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History
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On May 15, 1854, seven schools were established in Van Zandt County with specific bounds. Jordan Saline was established as no. 4 and later became Grand Saline District No. 4. The town was called Jordan’s Saline until the arrival of the T & P Railroad on its route from Marshall to Dallas in 1873. On January 10, 1867, the entire county was laid off in school districts and on May 13, 1879, the county clerk was ordered to issue drafts for various claims on a percentage basis according to funds belonging to each district. In 1895 the Grand Saline School was a one-room building located one mile west of town. The first teacher in the one-room wooden building was Florence Hoard. A two-room school building was erected in town in 1896. In 1898 the school was relocated to the southeast corner of Main and Jordan Streets. A three room wooden building was constructed. Eventually it became a five teacher school with the Martinite Church and the Presbyterian Church also being used for classrooms. About 1905 Grand saline School District No. 4 became an independent school district. According to minutes of the first meeting of the trustees of the Grand Saline Independent School District the trustees met in the office of Mr. Sim Florence, a Notary Public, on Tuesday afternoon, July 11, 1905. After being sworn in by Mr. Florence they organized by electing J.B. Covington as president and W. A. Adam as secretary. The other trustees were J.S. Kingston, S.L. Stanford, J.M. Weeks, T.B. Weeks and H.O. Kuykendall. They elected Mr. F.M. Chancellor as Principal and Mr. George D. Staton as first assistant for the following school year.
During the August 15, 1905, meeting a contract with Mr. Staton was made to furnish 10 cords of wood at $2.50 per cord for heating. The salaries of the faculty was set for the Principal at $80 per month, the first assistant $60 per month and teachers $40 per month. The resolution was passed requiring tuition of all overs and unders to be paid in advance or not to be permitted to attend school. The overs were those students who were over the legal age to attend school and the unders were those students who were under the legal age to attend school. On November 21, 1905, the citizens and patrons of the Grand Saline Independent School District No. 4 petitioned the school board to hold a bond election to build a school building. In 1906 a bond issue of $14,500 was voted to construct a six-room brick building with a large auditorium on the campus on Main Street near the present location of the old gym. On July 9, 1906, the school board met for the purpose of letting the contract to build the first new high school in Grand Saline. The contract was awarded to Manco Shepherd to be completed by December 1, 1906. In 1909, a $3,000 bond issue was voted to add two additional rooms to the school. In 1914 another bond was voted and four more rooms were added. In 1919 a bond issue for $8,000 was voted and a wooden building of four rooms was constructed in 1920, to be used as a primary school. This is the building located on the campus near the old gym on Main Street that the “Friends of the Old School” is restoring into an old school museum. This building is the oldest building in the Grand Saline School District. The old gym was the next building constructed in 1925. It was the first brick gym built in Van Zandt Co. and is still being used today. The Indian mascot and school colors orange and black were selected about 1924-25. In 1930 the second new high school was constructed. On May 16, 1930, a contract for $55,000 was awarded to G.E. Shirley. According to newspaper accounts of 1930, the first high school was removed and the second new Grand Saline High School was erected during the summer months of 1930. At the time the Main Street campus housed all grades until 1940. In 1938-40 the present elementary school was built by the Works Projects Administration (WPA). The first school lunch room was started about 1948. The building was a wood building erected on the elementary school campus from materials brought in from one of the rural schools. Prior to this time students brought their lunch to school. Students at the Main Street campus could go eat downtown at one of the cafes, eat at a store in the home of Mr. and Mrs. Roy Walton on Green Street behind the campus or go to the elementary campus to eat at the lunch room. There was no lunch room at the high school campus. Prior to the lunch room students at the elementary school could go across the street to a sandwich shop which was operated by Mrs. Bryant. In November, 1965, a bond election was voted to build a new high school. The bond issue was $490,000. The third new high school was constructed and was occupied the fall semester of 1967. That building is now the present middle school. The last class to graduate from the high school on Main Street was the class of 1967. The two buildings that are presently being used as the intermediate campus were constructed in 1980 and 1996. Persons field (the old football field), was constructed during the 1930’s. The present football facility, Indian Memorial Stadium, was constructed in 1992. A sign erected at the entrance is in honor of Mr. James F. Nelson, long-time coach and Principal at Grand Saline High School. During the late years of World War II Mr. Nelson served as the only coach of all boys athletics, taught classes almost every period and served as high school principal. In 2001 the citizens of Grand Saline ISD voted a $7,000,000 bond issue to build only its fourth high school in 100 years. The building was constructed and the students moved in during the fall semester of 2004. This modern state-of-the-art facility will serve the students of Grand Saline High School and provide them with a great education for many years to come. The Grand Saline Schools have served this community well for over 100 years. It has educated many outstanding citizens. Among them are doctors, lawyers, educators, politicians, ministers, military heroes, entertainers, business people and many other outstanding citizens that have served this and other communities well. The Grand Saline Schools have always strived to instill good moral character, citizenship and patriotism in its students. Graduates of Grand Saline Schools have always achieved well and are proud of the education they received and are proud to call the community of Grand Saline their hometown. The following is a list of the Superintendents who have served the Grand Saline Schools from 1898 until the present. This may or may not be a complete list. If anyone has knowledge of anyone else who served as a Superintendent from the time period of 1921 to the early 1930’s please contact Ed Bailey with that information. Mr.
Brittain
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