A plaque to honor Traverse City's first teacher, Helen Goodale Hitchcock, is finally back where it belongs - on the grounds of Central Grade School.
After being knocked loose from its granite mount by a snowplow a few years ago, the damaged plaque remained hidden in a pile of snow until spring when maintenance workers discovered it. Not knowing exactly where the memorial belonged, the plaque eventually ended up in a maintenance department drawer.
Phillip Haldaman, TCAPS director of building and grounds, recently came across the bronze plaque and traced it's origin to the Daughters of the American Revolution chapter who dedicated the plaque in 1938, marking the 100th anniversary of Mrs. Hitchcock's birth.
After learning that the group was still active, Haldaman contacted them to let them know the whereabouts of the plaque and to find out if there was any interest in having it repaired.
"We were thrilled to hear that the plaque had not been stolen and that it would be returned to Central Grade School,” said Mary Ellen Crusoe Byrne, regent of the local Job Winslow chapter of the DAR.
Haldaman made arrangements with Bay Area Memorials to have the plaque repaired before the rededication ceremony held Friday.
"This is an event that costs little, but which has the potential to bring together generations of current and former students, staff, administrators, parents and even the curious who just want to be a part of recognizing and honoring one of our own, the fabric of whose life was so inextricably woven into that of our town's early history,” Haldaman said.
Members of the Job Winslow chapter spoke about the life of the pioneering Traverse City teacher who began her career instructing 12 children in a log cabin after arriving in the area with her parents in 1853. The 15-year-old teacher was paid just $1 per week. She married Thomas Hitchcock in 1856 and raised five children. She died in 1907 at the age of 69.
Hitchcock's great great great grandson, William Wilson of Traverse City who was in attendance for the rededication, expressed his gratitude for returning the plaque to its rightful home.
"It is such a relief to have the plaque back where it belongs. It is nice to keep the heritage and her name alive,” Wilson said.