First Kindergarten facts for kids
Quick facts for kids |
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First Kindergarten
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| Location | 919 Charles St. Watertown, Wisconsin |
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| NRHP reference No. | 72000055 |
| Added to NRHP | February 23, 1972 |
The First Kindergarten building in Watertown, Wisconsin is a special place. It was home to the very first kindergarten in the United States. This kindergarten opened way back in 1856. Because it's so important for education history, it was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1972.
Contents
The Idea of Kindergarten
A woman named Margarethe Schurz was born in Hamburg, Germany. When she was 16, she learned about new ideas from a teacher named Friedrich Froebel. Back then, many people thought young children needed strict training. They believed kids should learn to work hard.
But Froebel saw children differently. He believed kids were naturally curious. He thought they learned best through play. He encouraged learning with special toys, music, stories, and nature walks. Froebel compared children to plants. He said a teacher was like a gardener. The gardener helps the plants grow and bloom. This is why he called his schools "kindergarten," which means "children's garden."
Margarethe Schurz and the First Kindergarten
Margarethe's family was wealthy and believed in new ideas. They wanted the many small German states to unite into one democratic country. After some political problems in Germany around 1848-49, Margarethe's family left the country.
In London, Margarethe's sister started a kindergarten. Margarethe helped her, gaining valuable experience. There, she married Carl Schurz. He was also an exile who had to leave Germany after fighting in the revolutions. In 1852, Margarethe and Carl moved to the U.S. In 1856, they settled in Watertown.
By this time, Margarethe had a three-year-old daughter named Agathe. Margarethe decided to start a kindergarten in her home. It was for her daughter and four cousins. She taught the classes in German. Soon, other families wanted their children to join. So, Margarethe made her kindergarten bigger. She moved it to a small building in town.
That building is the one this article is about. It became the first kindergarten in the U.S. Margarethe ran the kindergarten until 1858. Then, the Schurzes moved to Milwaukee. Carl Schurz became a lawyer and a Republican. He was a key supporter of Abraham Lincoln among German-Americans. He also became a Major General in the Union Army during the Civil War. Later, he served as United States Secretary of the Interior.
The Building's Journey
After the Schurzes left, the Watertown kindergarten opened and closed sometimes. It finally closed for good during WWI. This happened because people were suspicious of anything German at that time.
The school building is a simple, one-and-a-half-story structure. It has boxed cornices and wood siding. It measures about 18 by 24 feet. After it stopped being a school, it was used for many different things. It was a cigar factory, a fish store, and a religious book store. When it was a store, the front of the building changed a lot.
In 1956, the building was almost torn down. But the Watertown Historical Society saved it! They moved the building from its first spot on North Second Street. They placed it next to the Octagon House. Then, they started to restore it to look like the kindergarten building again. Today, the building is a museum.
The house where Margarethe first started her kindergarten burned down. It no longer exists. So, this schoolhouse is the best reminder of that very first kindergarten. Even though this building was moved and changed, it is still important. The National Register of Historic Places sees it as very important for the history of education across the entire country. This is because Margarethe Schurz's school in Watertown was the first kindergarten in the U.S.
It's worth noting that some records suggest another kindergarten might have existed earlier in Belleville, Illinois, around 1849-1850. However, there is no clear proof of its success or how long it lasted.
The building was a one-room schoolhouse.
Images for kids
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The First Kindergarten building in Watertown, Wisconsin.
