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125 Years Ago - 1885
    Several of the old Civil War veterans of Selinsgrove were to Gettysburg the early part of the week. The 147th Regiment PVI were erecting Tablets to mark the position they held in battle.
    A mink killed twelve of James Vanzandt's spring chickens at his chickenhouse in Middleburg on Monday night.
    Those of our people of Snyder County who attended Barnum's show at Lewistown on Saturday say that old P.T. has made no change, and is still a fraud as usual.

100 Years Ago - 1910
    Any married man will tell you that it doesn't take much of a musician to play second fiddle to his wife.
    A kerosene lamp at the home of Postmaster Clark S. Boyer of Paxtonville exploded and set fire to the house, but the timely discovery saved the house from serious damage.
    It is estimated that Snyder County had several thousand people in attendance at the Union County Fair. The Adamsburg Band furnished some of the music for the affair.

50 Years Ago - 1960
     Announcing the New 1961 Lark by Studebaker. You have to drive it to believe it. Now on display at the R.L. Hartman Garage, Middleburg RD3.
    Erdley's Store in Paxontville is observing 16 years of doing business in the town. Special prices include: chuck roast 43 cents lb., lebanon bologna 59 cents lb., oranges 39 cents doz., cheese 49 cents lb.

35 Years Ago - 1975
    Thanks to a local car dealer with an assist from Hurricane Eloise, the Middleburg Explorer Troop No. 2415 will have a ten year old car they will chance off at this week's Harvest Jubilee. The car is a 1966 Ford Galaxy two door with a radio and power steering. Two weeks ago when flood waters were threatening to overrun Wilt's used car lot next to Middle Creek all the cars were moved except the Ford Galaxy which employees could not start and did not have time to tow away. The situation was observed and the Scouts came to the rescue. Mr. Wilt gave it to the scouts to sell or chance away.

From the Archives of
The
Middleburg Post

The Old Fashioned Spelling Bee

    The "spelling bee" or spelling school, as it was often called, was a common institution in the latter half of the 19th and early part of the 20th century. It was not only an educational event, it became a much anticipated social event as well.
    When the school term was only six or seven months long, the term did not begin until mid-September and closed in mid-March. The spelling schools would begin in early October and continue through November and December.
    The older students would begin school after the farm work was finished. Boys and girls, aged sixteen to eighteen began their school year and would soon begin promoting an up-coming spelling bee.
    The teacher and pupils of a certain school would announce a spelling bee to be held at their school on a Friday evening of a week. Pupils would then spread out among the local commu-nities and spread the word of the upcoming event.
    Teachers in the neighboring communities would then begin tutoring their best spellers in the class for the bee. Then, at the appointed time, the best spellers came prepared for the contest. And not only the students and teachers would show up.
    The spelling bee, as stated before, was a social event. And many people in the communities would attend to see and cheer on the pupils from their areas.
    The rules for the bee would be announced at the beginning of the event, and basically followed a standard among spelling bees. Two people would choose sides and they would be well acquainted with the best spellers and they would quickly choose those.
    There would be no age limit and there was always an even amount of players on each team. After they were selected and each given a number, the leader for each team would choose one of his players, usually called a "trapper", to spell the misspelled words.
    If a word was misspelled, the trapper on the opposite side was given a chance to spell the word. If he or she spelled it correctly, it was counted as "missed" by the side which first got the spelling word.

   If, however, the trapper failed, then the trapper on the first team was given a chance to rescue his team from any penalty. In most cases, the teacher from the host school would select a score keeper to keep an accurate count of misspelled words on each side. The teacher also pronounced the words using a spelling book that was common to all contestants so there would be no unfair advantage.
    Each contestant was allowed only one chance and misspelled words were not passed onto the next pupil. Usually a time limit (generally 45 minutes) or a set number of "rounds" would be determined at the outset. Each side would get the same number of words to spell.
    Then, when the time or number of rounds were met, the score keeper would announce the winning side and a roar of applause broke out among students, and among the members of the communities who would attend.
    After the game, there would be a "spell-down" as it was called at the time. Often, more advanced books would be taken out and more difficult words would be given to the champion spellers of the evening.
    During the spell-down, the contestant would pronounce the word before spelling it, and may ask for a definition, if they feel it would help them spell the word.
    If the word was missed, the next person in line would have the opportunity to spell the word. The person missing the word would be eliminated. This would continue until only one person was left standing and he became the "champion" of the evening's spelling bee.

    Sometimes, teachers would participate in a spell-down with students, although many teachers would not do it for fear of humiliating their pupils. However, if a student would beat a teacher in such a situation, the student would become a hero among the students.
    After the bee, there would usually be a short recess for games held in the school ground. "Ring Tag" was one such popular game and allowed for young people to become acquainted with each other. This often resulted in "dating" for the next spelling bee, which would many times be announced before the adjournment of the event. Ring Tag was usually the strongest memory that those who attended these bees would retain.
    Following the recess period, everyone assembled in the school room where the pupils, under the direction of the teacher, had prepared a short program of songs, recitations, and dialogues, usually of a humorous nature. Many times these skits would be in PA Dutch, since most in the area spoke the Dutch and the English.
    Other entertainment for the night would include homegrown quartets of men and ladies singing for the crowd, a fiddler to entertain, and small string or horn bands from either the town or neighboring communities.
    At the conclusion of the entire program, parents often lingered long enough to chat with neighbors they may have not seen for several weeks, while the children played games. Then, around 11 o'clock, someone would announce that the games were over and it was time to lock the school house.
    Spelling bees passed from the scene about 1910-20. The last evening spelling bee in the area was held in 1934 at the Cross Roads School, then taught by E.E. Ferster.
    Thus ended another tradition, replaced by science fairs and proms, sporting events and pageants. Are we better off?

These children, attending Bowersox School in Western Snyder County in 1912, may have been some of the last witnesses to the old fashioned Spelling Bee, a educational and social event across the area.