| Marker Text |
In 1902 Wichita County built a one-room schoolhouse here on land donated by H. F. Knippenberg. The school, named for County Commissioner T. J. Cashion, opened with one teacher, Mrs. Lou (White) Dodson, and 12 students. The original school building was destroyed by fire in 1915 and replaced with a new structure in 1916. Cashion's student enrollment increased significantly as a result of large numbers of people moving to this area following the discovery of oil in nearby Burkburnett in 1918. The school was expanded in 1923 and in 1924 E. F. Gaston donated 3 adjoining acres to the school. A brick high school and gymnasium were built in front of the existing schoolhouse in 1926. The nearby Cooper and Bacon Switch schools merged with Cashion School in 1926-27 and in the 1930-31 school year Cashion reached its highest recorded student enrollment of 286. During this time Cashion School buildings also served the community as a site for social, recreational and political activities. By the mid-1930s nearby oil production dropped dramatically and the community as well as Cashion School declined. The high school closed in 1936 and the elementary school in 1943. The school buildings were auctioned in 1945 and moved off this site. (1993) |
