Independence/Frog Alley/Swamp College

Land for a District 4 school was originally deeded to the Washington Township Trustee in 1877 (A History, 1986). The present structure, built twenty-two years later, was first called Independence. 

Later, the school was commonly referred to as Frog Alley (Greene, 1960) or Swamp College (Greene, 1957) due to the lowlands surrounding it and the area’s generally marshy nature. 

The District 4 school closed in 1923, when all of Washington Township’s schools aside from District 4 and District 9 consolidated into a six-room structure at District 8 known as the Washington School. 

Two years after its closure, the school was sold to the adjacent Independence Church of Christ for $100 (Schools, 1925). Today, the building is still owned by the church. 

References

A History of Blackford County, Indiana : with historical accounts of the county, 1838-1986 [and] histories of families who have lived in the county (1986). book. The Blackford County Historical Society. Hartford City, IN.

Greene, D. (1960, October 25). Seen and Heard in Our Neighborhood. The Muncie Star. p. 6.

Greene, D. (1957, October 24). Seen and Heard in Our Neighborhood. The Muncie Star. p. 6.

Schools Are Sold (1925, June 15). The Muncie Star Press. p. 2.