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Workmen uncover haunting 100 year old chalkboards in school

Photo: Oklahoma City Public School District

A US public school has released snapshots of blackboards with scribbles and drawings from almost 100 years ago, after they were discovered earlier this week.

Contractors removing old chalkboards from Emerson High School in Oklahoma City made the unnerving discovery, underneath them rested another set of boards, which had been untouched since 1917.

Lessons included multiplication tables, pilgrim history and a lesson on how to be clean.

Emerson High School Principal Sherry Kishore told the Oklahoma that the penmanship blew her away.

“You don’t see a lot of that anymore, some of the handwriting in some of these rooms is beautiful,” she said.


The chalkboards were being removed to make way for new whiteboards in four classrooms – according to the Oklahoma City Public School District.

A spokeswoman said it was working with the city to preserve the chalk work of the teachers that has been captured in time.

Ms Kishore said a wheel that was apparently used to teach multiplication tables, which was seen on one board, was something she’d never seen in her career.

The boards carry not just teachers’ work, but also that of students, and every room has a lesson on pilgrims, according to the district.

“Their names are here; I don’t know whether they were students in charge that day that got to do the special chores if they were the ones that had a little extra to do because they were acting up,” Kishore said.

National news break – June 8