about seven weeks later, that consolidated the Milford District into their own consolidated township school.
When State officials, in the early sixties, lead the voters of Milford Twp to believe there would be no further financial aid, Milford voters said that was no problem. The first election on this reorganization was on 25 April 1961 and the outcome was that it overwhelmingly approved in Nevada but was defeated in Milford Twp 87-78. The Milford School Board, on 27 April 1961, voted unanimously to operate a high school for the school year of 1961-1962.
Following the 25 April 1961 election, the Milford Twp School Board was to take additional two or three notable actions. One was to vote to operate the high school for the school year of 1961-'62 without any State aid; another was that they refused to endorse a plan in which the high school students would have been tuitioned out to other school districts. A third action involved a formal request to the State for a review the lack of state aid and in this they were successful with financial aid being offered for non high school students. Had they elected to tuition out the students, this, reportedly, would have created a situation in which the neighboring districts could have "chopped up" Milford Township into pieces for their own districts.
However, when the State sent notification that Milford Twp School would lose its accreditation, the Milford School Board, on 12 June 1961, just six weeks after their statement that there would be a 1961-'62 high school year, yielded to the power and voted unanimously to endorse the consolidation with Nevada. A second election, held on 22 June 1961 resulted in an approval vote of 146-46 in Milford Twp. A third vote was held on 30 June 1961 for the election of a new school board that would take office on 1 July 1961. Speculation in the Nevada Paper was that this had been the fastest consolidation in the history of the State; and perhaps it was.
"Almost all jurisdictions that forced consolidation failed to document the improvements that they purported would result from building or district closings. One may well assume that political power and ideological motives, not pedagogical motives, accounted for rural school consolidation in the United States". (DeYoung, A.J. & Howley, 1992)
Ol' Milford Farmer hear; "Coming together is a beginning, staying together is progress, and working together is success".
Shipley, built in 1916, last graduating class was 1959, closed in 1967, sold in 1970.
Fernald's last graduation class was 1960, closed in 1962, sold in 1968.
Milford, built in 1923-'24, last graduating class in 1961, then used as a Nevada attendance center until closed in 1991, sold in 1991. See page 95.
"Milford School Sold". Story on page 95.
