Summer 2016 Volume 30 – Number 3

A Monumental Career: Remembering Miss Lydia Brinsmaid's Fifty Years of Teachingby Peter J. De Kever

The dedication and life-changing impact of Mishawaka teachers, administrators, and school board members have been honored by the community in different ways over the years. Scholarships and awards are given in memory of staff members. School buildings have been named in educators' honor, such as the former Mary Phillips School, Emmons School, Hums School, and John Young Middle School. Parks and school athletic facil-ities also bear the names of coaches and teachers, including Baker Park, Wilson Park, Steele Stadium, Petko Field, and Otolski Field. The Educators sculpture in Kate's Garden on Lincoln Way West is a tribute to all Mishawaka teachers and other educators who have shaped Mishawaka's youth. More humble than any of these forms of recognition is a small monument located near the busy southeast corner of North Main Street and Broadway on the grounds of the Battell Community Center, the former Battell School. The grey, granite, octagonal stone stands 30” tall and has a diameter of roughly 42”. On the west face of the monu-ment reads this simple inscription:

IN MEMORY OF LYDIA BRINSMAID

WHO TAUGHT IN BATTELL SCHOOL FROM 1866 TO 1916

GIVEN BY HER FORMER PUPILS

What else is known about this Mish-awaka teacher who earned such a remarkable expression of gratitude?

Lydia Brinsmaid was born in Misha-waka on August 7, 1846, the second eldest of four children-- two boys and two girls-- born to Albert and Martha Brinsmaid. Lydia's father was born in Stockbridge, Massachu-setts, and lived in Brockport, New York, before coming here in 1837 as part of the “Brockport colony,” a

group of 32 settlers who migrated to Mishawaka that year. His wife was born in Greenfield, New York, and came to Mishawaka with her parents in 1839. Lydia attended the Mishawaka public schools, including the old North Side School, where she began her teaching career in 1866.

Miss Lydia Brinsmaid, 1879 (Mishawaka-Penn-Harris Public Library)

The North Side School, constructed in 1858, replaced “the little red brick schoolhouse” that stood on the west side of Main Street near Broadway in a clearing surrounded by the Battell Woods. A two-story frame building, the North Side School was located near the northeast corner of Main and Battell, approximately where the west section of the Battell Community Center is today. The school was added on to over the years before it was destroyed by fire in 1899. Rather than rebuilding, the school board decided to construct a new eight-room school named in honor of the Battell family. The original Battell School opened in 1900, and growing enrollments led to the construction of an annex to the east in 1908. These two buildings, which today remain landmarks that Lydia Brinsmaid would recognize, and another constructed in 1921 facing Main Street served the school children of Mishawaka until 1981, when a new Battell School opened six blocks east. For five decades, Miss Brinsmaid educated the children of Mishawaka's north side. As the years went by, she taught former students' children and even their grand-children. She eventually became the longest-tenured teacher in Mishawaka. Around 1911, Miss Brins-maid was featured nationally in a Collier's magazine article written by a former student who had become a minister. He penned this tribute: To attempt a description of her subtle charm would be as useless as

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to essay a description of the rose's fragrance. I see her now, a lovely smile playing about her lips, and mischievous glances hidden behind her spectacles, betraying the fact that she was on terms of intimate intimate companionship with her 50 little charges. Eagerly other teach-ers sought the secret of Miss Lydia's success, but they sought it in vain until they learned the art of loving.

It is safe to say that in Mishawaka there is no one who has exerted such a pow-erful and far-reaching influence as has this gentle little lady. The school board which retains her in its service displays unusual wisdom. Too prevalent is the notion that 20 years must measure the service of a public school teacher. Here is one who, if she had stopped after 20 years of service, would have robbed the world of 30 golden years.

Happy indeed the school that is blessed by such a motherly superior!

The debt we owe this magnifi-cent woman can never be paid.

Lydia Brinsmaid devoted her entire working life to the vocation of teach-ing elementary-age school children in Mishawaka. She did not marry.

