Born 16 November 1828 Nova Scotia Occupation Teacher and Superintendent, Portland Public Schools (Oregon) Died 20 October 1889, Grande Ronde Valley | ||
John T. Outhouse (16 November 1828—October 20, 1889) was the first public school teacher in Portland, Oregon. He taught in Portland from 1851 to 1853.
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Early life
Outhouse was born on 16 November 1828 in Nova Scotia, and moved to Portland in 1850, when he was 22.
Teaching in Portland
The following year, Outhouse became the first public school teacher in Portland. In December 1851, the school board, which at the time consisted of Anthony L. Davis, Alonzo Leland, and Reuben P. Boise, appointed John Outhouse to teach Portland's first public school, in a schoolhouse at the corner of SW First and Oak streets. The following advertisement was published in the Oregonian on December 6, 1851:
In pursuance of a vote of the Portland school district at their annual meeting, the directors have established a free school. The first term will commence on Monday, the 15th inst., at the schoolhouse in this city, near the City Hotel. (John W. [sic] Outhouse, teacher.) The directors would recommend the following books to be used in the school, viz.: Sandler’s Series of Readers and Spellers, Goodrich’s Geography, Thompson’s Arithmetics and Bullion’s Grammar.
The school opened with about 20 pupils, who came from as far away as Astoria. His income for teaching was $100 per month, and he supplemented that by laying sidewalks and unloading ships. By 1852, the school was moved to a building on the corner of First and Taylor streets. Another teacher, Miss Abigail M. Clark was hired.
Outhouse retired from teaching in Portland in 1853. Soon after that, Sylvester Pennoyer, who had come from New York to Puget Sound and started an unsuccessful law firm, became the next schoolteacher of Portland Public Schools.
Later life
After teaching in Portland, Outhouse moved to Polk County, Oregon and married. He later moved to La Grande, Oregon in 1879, at the encouragement of teachers, and the following year he was appointed superintendent. He was also a politician, and was described as an "unflinching democrat tree to his party" by the Eastern Oregon Republican newspaper. In 1885, he was appointed to the La Grande land office by President Grover Cleveland, and he held that position until his death.
In his later life, Outhouse had severe gout, and walked on crutches for several years. Although had children, they all died young. He died on October 20, 1889, and his wife outlived him.