The First Public Teacher in Arizona Only Lasted 6 months!

The school year is beginning in Arizona. As you pick up the annual list of school supplies, consider for a moment what school might have been like when Arizona wasn't even part of the United States.

Funding issues and other challenges impact our education system to this day, and it was no different at the beginning of Arizona's attempt to start a school

Starting the First School in Arizona Territory

Long before education standards were established for students nationwide, local citizens usually decided the best way to educate their children. Even before Arizona became a state, the first public school was started in Tucson in what was known as the Arizona Territory.

READ: 15 of the Best Places to Discover Arizona's History

On November 18, 1867, the Pima County Board of Supervisors created Tucson School District 1. Using an old adobe building, they added desks and built benches, installed new windows, and bought school supplies for the students.

Arizona's very first school opened in January 1868. Fifty-five boys were enrolled.

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Arizona's First School Teacher: Augustus Brichta

Augustus Brichta, who had been a clerk in the Territorial Legislature, became Arizona's first schoolteacher.

READ: Celebrate Buffalo Soldiers Day and Learn Treasured AZ History

Even in the early years of Arizona's school system, this teacher was underpaid. According to records, Brichta taught at the little adobe schoolhouse for six months, but he was only paid for four when the school doors abruptly closed due to a lack of funding.

Even though it wasn't a success, this was an important first step toward public education in Arizona. Even though this early attempt at providing public education in Arizona was short-lived, it laid the groundwork for the education system.

Sources: The Historical Marker Database | Phoenix Schools | Arizona Central | Arizona Historical Society | A Brief History of Phoenix Elementary School District 1 | Wikipedia