Lydia's father died in 1877, and the 1901 City Directory shows both her and Martha residing with Lydia's sister, Louise, and brother-in-law, Tabor Ham, at 118 West Grove Street, two blocks southwest of Battell School. After Martha passed away in 1903, Lydia continued to live with the Hams. Lydia was a lifelong member of the First Pres-byterian Church, where she taught Sunday school for many years.

Miss Brinsmaid completed the 1915–16 school year in the first week of June and had signed the contract to return for her 51st year of teaching. Unex-pectedly, though, she took ill with an intestinal blockage and, after a few days' suffering, had to undergo emer-gency surgery at St. Joseph Hospital in Mishawaka. She never regained consciousness following the proce-dure and died on Saturday, June 10.

The local newspapers announced Lydia's passing to a shocked and grieving community. The Mishawaka Enterprise lauded her as “a devoted and faithful instruc-tor,” and the South Bend Tribune asserted that “no woman in Mish-awaka was more loved or highly respected” than Miss Brinsmaid.

The Enterprise included these com-ments in its tribute: “Among her pupils in the Battell School were grandchildren of those she had taught, and many grown-up men and women in Mishawaka today who were educated by her owe much of their success in life to the sound and admirable scholastic training they had received under her tuition. Her pupils loved her, and as they grew to manhood or womanhood they never forgot to pay tribute to her whenever opportunity offered.”

In its eulogy, the Tribune added, “She was a remarkable teacher of children and although offered positions in higher grades always preferred to teach children. Many children received in addition to their lessons the first lessons in deportment and politeness from this noble woman. Her life was an inspiration to young and old in the interests of right living. Hundreds of men and women in Mishawaka who received their early education from her are today mourning her loss.”

A year after Lydia Brinsmaid died, a group was formed to create a public memorial to the beloved teacher. The seven-member committee included the new superintendent of schools, D.W. Horton, and Battell School's principal, Miss Mary Phillips. The June 22, 1917, issue of the Mishawaka Enter-prise announced they had “decided on a bird fountain as fitting for a remembrance for the former instruc-tor.” The granite monument that was later installed had a small pipe that brought up water above a shallow basin, 2 ½” deep in the center, carved into the top of the stone. Today, no water flows but the hole for the pipe can still be seen and the basin collects rainwater for birds. The monument was paid for by contributions from Miss Brinsmaid's former students.

North Side School, c. 1889, first and second grade classes. Superintendent: Byron Bogue,teacher: Miss Lydia Brinsmaid (Hannah Lindahl Children's Museum)

Thank YouThe Hannah Lindahl Children’s Museum Endowment Fund administered by the Community Foundation of Saint Joseph County was begun with a founding dona-tion of $10,500 by Don and Nancy Crawford in 2000. The Endowment has since grown to more than $225,000.

The Endowment Fund ensures the ongo-ing legacy of Hannah Lindahl Children’s Museum in the local community. It supports our mission to provide a collec-tion of unique artifacts that encourages families to explore, learn and enjoy the history of the Mishawaka area.

We wish to thank our 2015-2016 Donors

to the Endowment Fund

$150 – $200 Mark Bradford

Ilene M. Crutchfield

Kevin Davis

William and Linda Gray

Nancy Harter

John Young PTSA

Lexie Schroeder Kobb

Allen and Peggy Marker

Connie Saltzgaber

Carol Thie

Reg and Barbara Wagle

$1,000 – $5,000 Jo Ann K. Cook

$5,000 – $10,000 Patricia L. Tollens

$15,000 – $20,000 Rosemary Klaer

If you wish to make a donation to the HLCM Endowment Fund, please contact director@hlcm.org, 574-254-4540 or contact the Community Foundation of St. Joseph County at 574-232-0041.

The memorial to Lydia Brinsmaid was dedicated on Friday afternoon, June 7, 1918, during Battell School's annual June festival that con-cluded the school year. Hundreds of people attended the ceremony, according to the South Bend Tribune, including many who “came by automobile from nearby cities.”

For nearly a century, Miss Lydia Brinsmaid's monument has endured, quietly marking the passage of time and watching over many changes in Mishawaka. It has seen the con-struction of the west annex of Battell School, the buildings' later transformation into Battell Commu-nity Center, numerous road projects on Main Street and construction of the Main Street underpass, and the slow evolution of houses and other buildings in the surrounding neigh-borhood. Lydia's memorial has also outlived all of her students, who grew into adulthood and, one by one, followed her into eternal rest.

