Community history

Before it was the Ward School, it was the East Side Grade School

A circa-1916 schoolhouse, one beloved kindergarten teacher, and a whole town's worth of five-year-olds.

Batesville — right behind the Memorial Building, across from the fire departmentLast updated November 14, 2026

Then and now

Drag to compare.

After — East Side Grade School, Batesville, Indiana — the small white stucco building with the brick chimney and the siren on the roof. Photo courtesy Batesville Historical Center. The same building today — the Historic Ward School, circa 1916, restored. Photo: Darrick Cox.

Before — East Side Grade School, Batesville, Indiana — the small white stucco building with the brick chimney and the siren on the roof. Photo courtesy Batesville Historical Center. The same building today — the Historic Ward School, circa 1916, restored. Photo: Darrick Cox.

Photos

Photos of this place.

The Ward School front today, with its Historic Ward School sign. Photo: Darrick Cox.

The story so far

What happened here.

Before it was known as the Ward School, this was Batesville's East Side Grade School — a small white stucco building, circa 1916, with a brick chimney and a siren on the roof. It was later named for Flossie Ward, the school's first teacher. Today the historic building is being restored and given a new purpose.

Ask who went there and the answer comes back the same way, decade after decade: kindergarten, with Mrs. Spaeth. From the early 1950s through 1970, class after class passed through her half-day kindergarten — naps included — before the school's last kindergarten class moved to Westwood.

And the roll-call keeps going — Michelle Gartenman Prosser, Sandra Henderson, Rosa Karen, Andy Glaub, Donna Mauk Drockelman, Theresa Schaefer, and Carla Goldsmith Oesterling all went to kindergarten there too.

See Darrick's original post →

Timeline

How it changed hands.

Circa 1916

East Side Grade School built.

Later

Renamed the Ward School for Flossie Ward, the school's first teacher.

1952

No kindergarten yet; Ann Lightner attends 1st grade there.

About 1959–60 through 1969–70

The Clara Spaeth kindergarten years.

Undated, after the last Spaeth class

Kindergarten moves to Westwood; the building later houses the Superintendent's office and, at one time, a gravelled, fenced bus-parking lot.

What neighbors remember

According to the locals who lived it.

Was in kindergarten there with Mrs. Speath the year President Kennedy was assassinated.

— Stephen Macke

Attended 1st grade there. There was no kindergarten in 1952.

— Ann Lightner

His class was the last to go to kindergarten there with Clara Spaeth. The following year they moved to Westwood. The Superintendent's office was there, and at one time the grounds were gravelled and fenced for bus parking.

— Gary Swain

Went to kindergarten there in 1965 with Mrs. Spaeth. It was half-day, and they even took naps.

— Bev Meyer

Attended 1st and 2nd grade there. Her father, Raymond Michel, was the janitor. She was posting a picture of her class, with names to be added — Batesville High School Class of 1964. There was no kindergarten at that time, and her teacher was Jessie Todd.

— Sally Widener

Grew up on South Park Avenue, just a block from there. Went to kindergarten there, and Mrs. Speth was her teacher too.

— Mary Voegele

Went to kindergarten there in about 1959–60 — so little he couldn't tie his shoes yet.

— Marc Young

Went to kindergarten with Mrs. Speth in 1960.

— Pam Eckstein Bischoff

Kindergarten, 1964–65.

— Mitch Thielking

Went to kindergarten there, 1969–70.

— Anne Voegele Wilson

Kindergarten there; Mrs. Spaeth was the teacher. She believes hers was the last class there.

— Annette Wonning

Went there. Always remembered nap time.

— Thomas Hartshorn

His dad, his sisters Carlyn and Sue, and his brother Tom all went there.

— William Steinkamp

Has her class photo somewhere.

— Tress Zielinski

Mowed the grounds in his teen years — in 1976 and 1977.

— Anthony Kelley

Went to kindergarten there, and Mrs. Speth was her teacher.

— Michelle Meer

Went to kindergarten there with Mrs. Speth — and loved the teeter-totters on the playground.

— Sue Myers

Went to kindergarten there with Mrs. Spey.

— Wilma Soular

Went to first and second grade there as Sondra Lakamp. Her siblings Gloria and Larry Lakamp went there too — and she has pictures.

— Sondra Bohman

Went there with Sondra. Her pictures are lost.

— Sandra Lindemann

Mrs. Speath's kindergarten class.

— Joe Shook

Still to learn

Open questions.

Does anyone have a photo of Mrs. Spaeth? (None provided yet.)
How is her name spelled — Spaeth, Speth, Speath, or Spey? Commenters use all four; Gary Swain gives the full name as Clara Spaeth.
Which class was truly the last kindergarten class — Gary Swain's or Annette Wonning's? (Both claim it.)
What grades did it serve, and in what years? (Top-level answers cover kindergarten plus 1st and 2nd grade in the early years, but no full span.)
When did the name change from East Side Grade School to Ward School?
A grand re-opening of the renovated space was announced for late November or early December 2026 — the date still needs verifying.
Sally Widener's Class of 1964 photo is in her reply thread — it still needs to be added to the page.
Sondra Bohman has Ward School pictures — they still need to reach the page.

Connected pieces.

Do you remember this place?

Share a memory, a photo, or a correction — or answer one of the open questions above. Submissions are reviewed by a person before anything appears publicly, and nothing is posted as-is. Photos are used only with your permission and with credit as you give it.

Last updated November 14, 2026. New memories appear here after review.