District 12 - The Havron / Kays District: Circa 1878 – 1910
🏫 Schoolhouses of Minerva
School History - Home / District 1 – Alfred White / District 1 – Olmstedville / District 1 – Minerva Central
District 2 - Minerva Elementary / District 3 - Lynch/Mallon / District 4 - Irishtown / District 5 - Puddin Hollow
District 6 – The Ryan School / District 7 - The Gore School / Districts 8 & 11 - North River
District 9 - The Boreas School / District 10 - Leonardsville / District 12: Havron - Kays / District 13 – Aiden Lair
School History - Home / District 1 – Alfred White / District 1 – Olmstedville / District 1 – Minerva Central
District 2 - Minerva Elementary / District 3 - Lynch/Mallon / District 4 - Irishtown / District 5 - Puddin Hollow
District 6 – The Ryan School / District 7 - The Gore School / Districts 8 & 11 - North River
District 9 - The Boreas School / District 10 - Leonardsville / District 12: Havron - Kays / District 13 – Aiden Lair
Introduction: Shared Roots and Stories
As the stories of our one-room schoolhouses unfold, we begin to see the many connections between them. Family and teacher names echo across districts and generations—names that still appear on school rolls and pass across lips to this day. You’ll find Mary Kelso Talbot’s name in this narrative. When you read about District 1, you’ll also meet Elizabeth “Bessie” Talbot Sullivan, a student who became both a teacher and a leader in the community. The threads connecting these districts run deep.
District 12 (Havron/Kays) and District 9 (Boreas) share a different kind of connection. Both schools served families who were ultimately removed from their land by the New York State Forestry Commission, rendering the schools no longer needed.
As the stories of our one-room schoolhouses unfold, we begin to see the many connections between them. Family and teacher names echo across districts and generations—names that still appear on school rolls and pass across lips to this day. You’ll find Mary Kelso Talbot’s name in this narrative. When you read about District 1, you’ll also meet Elizabeth “Bessie” Talbot Sullivan, a student who became both a teacher and a leader in the community. The threads connecting these districts run deep.
District 12 (Havron/Kays) and District 9 (Boreas) share a different kind of connection. Both schools served families who were ultimately removed from their land by the New York State Forestry Commission, rendering the schools no longer needed.
🕰️ Timelines
Visual timeline of District 12
Timeline at a Glance 📍Circa 1878 School likely established after William Kays and Margaret Brannon settled on the property. 👨👩👧👦 1878 William Kays marries Margaret Brannon. They raise five children on the road to Newcomb. 📜 1875 Havron name appears in Minerva census records. 🧑🏫 1891 First official school record: Daniel is Havron listed as trustee. 🌲 1892 NYS Forest Commission offers land-use deal to squatters—25 years, no taxes, limited wood cutting. 📜 1892 Deed Record William L. Kays and Margaret Kays deeded 81 square rods, as surveyed by Orson P. Morse, to Daniel Havron, Trustee of District 12, on March 29, 1892. The deed was recorded July 28, 1892. 📚 1892–1902 Teachers include Marie Welch, David Will, Arthur Wells, Mary E. McIntyre, Fred Sawyer, and K.A. Ryan (last teacher of record). 📉 1910 School closes due to lack of pupils. 🏠 1922 25-year land agreement ends. William Kays moves into the former schoolhouse. This plot, which William had deeded to Daniel Havron, reverted back to him when the school closed. 🏕️ Present Day Building remains, now a two-story camp off Route 28N between the former Aiden Lair Lodge and Blue Ridge Road. |
Origins and Purpose
District 12, the Havron / Kays school sprang up as many one-room schoolhouses did because there were children in the area who needed to be educated, and there were no schools within a reasonable travel distance to provide that education. The Boreas School (District 9) was roughly five miles to the north, and the Aiden Lair School (District 13) lay about five miles to the south. The Kays Family and Early Settlement Early census records tell us that Robert Kays was living in Warren County in 1850 with his wife Eliza and small son William. Robert’s wife passed away at the age of 27 and Robert remarried Mary Kelso Talbot and shows up on the 1855 census as living in Minerva. Robert and Eliza’s son William married Margaret Brannon in 1878 and they settled in on property on the road to Newcomb and raised five children. The schoolhouse was located on their property and oral history accountings tell us that the Kays children attended a log school. We do not know how long after Robert and Margaret settled on this property that the schoolhouse was built. Havron Involvement and First Official Records The Havron name appears as a new name in Minerva on the 1875 census and Daniel Havron is listed as the school trustee in the 1891 town records. This is the first official record we have of the schoolhouse. The last teacher of record was K.A. Ryan in 1902. Land Ownership and the Adirondack Park Commission As mentioned in the school history of District 9, The Boreas School, there were a large portion of settlers who never purchased their land and became known as squatters who had no legal right to the property they had settled. In 1892, the New York State Forest Commission increased enforcement of land ownership rules in the newly created Adirondack Park. The squatters were offered a deal that would allow them to remain on their land for 25 years. They would pay no taxes and could cut enough wood for their personal use or leave immediately. This agreement was a precursor to the 'Forever Wild' policy enshrined in the NYS Constitution in 1894, which has had a lasting impact on land use in the Adirondacks. Most families signed. In 1922, after the 25 years was up, they would have to relinquish that land back to the state and move on. The Schoolhouse After Closure William and Margaret Kays had not purchased the land they settled on. The property may have been in the Kays family for a time before William and Margaret made it their home. William opted to sign the agreement with the Adirondack Park Commission. When the 25 years was up in 1922, he and his family moved into the old school house which was the only plot left in the family’s possession. The school had closed in 1910 due to lack of pupils. Unlike other parcels in the area, this plot was not reclaimed by the state—because it had legally been deeded to the district in 1892 by William and Margaret Kays. When the school closed and there were no more trustees, the land reverted back to them, becoming the only piece of property, the family retained. They built onto the schoolhouse and made it their home. See footnotes 1 & 2 below. The Building Today The original schoolhouse is still there but no longer resembles the original building. It is a two-story building that sits off from the road a bit on the way to Newcomb about halfway between the old Aiden Lair Lodge and the Blue Ridge Road. Footnotes
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