School History Exhibit at Manchester's Town Hall

Plan to stop by the Kilburn Room in Manchester's Town Hall and enjoy the new exhibit of artifacts and photos that tell the story of Manchester's District schools. Curator Wes Hill and board members Judy Harwood, Gail Rice and Bill West have put together displays of each original school district.Vermont’s first school law was enacted in 1782 and by 1791 there were nine school districts in Manchester; by 1860 there were sixteen. By the time the Beers Atlas of Bennington County was published in 1869 the number was down to thirteen. Originally each school district was a municipal entity in itself with its own taxes, grand list, and officers. Funds to pay for the school were raised by a tax on the district’s grand list and payment of one cent a day by the parents, which was know as “money raised on the scholar.”Included in the exhibit are numerous early photographs of the schools and students, maps, documents, yearbooks, a c. 1900 wooden globe from the Village School, a pencil box from 1927, and Manchester Elementary School band uniform c. 1955.