Here we present some of the history of the schools of Dixon, Tremont and Silveyville Township from their inception to 1945. The full history of this subject is far too extensive for this humble website to undertake, but we think we can capture and present a sufficient amount of this history to give researchers and the otherwise interested a place to start enough information to knowledgably expound on the subject at their next cocktail party.
A more comprehensive history of the earliest schools, the County Schools of Solano County, is in preparation and will be presented here in the coming months. However, In the interim, we will present some general background information on the schools of Solano County that the historically inclined reader and researchers alike should find informative and interesting.
Maine Prairie Township founded in 1859 – Old Schoolhouse – South of Dixon on Main Prairie Road and Robben Road
The Maine Prairie township, located on Highway 113 between what is today Dixon and Rio Vista, was established in 1859. This river community was founded on the Cache Slough located on the western shore of Liberty Island. This site was part of an old Mexican land grant. The original settlers, Captain J.C. Merrithew and J.N. Utter founded Maine Prairie and opened a business selling food and lumber and buying and shipping grain. Grain could be shipped from Maine Prairie on barges to Sacramento and San Francisco, using Cache Slough, which was connected near Rio Vista to the Sacramento River. This schoolhouse (also serving as a town meeting place and church) was established in the late 1800s and torn down in 1988. Mail was delivered from Dixon to Maine Prairie by a contracted person three times per week. In 1870 the population reached 160.
On May 20, 1862, President Abraham Lincoln signed the Homestead Act, opening government-owned land to small family farmers, who became known as “homesteaders”. Many families who arrived in the Dixon area were given a 160-acre parcel with which to care for and make improvements. It was a freedom opportunity for many, but also resulted in massive displacement of native peoples, along with the growth of big railroad empires. As more settlers arrived, native peoples found themselves pushed farther from their homelands or crowded onto reservations. Native peoples were not allowed to become U.S. citizens until 1924, and therefore did not qualify. Confederate soldiers were not allowed to benefit from the Homestead Act, since they had borne arms against the United States
Dixon Primary School – North 3rd and East C Streets - 1884
The Dixon Primary School was built in 1884. Standing in front of the Dixon Primary School are the students and their teacher in front of the one room wooden structure that stood on site just west of the present-day Anderson Elementary School on East C Street. There was one entry door and four, six-by-six, sash windows on the side of the building. There is a glass transom over the door. Wooden structures were common prior to 1910.
When California became a state of the U.S. in 1850, the new constitution provided for the establishment of free elementary schools. Before buses and carpools, earlier generations of Dixon students attended small schools in strategic locations around the county. Currey, Solano, Tremont, King, Binghampton, Pitts, Grant, and Silveyville were districts as well as schools, serving Dixon children in rural areas. Old-timers recall days of walking to school as well as riding a horse or pony. The youngsters tied the animals up during classes and rode home at day’s end. Prior to 1911, schools were wooden structures; after 1911 they were made of sturdier materials like stucco and were constructed in a Mission-style design.
Dixon’s First Grammar School – East C Street between North 3rd and North 4th Streets - 1888
Dixon’s First Grammar School, located between 3rd and 4th Streets and East C Street was built in 1888 for $2,000. Around 75 students attended the first year under the tutelage of Miss Lizzie Brown and Mr. M. T. Sicknall. Six years later, approximately 200 students were enrolled. It was a three-story, wooden structure with a belfry on the roof. This is a direct front view of the school and walkway. The students are looking out the windows on the upper floor, standing on the double staircase, and sitting above the windows on the second floor. Other students are lined up in front of the school’s entrance. Newly staked trees line the walkway.
Dixon’s Second Grammar School – (6th-8th grades) – North 4th and East C Streets - 1911
Dixon’s Second Grammar School was built in 1911 for $25,000 and was a fine example of Mission-style architecture common with early 1900 architecture. It occupied a whole block at the site where Anderson Elementary School stands today and was built directly in front of the first grammar school. It was demolished in 1948 and rebuilt as Dixon Elementary in 1949 under new earthquake-proof regulations. It was later renamed East Dixon Elementary, and around 1980, it was re-named Anderson Elementary after School Board Member, Linford Anderson.
Dixon Elementary School - (Grades K-5) - North 4th and East C Streets - 1949
In 1949, the Dixon Elementary School was built with a new earthquake-proof structure. C.A. Jacobs, in the background, looks on as four students descend the stairs. C.A. Jacobs would go on to have a school named after him, in 1964, when the C.A. Jacobs Junior High School, later named the C.A. Jacobs Middle School was built at North Lincoln and West B Streets. It served the Dixon Community sixth, seventh, and eighth grade students until 2021, when the new John Knight Middle School opened at East A and Fourth Streets on March 18, 2021. Currently this school is now the Maine Prairie Continuation School.
