Getting Kids to School in the 1940s

Bus Drivers in the 1940s

                My mother, Bernyce Smith Gates, attended her first year of high school at Ralston and her final three years at Burbank High School. She spent much time on the school bus during those four years so the bus drivers and the lengthy bus routes stood out in her mind even after over 70 years!

                Adult men from the community served as the bus drivers during Mother’s high school tenure. Some of them had their own children as bus riders.

                As a freshman, Mother rode the bus to Ralston with Red Hainlen as her driver. He had a route that picked up students in the Bend at Asa Snow’s Store near the Belford River Bridge. Red then drove into the communities of Masham and Oak Grove. The bus then wound back around to Ralston with a load of high schoolers. No students in the first grade through eighth grade rode the bus since grade schools in those rural communities were still teaching students. As unusual as it may seem in the 21^st century, no rural high school students drove cars or pickups to school in that era.

Mother recalled one day when “big” boys started cutting up on the bus. Red had corrected them, but that had no effect on their behavior. He slammed on the brakes, got off the bus, and demanded them to get off as well and settle it with him. The boys, both much bigger than Red, remained sheepishly in their seats. Red boarded the bus. The remainder of the bus ride was uneventful.

                Newt Frank held the position as the driver who had the most control each day as he drove them to Burbank. Both of his sons, Gale and Harmon Lee, rode the bus, too. His daughters were Betty Jo (Wayman) and Linda. Since Newt’s height was considered “tall” for men of that time, none of the riders challenged his authority. Newt’s riders knew he said what he meant and meant what he said.

Jewel Dean and Melva (Smith) Frank, Ada (Armstrong) and Newt Frank with
their youngest daughter, Linda, in front.
Photograph from the collection of Judy Franks Magers, granddaughter of Newt
and Ada Frank.*

                On the other hand, the last bus driver during Mother’s time at Burbank High School, was easy-going and docile compared to Newt’s strict expectation of his riders’ adherence to rules. Mother found herself angered and astonished at his tolerance of horrible behavior. She was appalled that he allowed unruly riders to throw clumps of mud onto the windshield.

                The policy changed after her graduation. Older students who were responsible and reliable began driving the bus. Mother worked a temporary position at the Burbank First National Bank for a limited time. Virgil Rice, her cousin, picked her up and provided her transportation to Burbank High School. She then walked down the hill to work at the bank.

                During my father’s stroke convalescence, Basil and Fern (Hight) Myers visited him several times. Basil had grown up just north of my parents’ farm. He told of his stint as a student bus driver while attending Ralston High School. He picked up students in the Bend and then drove across the Belford River Bridge to pick up high schoolers in Pawnee County. He wound back around picking up students living west of Ralston. Basil related about his driving in this account below:

                At the age of 17, I started driving the Ralston High School bus in the fall of 1945. I took over after my older brother, Harvey, left high school to enlist in the U.S. Army. This part-time job continued through the spring of 1946. I began my second year as bus driver in the fall of 1946, with it concluding at my graduation from RHS in the spring of 1947.

                Not many part-time jobs for students beat it for pay. I earned $40 per month that averaged out to $2.00 a day.** My bus route varied. It ranged from 45-55 miles, one way. I drove over 100 miles on some school days! I even drove the bus for out-of-town basketball games, even transporting the team to the regional and state tournaments! Thankfully, Emory Hight, a well-respected mechanic, kept the problem-proned bus running. At that time, I had no idea his daughter, Fern, would be my wife today.

