The following message was posted on the Union County List and is re-posted here with permission of the author. I thought it would be of interest to Centre County folks, also, and it does include some Centre County information. Sue ----- Original Message ----- From: "Nelson Sulouff" <zuli@sprintmail.com> To: <PAUNION-L@rootsweb.com> Sent: Thursday, October 25, 2001 10:03 AM Subject: Re: Higher education in Union County, 1850s > Laura and Union Co. Listers, > > In those days there were "academies" and "seminaries" established at > local levels. Perhaps your great grandfather attended one of these > institutions in Union County to get credentials in higher education. I > do not have a thoroughly researched picture of how these institutions > would fit into today's patterns of higher education, but it appears they > were probably akin to what we call "prep schools." I have seen cases > where these institutions respectively qualified their students to teach > in what we would call the "elementary grades" or to preach sermons in > church. I know of similar academies and seminaries that were established > in other nearby counties during this same period, for example in Juniata > County to the south. > > The information in the following paragraph is taken from *A Sulouff and > Suloff Family History* published in January 2001. It illustrates from > contemporary correspondence the nature of these local academies and > seminaries. The prominence of New Berlin in the discussion is explained > by the fact that it was the county seat of Union County from 1815 to > 1855: > > Correspondence preserved by the Noetling family of Mifflinburg, Union > County, indicates that the eldest son, William Noetling, born 1830, > attended the "Mifflinburg Academy" and also took courses at the "Baptist > institution in Lewisburg" before going on to matriculate with "advanced > standing" at Union College in Schenectady NY in 1855. A younger brother, > Charles Noetling, born 1832, "received his education in the common > schools and in the academy at New Berlin and in the Union Seminary in > Union County." The academy at New Berlin provided preparatory work for > entering college. The Union Seminary in Union County was also located in > New Berlin. The youngest son in this family, John Noetling, born 1834, > "received his education in the Franklin School or the German School in > Mifflinburg and continued in the one-room schools of New Berlin after > the family moved in 1847 to Union Township, Union Co. In 1855 John was > enrolled in a summer term in New Berlin.... In January 1856 the Union > Seminary was opened in New Berlin by the Lutheran and Reformed Churches, > and John was in the first group to enter.... Regulations at the Seminary > included that the male students could not speak with females nor make > evening calls at the house of any lady. 5:00 a.m. was wakeup at the > ringing of a bell, another bell at 9:00 to start school, another at > 12:00 for lunch, another at 1:30 p.m. to resume school and another at > 5:00 p.m. to end school. 7:00 was study time at the ringing of a bell, > and another bell was to go to bed. To go preaching at least once on a > Sunday was a requirement.... After completing the Fall term at the > Seminary in 1856 John turned to teaching.... He first accepted an > appointment in one of the New Berlin schools and wrote to William [his > brother] that the teaching was among the Moravians....John wrote of the > boys, "And I can tell you such disorderly scholars I never have seen > before, I have a good strap in use, but instead of teaching I could not > do any things but strapping. It is enough to wear a person down by > calling out with the most intense emphasis for order, as well as > stomping on the floor that it nearly shakes down the whole house. It > shall be a warning to me never to accept a situation after this [i.e., > such as this].... I have more labor than I like since I have 60 pupils > and have so many in Davies' PRIMARY ARITHMETIC, that they sometimes come > with their slates in overwhelming numbers.... In December 1858 John > moved to teach in Howard, Centre County. He describes taking the stage > to Millheim, continuing on foot to the Brush Valley Road in the rain, > hitching a ride to Madisonburg, and then walking across two mountains > through Walker and Marion Townships to reach Howard. He found the > villagers friendly but ran into severe disciplinary problems again. When > he was trying to whip one of the largest boys, the boy wrested the whip > from his hand and they ended up tussling on the floor with the other > boys looking on. When he got control of the boy, he freed him without > resuming his effort to apply the whip. When the word got around he > received criticism for not administering the flogging." One way or > another John managed to enter the Medical College Of Pennsylvania in > Philadelphia in October 1859, graduated, and returned to set up medical > practice in New Berlin immediately thereafter. In 1864 he accepted a > commission in the 55th Pennsylvania Infantry Regiment as an Assistant > Surgeon and wrote that he saw from 30 to 40 patients each day in his > tent. He was discharged in June 1865. > > I realize this information about the Noetling sons goes off on lines > that are tangential to the point of this message, but I thought it might > be interesting and instructive to fellow Listers. Sometimes it is hard > for us to recreate in our minds just what it was like to live in > Pennsylvania in the mid-1800's, and this sort of review helps us realize > how different things were back then from what we are used to today. >