Morgan School...."built
on the wrong side of the river".
Generously transcribed and submitted by Nancy Bray,
thanks Nancy!
Source: Kentucky Edition of the Cincinnati Enquirer -
Monday morning February 12, 1940.
Kentucky Edition of the Cincinnati Enquirer -
Monday morning February 12, 1940.
Small Pole Helps Support Bridge Used By Pupils To Reach School At
Morgan In Pendleton County
Court Has No Money To Rebuild Span, It Reports
by Hub Logan
The orchid of the week goes to Chris Wilson, Superintendent of Schools
in Pendleton County, and for a very excellent reason.
Up along the Licking River they have a superior school at Morgan in
Pendleton County. It is high school for the southern end of
Pendleton County. It is also consolidated grade school and junior
high school. It has 400 pupils.
There is just one trouble with the school at Morgan--it is built, for
the most part, on the wrong side of the river. That may seem like
an odd sort of statement to make until one talks to Chris Wilson.
The trouble, according to Wilson is this: Many of the roads
leading to the Morgan School must cross a bridge over the Licking River.
Ordinarily that wouldn't make much difference. But--the bridge at
Morgan, a covered wooden structure, has been condemned for two years.
School busses are not permitted to cross it. The Busses must stop
at the bridge approach and the school children must walk across the
condemned bridge.
As shown in the accompanying photographs, the bridge is supported in one
place by only a pole and pupils must ignore a "Travel at Your Own
Risk" sign to reach the other side of the river. (Note the sign on
the right side of the bridge entrance)
Wilson didn't like the idea of the children risking their lives to go to
school, so he asked Pendleton Fiscal Court to do something about it.
The court couldn't help because of finances. Pendleton County, the
Fiscal Court said, couldn't rebuild the bridge because it had reached
the limit of its indebtedness.
Wilson refused to be daunted. He recalled that schools had been
built under "holding company" acts. He decided that
bridges, jails, infirmaries, garages, and office buildings could be
built under "holding company" acts if the General Assembly
would cooperate.
Therefore, look for a bill embodying Wilson's ideas to be introduced in
the General Assembly this week, and look for Wilson to be in there
pitching for it to be passed. He has something that most of the
legislators will be happy to support when they and their constituents
realize the problems confronting them.
Return to "Memory
Lane"
|