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Bus photo evokes memories
Special to the R&L
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Published: June 14, 2009
As you are probably aware, the Iredell-Statesville schools let out this past Wednesday for the summer. By now the school buses have been collected at the school bus garage on Oakland Avenue, where they will be inspected, cleaned and otherwise readied for use in the fall.
Carolyn Hall Sherrill, collector of history of the Scotts community and school, recently came across an interesting photograph of a school bus and drivers of yesteryear.
The photo was found among the possessions of the late Mary Otis Morrison, who taught at Scotts for 40-some years, and was made by noted Statesville photographer Ben A. Stimson. That appears to be Court Street in the background.
Three questions come to mind: When was it taken, where was it taken and who are the men in the photo?
A fourth question might be: When did Iredell County begin using school buses?
While looking for something else in the microfilmed issues of the old Landmark in the county library, Carolyn came across the following article, published Sept. 3, 1925, which may partly answer three of the questions. The headline reads: High Schools Except Harmony and Union Grove, Open September 7 — Other Schools October 26."
According to the article: "The rural high schools of the county begin their fall session on Monday, September 7 — all, that is ,except Harmony and Union Grove. Work at these two last-named schools will begin September 14. The fall term of the six months rural schools open (sic) October 26."
It continued: "On Saturday morning, at 9 o'clock, in the superintendent's office, an automobile school for truck drivers will be conducted under the direction of expert mechanics who will explain the proper care of trucks, with a view to preventing accidents and cutting down expense. Besides the drivers, committeemen from the schools transporting children will be expected to attend. The 27 trucks to be operated this year by the county will be assigned to the various schools at the Saturday conference and directions will be given for the purchase of oil and gas and for keeping accounts."
The rural high schools, you will note, did not all resume at the same time, as crops might have been harvested earlier or later in some areas, and the vast majority of the students attending the rural schools were the children of farm families who were needed to assist in the harvest.
You'll also notice that the buses are not called buses, but are referred to as "trucks."
There are 27 "truck" drivers mentioned in the article and there are 27 men identified as drivers in the photo. Maybe coincidence, maybe not; there could have been 27 drivers for several years.
The man sitting fourth from the left on the front has been identified as Raymer Guy, who was a Scotts student and driver born in 1903. As school went through only the 11th grade at the time, Raymer could have been about 17 or 18, dating the photo in 1920 or 1921 if he were still a student. If he continued to drive after graduation, the photo would be older.
The date the county began using school buses is something of a puzzle. A front-page article found in the April 6, 1920, Landmark reads: "The citizens of Mount Mourne, meeting last week, decided to buy a motor truck in which to convey the children of the community to school. This school is the first in the county to make such a move. The truck will be bought at once and put to use."
This conflicts with the recollections of the late Fletcher Adkins of the Cool Spring community who, when interviewed by Jimmy Tomlin of the Record & Landmark in April 1988, claimed to have been Iredell County's first school bus driver back in 1918.
Reported Tomlin: "It was 1918, and county officials were looking for someone to become Iredell's first school bus driver. Adkins, who had no experience driving anything other than a car, auditioned by hauling the officials to Harmony and back in the county's handsome REO Speedwagon school bus, and was given the job on the spot.
"Adkins drove the school bus three years, each day carrying 20 to 25 students, ranging in age from 8 to 18, down the rural dirt roads that led to Cool Spring School, where he was a student."
Perhaps back in 1920 the folks at Mount Mourne and the Landmark didn't know Mr. Adkins was already driving a bus for Cool Spring, or perhaps the plan to purchase a bus for Mount Mourne School fell through.
By the way, if anyone has more information on the photo or knows the names of any of the other young men in the photo, please contact me.
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Now to bring all of this up to the present day. Ricky Adams, who works at the county school bus garage, has a copy of the photo.
Adams said that the wheels on the buses changed around 1928. Before that year, the wheels had wooden spokes, and after that date, at least locally, they were made of metal. Unfortunately, the way the men are sitting blocks any view of the wheels.
He also gave me some facts and figures for you to ponder regarding modern school bus transportation.
The county school bus garage, says Adams, services about 240 diesel buses, including 36 buses used by the Mooresville Graded School District.
The buses run, on average , a total of 12,422 miles, and in the process use about 2,500 gallons of diesel fuel per day.
As we all know, the price of fuel has widely fluctuated recently. For example, last August, Adams says, a gallon of diesel was at a high price of $3.54 a gallon. A shipment of 7,403 gallons, which is about enough for three days of bus use, cost $26,241.
This past March, Adams says, a shipment of 7,488 gallons cost the school system $9,933 at $1.32 a gallon.
During the 2008/2009 school year the system used 466,055 gallons at a cost of $930,148, which was down from 2007/2008's school year cost.
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