Timeline For the Common School Era

1783 Noah Webster spelling book and dictionary

1789 Mass Education act requires towns with 200 + families to provide elementary school

1800 36 African Americans ask Boston school committee to create a separate school for their children

1806 Boston School Comm. Grants African Americans request using public monies and donations

1812 Committee agrees to allow schools into jurisdictions. Allows $200 annually

1815 Philanthropist Able Smith dies leaving shares of Turnpike/Bridges to create of the Smith School

1820 African Americans complain about the inferiority of their education

1827 – 35 Workingman struggle for public education, they drive the Common School movement

1830 George Henry Evans publishes essay on “Education”

1830 – 40 New York is the scene of religious conflicts when Catholics demand a share of the state educational funds that are being monopolized by the public school system

1833 Boston School Committee reports that the African American schools are inferior to others

 (in education and buildings)

1836 Whig Party forms. (Clay) Support the moral reform and west ward expansion Vs. Dems. Support an agrarian and limited government (Van Dorm)

1837 Horace Mann begins has advocacy for Education

1838 Conflict between Catholics and Protestants in N.Y. during the election of Gov. William Seward, who denounces American hatred of foreigners

1839 The 1^st normal School for teachers established in Lexington Mass. From the efforts of Horace Mann

1840 Seward concludes N.Y. Catholic kids are not attending schools because of their anti-catholic attitude and proposes to the Legislation that Catholic Schools stay private but become part of the state schools

1841–70 McGuffey Readers introduced students to ethical codes and textbooks subjects for the 29 years

1842 School issues inflames a riot between the Catholic and Protestants over version of the bible

1843 Philadelphia School board rules the Catholic students can read their own version of the bible.

1845 1 million Irish Catholics had immigrated to US – potatoes famine – established their own schools

1848 12^th annual report by Horace Mann: rationale for the tax support for public schools. Everyone benefits for education regardless of children or no children

1849 Roberts Vs. Mass. Robert sues the state because his African American daughter is denied from attending a “white” school. Loses: cases is basis for Plessy Vs. Fugusson (1896)

1849 Petition of Sundry Colored Persons and report of the Minority of the Committee to call for the abolition of the Smith School

1855 Gov. Henry Gardner signs a bill to law: “In determining the qualifications of scholars to be admitted into any public school or any district school…no distinction shall be made on account of race, color or religious opinions of the scholar”