Sewell School - 1905

This photo recently surfaced from a box of miscellaneous items purchased at a rummage sale. On Feb. 24, 1905, the students at Sewell School put on their best clothes for a school picture. Sewell School was located about halfway between Naylor and Oxly. The teacher was Edd Cope. During this time, the area was prospering as the large tracts of timber were being cleared, giving way to farming as the primary means of earning a living. On Aug. 30, 1905, Naylor (then still officially known as Barfield) became a fourth class city, a seal was adopted and voting precincts were established. With a population of about 500 residents, the town had two doctors, two banks, three drug stores, four general stores, two meat markets, two saloons, a barbershop, a blacksmith and machine shop, a roller mill, hotel, a weekly newspaper and was served by two railroad lines. In the 1950s, the rural schools consolidated and the county students transferred to the Naylor R-II School District.