Would you believe that a discussion could be made for not paying school taxes? It was frequently discussed from the time the new Texas constitution was enacted in 1836 until the Gilmer Aiken Bill for public education came along in 1949. The funny thing was the same argument was always used and usually defeated.
In March 1912 an article ran in the Greenville Banner titled: A Successful Effort at Public Collective Ownership and Management by a Texas Town or a Short History of the Greenville Public Schools, written by George S. Perkins. Perkins was a local attorney and civic leader who wrote a good history of local school while acknowledging the critics of public education.
With the close of school in the spring of 1885, Greenville had one 3-room wooden schoolhouse located on North Wesley Street and one 2-room school west of there for African American students. During the summer goats and other like-minded animals found their way into the classrooms on Wesley Street and destroyed windows, stoves, and anything else they could find to munch on.
However, all was not lost. The City Charter instructed the City Council to appoint a school board. These men decided that with a total enrollment of 417 students, it was not feasible to operate with only two schools. That summer, the Wesley Street School was refurbished. An additional classroom was added. Also that summer, a new four-room school was built on South Wesley Street. Eight teachers, all women, were employed at $45 to $50 per month. A superintendent who received $1,000 per year was hired at the same time.
These schools were all financed by local funds paid by a tax on property. This was not a popular idea. The most common argument was that it was unfair to tax a man’s property when he had no children in school and would probably never have any in the future. The cost of school property as well as the cost of continuing maintenance should be shouldered by parents of the children.
By the end of the school year in 1912, Greenville had a student population of 1,972. More schools and teachers were needed. A bond election was called. The aggregate amount of $114,500 was needed to bring Greenville schools up to standard. To retire that amount in bonds would take $190,000.
For the 1911-12 school year, maintenance costs were $33,000. The State of Texas furnished from $12,000 to $14,000. The additional money would have to come from local property taxes. Perkins and his supporters managed to convince the citizens of the absolute necessity to build and maintain schools for the good of everyone.
Throughout much of our history certain buzzwords became popular and are still associated with the era. In 1912 the trigger was Public Collective Ownership and Management. It is not known where or when or by whom this phrase came about but it was useful. It allowed all citizens to buy into the concept of better schools with a cooperative manner in which to accomplish such a goal. The management issue allowed the public some input into maintenance, an issue not often addressed in that time period.