Exhibition of the Berlin Seminary in 1854

On March 17, 1854, under the leadership of Principal T.H. Armstrong, students of the Berlin Seminary in Berlin Township in Erie County, Ohio, gave an exhibition at the Congregational Church of Berlin Township. Over five hundred people attended the exhibition. 

Rev. F.A.  Deming from the Congregational Church opened the session in prayer. H.B. Luce gave a talk about education, and J. Kilburn spoke about industry. Other topics included beauty, self-made men, and several “ladies’ papers.”  As the evening progressed, H.C. Hill spoke about spiritualism (a very popular topic of the era), while M.M. Benschoter spoke about anti-spiritualism. Several women acted out a skit about human nature. A favorite number of the exhibition was given by a trio of young men, Orro Lovell, George Fowler, and John Tucker, who performed a ballad entitled “Sour Grapes.” 

An article which appeared in the April 15, 1854 issue of the Sandusky Register pointed out that Berlin had in its precinct those who could add to the community’s intellectual and moral enjoyment.  Students who attended the Berlin Seminary had the opportunity to board with area families. Tuition in 1853 was $3.00 for common English studies; $4.00 for higher level English studies; $4.50 for Latin and Greek languages; and a fee of twenty five cents was to be paid each term by all students for “incidentals.”  The Congregational Church at Berlin Heights is now known as the First Congregational United Church of Christ. A commemorative plate from the Congregational Church is found in the historical collections of the Follett House Museum.

    

1847 Attendance Register of Elementary Students

The names of twenty-two female elementary students appear on this attendance register, which dates to August and September of 1847. The youngsters range in age from 4 to 10. In the early 1840s, there were school buildings in Sandusky in the East and West Markets as well as a high school on the public square. Teachers employed for 1846-1847 included these teachers for the male students: A.C. Huestes, A.M. Barber, E.P. Jones, James W. Shankland, and James Evers. Teachers for the female students were: L.A. McElwain, L.M. Jones, D.R. Whipple, L.B. Sprague, A.D. Latscha, M. Strong and E. Brewster. 

Sadly, at least three of the young ladies who attended school in Sandusky in 1847 died in the cholera epidemic of 1849.

Mary Halpin was among four members of the Halpin family to die from cholera. Helen and Marian Benschoter both died on July 28, 1849. Their sister Eulalia Benschoter, also a student in 1847, went on to marry Captain John Decatur Peterson; she lived to be age 55, and is buried in Scott Cemetery in Huron, Ohio.

Sandusky’s first school superintendent, M.F. Cowdery, wrote a history entitled: Local School History of the City of Sandusky: From 1838 to 1871 Inclusive in February 1876. The original item is housed in the Schools Collection of the Sandusky Library Archives Research Center. A photocopy of this document is available for patrons to read.