During the fall and winter of 1876-77 a night school, at which bookkeeping, writing, and arithmetic were taught, was taught by Mr. Kincaid in the Gray building.[1]
In 1878 there were at least four private schools in Astoria. Mrs. Maxwell Young taught a school of twenty-five pupils in a building where St. Mary's Hospital stands.[2] Miss Cora VanDusen taught a summer session in the building near the southeast corner of Tenth and Duane streets, which was rented by the school board and furnished to Miss VanDusen free of charge during the vacation of the public school.[3] When the public school opened in the fall this school was moved to the room formerly occupied by the parish school. Professor Worthington, principal of the public school, taught a private school of six pupils. The fourth private school was taught by Miss Johnson.
The increase in the number of private schools was due to two causes: dissatisfaction in some quarters with some action of the principal of the "lower town school,"[2] and the great increase in the school population. The latter cause was no doubt the more potent. At this time there were over five hundred children of school age in Astoria.
In 1881-82 Miss Hewett conducted a private school at Grace Church, with an average attendance of twenty-six pupils and an enrollment of forty-six.
From 1886 to 1895 Miss Emma C. Warren conducted a private school on Exchange Street, between Eleventh and Twelfth. This was by far the largest and most pretentious private school ever opened in Astoria, and yet represented only to a very small degree the idea antagonistic to the public school. All the grammar grades were
