaching personnel. Superintendent Carlisle's salary was reduced from $2,000 to $1,500, and the teachers received additional cuts ranging from five to ten dollars per month.16 Superintendent Carlisle did not apply for reelection and accepted a place as superintendent of the McKinney schools. Many other resignations followed. J. W. Beaty, who at one time had been an instructor in the high school department, was elected superintendent of the schools in the place of Professor Carlisle.
          In spite of meager finances, the enrollment in the public schools continued to increase. As pupils finished from the two other ward schools they came to the high school department at the Lee School. In 1911 there were 244 pupils in the high school department, and 457 in the elementary. The facilities of the Lee school were not sufficient to take care of this growing enrollment and the realization came that Denton needed a high school apart from the elementary school plant. In 1912 the City of Denton had the opportunity to purchase the property and stock known as the John B. Denton College from the Southwestern Christian College. In the fall of 1912 high school pupils gathered at this location and the Robert E. Lee School became an elementary school on the level of the other two elementary schools in the town.
          Many changes, however, bad taken place in the Robert E. Lee School's operation from 1900 to 1912. For one thing, the curriculum had gradually begun to veer away from the strictly classical one of the early 1880's. More emphasis was being placed on science. Although one phase of the course of study had been labeled "scientific" the school had no laboratory. One of W. N. Masters' best achievements, according to the 1917 Bronco, was the beginnings of a good science laboratory. Due to lack of space, the laboratory was limited but it contained "good apparatus."
          Publication of a school annual was, too, a wide departure from early school customs. Professor Masters promoted the idea of an annual and, the first edition of the Bronco appeared in 1905.
          The study of music, too, began to take a place in the program. In 1907 two musical organizations were developed, the Boys' Glee Club and the C-Sharp Club. Besides these two larger clubs, there were two smaller ones, the Boys' Octet and the Mixed Octet. The organizations gave new emphasis to the study of music.
          Organized play also made its appearance on the campus of the Lee School in this period. A football team and a baseball team were organized in 1907 and were quite successful in competition with other school teams. A girls basket ball team was also organized this year.
With the transfer of the high school students, an era in the life of the public schools of Denton came to an end. The Robert E. Lee School, which heretofore had been the central hub of the school system, now took its place as just another elementary school of the town.

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