The Atoka County Times
June 15, 1950
Letters to the Editor
There seems to be a great deal of discussion about the disposition of the Liberty School. As a former member of the Liberty School Board, I want to state these facts:
Enough pupils lived in our school district for a one-teacher school. But due to some transferring out (over protest of the school board) it left us with an average daily attendance of 10.2 and the school law reads, you must have an average daily attendance of 13, or be more than seven miles from the High School serving that area, or the school becomes the property of the school district whose transportation area you are in. Which in Liberty’s case, was Caddo, of Bryan County.
Liberty is the second richest rural school district in Atoka County, the valuation being $127,000, due to the M.K.T. railroad running the full length of the district.
Before it became mandatory that we go to Caddo, the majority of the people in our district signed a petition to consolidate with the Caney School District of Atoka County. The petition was presented to the State Board of Education, Oklahoma City.
I was one, and proud of it, that wanted so see us stay in Atoka County. I was born here, went to school and own my farm here. Spent all my life in this county except for what years I was away, going to Normal School and then playing baseball.
Any fair-minded citizen can understand that Caddo would have liked to have our fine children and the revenue from this Liberty District. We thought we should keep it in Atoka County for a number of reasons, and we did.
Ross Faudree
Director, Liberty School District
Indian Citizen (Atoka)
June 22, 1950
Liberty Voters Answer to Faudree
In answer to Mr. Faudree’s explanation as to the way Liberty School was consolidated with Caney, the following statement can be made: Mr. F failed to explain that when the people of Liberty signed that petition for an election, we thought that the residents of Liberty district were the only ones to vote and we were content to have an election and abide by the wishes of the people of Liberty.
We admit our ignorance of the difference between consolidation and annexation, and the Powers That Be were very careful not to explain the difference. When we did find out that should an election be held all of Caney district, which by that time already took in Voca and Rock Springs, would be permitted to vote with us, we immediately set to work to get our names removed from the petition for an election. But to no avail, because it had gone so far, they went right ahead and held the election.
When the final votes were counted there were more than 50 votes against it. Count the voters in Liberty district and see how many you think were left wanting to go to Caney.
We know that our school is gone and nothing can be done about that, but we don’t like to be made to look like a bunch of gripes with nothing to gripe about.
Folks, when a politician begins dictating to the people instead of serving them, it is time to remove that politician from office.
Mr. F didn’t explain, or probably the good man doesn’t know, how the jobs of several of those who dared oppose were threatened, and some were even ousted. Does that sound like democracy? That’s a great incentive for wanting to stay in the county, isn’t it?
We love our homes just as much as Mr. F. That’s why we are seeking to better our lot so we can afford to stay here.
Our lot may not be helped by this article, but maybe it will be a warning to some other small school and also open the eyes of the voters of the county to the trend of dictatorship toward which we are heading.
After we lost our district we asked to be annexed to Caddo and our petition was refused. The reason given not being that we did not have sufficient grounds for an election but that the State Board of Education had made a RULE that another election could not be held within a year of the last one. We then applied for transfers to Caddo and those also were denied. Seems odd that this happened because last year they were all granted out of our district, even those to Caddo.
Why is it so bad for Atoka county children to go to school at Caddo? At present Caddo is hiring two of our Atoka county teachers, even though they live in Atoka county. After all, we all still live in the same state. Why be so petty about county boundary lines? Is not the welfare of our children more important?
We might point out to you that our main opposition was not from people who had children of school age. Some of them didn’t have any children at all.
When you go to vote, just stop and consider whether the man on the ballot has tried to serve the people or tried to dictate to them.
-- Mrs. Harry Parker, Harry Parker, Mrs. J. E. Fox, J. E. Fox, J. L. Springer, M. C. Nunn, Pink Williams, Harve Dillard, Josie Dillard, J. D. Dowd, J. C. Smith, A. J. Cowart, Curtis W. Springer, B. F. Brown, Roy O’Hern, May Dowd, Edgar Smith, Mrs. Edgar Smith, Mack Dufur, Willie Mae Dufur, Velora Smith, Esther Smith, Della Springer, Irene O’Hern.