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"Many complain of their taxes and say that teachers are too liberally paid. It may be true in the case with teachers, for they dear at any price -- but a good teacher in a country school, who is earnest in his work needs to be a very Hercules. For though it may appear to some a very easy matter to keep school (& it is so - still it is a very hard task to teach successfully) to some it is a matter of pride to know that they are giving in proportion to their neighbors in any good work. To them it may be a satisfaction to know that for raising the largest amount of money for each child enumerated, we stand the eighth town in the state (8.68) and Wolcott leads the state (11.55).
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The condition of education in Oxford is shown in the Connecticut School Report of 1874, with several references worthy of note, The state superintendent gives a report on "The Declining Towns," wherein he defines the declining towns as those who are declining in population. The report notes that such communities are in danger of getting discouraged.
In that report, Oxford is ranked as 86th in the state, out of 166 towns and cities in its ability to pay for public schooling, based on the amount of taxable property to every child between the ages of four and sixteen years.
However, Oxford is ranked as 25th in the state, in terms of per pupil expenditures during that year.
In the report on the condition of school houses, eight were listed in good condition, two in fair condition, and two in poor condition.
School visitors for the year were John Harger, Dr. Lewis Barnes, N. J. Wilcoxson, R. S. Hinman, O. G. Osborn and S. Hawkins.* * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * * *
ATTENDANCE OF SCHOLARS IN THE DISTRICT SCHOOLS.
It is strange to read some of the early reports on attendance and see that the state and district school committees accepted as a natural fact the idea that many children would not attend any school.
In that respect, the 1879 school report of the State Board of Education shows that Oxford's schools were reasonably well attended. Oxford's population in the 1970 was 1,338, compared to 1,318 in the neighboring town of Southbury. In the school year of 1877-78, Oxford is reported as having nine persons of school age who attended no school. Southbury is reported to
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