As Mishawaka has developed and the years have gone by, Lydia Brinsmaid has largely been forgot-

ten, and few people even notice her memorial– let alone read its inscription– as they drive along Main Street, get stopped at the Broadway traffic light, or glance at the latest message on Battell Community Center's nearby elec-tronic sign. Other Mishawaka teachers and educators have more prominent memorials honoring their role in shaping the city's children, but Miss Brinsmaid's monument stands as a simple yet lasting tribute from those who best knew the lifelong influence of her half-century of loving, dedicated service as a teacher.

Lydia Brinsmaid memorial, Battell Community Center

Museum CalendarOctober 5, 2016 – May 31, 2017 World Famous Mishawakans, Part II This exhibit features three world famous residents from Mishawaka’s past and present. This year we are highlighting the life and influence of Anna Rohrer (track and cross country athlete), Allan “Rocky” Lane (movie and television actor) and Wallace Dodge (inventor and entrepreneur). This exhibit changes annually, to see past featured World Famous Mishawakans visit HLCM’s website!

October 2016 – Ongoing Mishawaka-Penn-Harris Public Library Display The Museum has a display case in the children’s department of our local downtown Mishawaka Library!

The case currently features a collec-tion of one room school house and early school objects from HLCM. April 10 – May 15, 2017 From Pencils to Pixels: Hoosier Cartoons and Comics This is an opportunity to discover the creativity of Hoosier cartoon-ists with this traveling exhibit from the Indiana Historical Society. The exhibit explores the adventures of comic strip characters such as fat-cat Garfield, Brown County savant Abe martin, and “Chic” Jackson’s “Roger Bean,” which featured the lives of a typical Hoosier family.

Museum hours: Tues. – Fri. 9 AM to noon & 1 PM to 4 PM,

(closed whenever school is not in session in SCM) Admission charges: $1.00 – Children ages 2 – 4 $2.00 – Seniors ages 62+ & students ages 5 – 17 $3.00 – Adults Free Admission for Museum Members

Museum Advisory Board 2015–16Dave Eisen, president • Linda Irish, vice president • Linda Gray, secretary

Connie Saltzgaber, treasurer •Dr. A. Dean Speicher, Interim Superintendent Kevin Davis • Peter DeKever • Dave Eggleston • Annette Ernst • Lisa Gartee • Eva Jojo

Tomi Mason • Paula Meersman • Mike Pettibone • Dr. Bruce Stahly • Ellen WestEmeritus: Emmy Cokewood • Karen Jackson • Ann Sharp • Jane Weaver

Director: Lexie Schroeder Kobb

Wall of Fame 20+ YearsAtef M. Tawadros D. D. SBryan Chiropractic Center

15 – 19 YearsGary’s Barber/Style ShopMagrames Motor SalesMichiana Accounting ServiceSchindler, Olson & CurreyTeachers Credit UnionWeber Electric, Inc.Woodcox Cleaning & Restorations

11 – 14 Years1st Source BankDr. Brian D. EberhartGeorge A Mighion DDS PCKeyBank

6 – 10 YearsMagrane Pet Medical CenterPrincess City Dental

2 – 5 YearsHinges & Handles, Inc.

2015 – 2016 ArtifactorsNew Donors John Boettcher Sewer & Excavating

Special Project Donors Beta Gamma Chapter of Tri-Kappa, Inc. Martin's Super Market Mattress WarehouseMishawaka Business AssociationMishawaka Business FoundationTargetTri Kappa Mishawaka Alpha AssociateWhole Foods Market

Thank you for your support!

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For information about becoming a Museum Artifactor, please contact director@hlcm.org

1402 South Main StreetMishawaka, IN 46544

Telephone: (574) 254-4540FAX: (574) 254-4585

www.hlcm.org

The mission of the Hannah Lindahl Children’s Museum is to provide a collection of unique artifacts that encourages families to

explore, learn, and enjoy the history of the Mishawaka area.