Dryden, Tea Cross, Metcalf and McKnight consolidated and became Ron in school year 1939-40. G. B. Wiley remembers the old school buildings were torn down and the lumber used to build Ron. WPA came in and put the rock on the building. Ron Stevens, a politician, helped organize, get funding and get the schools consolidated. The school was named after him.
The first school board members I remember were Dennis Shelby, J.E. (Short) Leathers and Cecil Treadway.
The year the school was being built we all attended school at Dryden. Classes were held in the Gym, Baptist Church, Bus Shed (each bus parking space was made into a class room). My 5th grade class met in the Bus Shed. The graduating class that year had their commencement in the Gym.
The class of 1940-41 graduated in the new building. The school was very large to us kids. The hall looked like it was a mile long and we did not dare to walk down it.
The next year they added a Lunch Room, when they cooked hot rolls, you could smell them all over the school. Sometimes we could get two with REAL butter, but when they used commodity (dried) eggs it smelled bad.
Some of the cooks I remember: First Head Cook hired was: Mrs. Henry (Rosie) Davis, others were Mae Leathers, Mrs. Tyson, Mildred Webb, Betty Colson and others whose names I cannot remember.
There were two grocery stores across the road from the school. You could buy candy for a penny, a sack full for a nickel, large soda pop for a nickel. We sometimes shared with others.
Some of my first teachers at Ron were Dorothy Hysmith, Odis Brown, R.B. Tucker, Mrs. Binger, a music teacher was there a short while. 6th,7th and 8th grades had small instruments, the one I played was called a Tonette. In the early years of World War II, Mrs. Wayne (Mildred) Jones came and we had Patriotic Programs often. We would sing, march, carry flags between basketball games, also had quartets and trios. Mrs. Jones loved music, every child had a part.
Also, sports was a big thing in our school; basketball, baseball, girls softball, volley ball and track. Many times ball players were taken to the games in cars, they didn't use buses much, gas was rationed. The children who lived off the bus route a quarter, half or whole mile, had to walk to catch the bus. They could not drive over to your house and pick you up, no matter how bad the weather. Even so, there were lots of years many of us had perfect attendance.
Some of the boys quit school and joined the armed services in the 40's. During our high school years some of our teachers only had a year or two of college. Some of the teachers and coaches I had during junior and senior high were, Geneva Cavener, home economics; Loretta (Owens) Moran, English; Honor Tucker, Argus Dickerson, Marie (Weegie )Goad, teacher and coach; Wayne Jones, teacher and coach.
In 1951 Troy and I started our oldest son to school at Ron, his first grade teacher was Mrs. Myrtle Metcalf. Our children who attended Ron schools were: Jimmy Don, Troy Lynn, Davie Joe and Judith Ann. They continued until we lost our school in 1964, due to lack of children.
In baseball, my son, Jim, a second grader, was catching; Danny Bob Gambell, a fifth grader, was pitching. Virgil Francis, Superintendent, said "This should be sent into the "Believe It Or Not Column".
When Jim and Troy was in 3rd or 4th grade, at the end of school; you made your picnic lunch, drove to Hollis, caught the train and went to Wellington, ate your lunch at the park, caught the train and came back to Hollis. This, of course, was a special outing.
The worst tragedy I remember happened a few days before Easter, a young girl, whose name was Laura Archer, (her sisters were Betty Manney and Julie Argo) wore her Easter Dress to school (it was made out of the new material called Nylon). She got to close to the open flame stove and caught it on fire. She started to run but a man (don't remember his name), caught her and put it out. She was burned severely on the arm, chest and back, missed a lot of school while she was healing. She later was taken to the Burn Center in Oklahoma City.
4-H Club was also a big thing in our community. Many good students, athletes, farmers and housewives came from this area. Our Class Parties were usually at the Slab, north of the school where the Water Works are now located.
School turned out in the Fall for about 6 weeks for "Bole Pulling", most children pulled cotton to help buy their school clothes for the next year and to help their parents make a living.
When our school doors closed due to lack of children, it was a sad time. Our children chose to go to school at Gould. We were at the end of the school route. My sons, Jim, Troy and Davie all had opportunities to drive a school route. They also played baseball. They had played Little League all those years and wanted to continue to play, several other children chose to attend Gould and others enrolled at Hollis and several went to Arnett.
The last Supt. was Jimmy Jones; school board members were: Dick Whorton, Earl Edmonson, Troy Leathers, Harry Treadway and Arzie Gambell.
The tornado hit the school the next year on May 6, 1965. The only thing left standing were the tall gray cement walls.
Wonderful community, many special memories of our childhood and our children's childhood.
At one time Ron had the school, three teacherages, one church, two grocery stores, a garage, an ice house, two houses on northwest side of school. Several years later a gin, gin office, four barracks to house "human" boll pullers in the Fall and two houses were added and now in 2007 all is gone.