Built as Dixon Academy in 1888 – Became Dixon High School in 1891 – 1915 – North 4th and East B Streets
Dixon Academy, a private school, was the forerunner of Dixon High School that, until 2021, was located at North 4th and East B Streets. Plans to convert Dixon Academy to a union high school began in 1891. The school was renovated, and standards of admission were raised. To enter the school, students had to pass an examination and receive 80% or better in math, grammar, geography, history, and physiology. A monthly tuition of $5.00 was charged and Dixon Union High School opened in August 1892.
Dixon Union High School, 3rd & B Streets – 1915-1939
In 1915, a new and elegant structure, the Dixon Union High School, was built on the same location as the old Dixon Academy. It was demolished in 1939 due to it not being earthquake proof.
Dixon High School, North 4th & East A Streets – 1940-2007
In 1940, a new and modern structure, the Dixon High School, was built on the same location as the old Dixon Union High School. Due to a population growth of 17,000, in 2007, a larger high school was needed and was built at 555 College Way. The old high school featured in this picture eventually became the John Knight Middle School. Named after a longtime Dixon High School principal, the school opened in March 2021.
C.A. Jacobs Jr. High School – 1964-2020
Lets start with a squib popular at the time which presents the general rules to be observed by all teachers in the public school system.
RULES FOR TEACHERS - 1865
For those of you who yearn for the “Good Old Days” and especially for teachers, active or retired, we offer these rules to guide teachers in 1865. Note these were mostly one-room schools:
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Keep the schoolroom neat and clean. Sweep the floor daily and scrub it with hot soapy water once a week.
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Start the fire at 7:00 a.m. so the room is warm by 8:00 a.m.
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Bring a bucket of coal and a bucket of water to school each day.
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Fill the lamps and clean the chimneys daily.
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Women teachers shall not keep company with men and shall not ride in a carriage with any man unless it is her Father or Brother.
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Check your pens daily. Whittle the tips to the taste of the students.
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Teachers who marry during the school term will be dismissed.
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Teachers must be home between the hours of 8:00 p.m. and 6:00 a.m.
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Men teachers may take one evening a week for courting purposes provided they go to church regularly.
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Teachers shall not smoke, use liquor in any form, go to pool halls or other public places of entertainment.
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Women teachers shall not wear bright colors.
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Dresses shall not be any shorter than two inches from the floor.
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Women teachers shall wear at least two petticoats.
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Any teacher who dyes her hair will be dismissed.
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Teachers shall not travel outside the community without the permission of the president of the board
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Your salary shall be $36.00 per month for 8 months.
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After five years of successful teaching, you will receive an increase of twenty-five cents per week, with the approval of the Board.
Next: we get to more serious historical information, very basic however to the Schools of Solano County, which is a Description of the public (county) schools in and proximate to Dixon taken from Calvin Webster's 1888 “History of Solano County Education.” Mr Webster was the County Superintendent of Schools at that time and the consumate authority on the schools under his purview. It's a bit long and tedious, but essential if you are to understand which Solano County schools existed in 1888; where they were located and why they were created in the first place. [Not all the county schools are described here. Only those in and around Silveyville Township, northern and eastern Solano County and Dixon are described here.]
For reference, we present an acknowledged and accurate map of Solano County published by Thompson and West in their 1877 history of Solano County. This map shows the location of all County schools in existence at that time. Please be aware that the schools in existence in 1877 are fewer in number than those that existed in 1888 when Superintendent Webster published his treatise of "History of Solano County Education." We hasten to apologize that because this map is non-expandable you will have difficulty locating the school icon, but get out your magnifying glass and you will find the school you are looking for.
1877 Thompson and West Map of Solano County
When searching the 1877 Thompson and West maps for the location of County Schools you will find the locations marked by the universal symbol for a school as noted here.
As you read Superintendent Webster's description of each County School, see if you can locate it on the 1877 map bearing in mind, however, that in 1888 there were more county schools than existed in 1877.
[Not all the county schools are described in detail below. Only those in and around Silveyville Township, northern and eastern Solano County, the schools in the Delta and islands in the Sacramento River and Dixon are described here.]
Next: we get to more serious historical information, very basic however to the Schools of Solano County, which is a Description of the public (county) schools in and proximate to Dixon taken from Calvin Webster's 1888 “History of Solano County Education.” Mr Webster was the County Superintendent of Schools at that time and the consumate authority on the schools under his purview. It's a bit long and tedious, but essential if you are to understand which Solano County schools existed in 1888; where they were located and why they were created in the first place. [Not all the county schools are described here. Only those in and around Silveyville Township, northern and eastern Solano County and Dixon are described here.