Maple Grove School
The "Raising of the Flag"
about 1919
Maple Grove School possibly began in the early 1820's when William Bridges began teaching in his home on Beechy Fork Creek. However, the first school building was a crude log cabin built east of the Drewry Bridges' home and was one of the first built in Trigg County. It consisted of benches made of split logs and only had two windows and a door. Later another log cabin was constructed on the hill west of the Drewry Bridges' tract of land which then belonged to Cullen T. Bridges. This log building was used until 1913 when a concrete block building constructed by Shent, Dale and John T. Bridges replaced the old one. These blocks were made by hand with a block machine that has made blocks for other buildings in the county. Maple Grove School building is still in fair condition and the only one of the many school buildings that were in Trigg County that is left in the county.
All eight grades were taught in the one room with children coming from the west, almost to Canton, from the east, the head of Beechy Fork Creek, from the north, almost to Oak Grove and from the south to Donaldson Creek.
There were no water facilities, so water was carried in a bucket two or three times a day by some of the older pupils. Then the children would all drink from the same dipper. Later a cistern was made, a water cooler purchased (with money the school had made by having a pie supper), and children had their own drinking cups.
The school buildings not only served the educational needs of the community but religous ones as well. As preaching services were sometimes held on Saturday nights and Sundays until the Maple Grove Church was built in 1944.
Some of the early teachers were William Bridges, Cullen T. Bridges, Stanley Bridges, Owen Williams, Inez Crews Thomas, Anna Drews Dunn, Smith Thomas, Ida Meador Thomas, John Light, Nan Gresham Bridges, Nannie Battoe Stagner, Maude Crute, Alice Crute, Rhoda Frith, Ethel Satterfield, Grace Bridges Barber and Johnnie Futrell Mayne, the later teachers were Agnes Coyle, Dollie Gillahan, Julia Thomas Bridges, Hilda Bridges, Frank Wolfe, Mildred Hopson Wright, Frances Cunningham and Allene Bridges. Allene Bridges was the last teacher at Maple Grove and is the great granddaughter of William Bridges who was possibly the first teacher. Thus descendants for four generations have taught at Maple Grove.
The school was consolidated in 1949 when all the children were bused to cadiz Graded School.
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