My bus driving/school day began around 6:30 a.m. from our home in the Bend since I was allowed to park the bus there each evening. If it had rained or was raining, I had to allow for “busting the ruts” of the 3-mile stretch of ungraveled roads from our house to Clark’s Store. I turned west to the river bottom, picking up Frosty Goad. Then I went south to get Bethelea Peters, who I would later be married to for 52 years until her death. I turned back east to pick up Ruth Ann Mitchell, who would later marry my brother, Troy. On that stretch, I picked up the Dooleys, Leon and Lola Lynn, then turned back north to let Ruth Schubert board the bus. When I got to the Belford side of the Bend, I picked up more students. I drove the bus across the Belford River Bridge and headed into Pawnee County to pick up Wilbur Wheatley and Sylvester about a half mile west of the “crooked bridge.” (I had to make Sylvester sit in the front seat because he couldn’t keep from pulling the hair of anyone sitting in front of him!) I picked up Delcie Robbins north of the home of her parents, Dora and Ernest Robbins.

                One morning, just as I approached the “crooked bridge” near the Panther home, located about a mile east of the Belford Bridge over the Arkansas River, Sylvester left his seat and put his hands over my eyes! I managed to jerk one of his hands off and make it across the bridge. I gave him a piece of my mind, but it ran off him, so I told him, “You go back there and sit with Ruth Schubert.” Ruth stepped out and let him on the inside seat.

 I drove on to pick up Wilma Dee Moffit and later the Summy kids. Then I turned north of town to pick up the Roysters, the Urchisons, and the Mitchell boy.

I don’t know how long it took to get from the “crooked bridge” to the school, but when I let the kids off, Sylvester was still crying. I never knew what Ruth said to him, but it improved his behavior!

One morning, I stopped to pick up Frosty Goad. He boarded the bus and broke into his own rendition of “The Great Speckled Bird.” Frosty, as with many of us Benders, had listened to Roy Acuff on the Grand Ole Opry on the radio on Saturday night. That started my morning off right!

Photograph of Juniors and Seniors of 1947 Seated: Gene Brien, Bob Walls, Jack Martin, Larene Bernet,
Velma Wood, Hollis Brown, Monte Summy, and J.G. Stark
            Standing: Buster Armstrong (Jr. class sponsor), Fred Summy, Raymond Royster, Leon Lynn, Basil
             Myers (the Bend student bus driver), Jay Cox, Wilbur Wheatley, James Cavett (drove the Masham
bus route), Monroe McKill, Charles Butler, Doris Stevens (Sr. class sponsor)
photograph courtesy of Basil Myers

                The job of our school administrators, teachers, support personnel, and school board becomes increasingly more demanding and challenging each year. Maybe recalling the simpler days of over sixty years ago, will prompt us to daily pray and support those who are willing to train and educate the younger generation.

A Ralston School Bus with Tub Venable on the left and Beulah Brien Culbertson
Ball (Graduate of RHS 1943) in the dark dress. The others are unidentified. Dottie 
Culbertson Kizziar gave me a copy of the photograph that had been given to her by
 Elaine Venable Banning. (As my dad loved to say, "It's a small world." I have known 
Elaine all my life since both our families attended Masham Baptist Church. My mother 
recalled picking her up on that long bus ride when they both attended Ralston High 
School.)

*Readers may question why Judy and her brother, Jerry, spell their surnames "Franks" and their grandfather spelled his "Frank." I asked Judy for an explanation. She explained,  "The last name originally was Frank. Newt was adamant! Jewel always used Frank. Because my dad had a last name for a first name..... "Harmon", and a first name for a last name, when he was in the army he started using Franks. He said this was because names were used in reverse order and he was "yelled" at a lot for using Frank, Harmon. I noticed in some of the old newspaper clippings I've seen that they were often referred to as Franks but, Newt and Jewel always used Frank.  Jerry and I have Franks on our birth certificates but when referring to grandpa, I think Frank is appropriate."

**Basil told me that his bus driving salary helped pay for his daily lunch of chili and a Pepsi at John Holder’s café – Mr. Holder’s family continues to operate the Ralston Café. Prosperity, brought about by the end of World War II, made possible a daily afternoon stop at Jim Clark’s store. Basil and his riders each had the dime to buy a “pop” from Mr. Clark.