After a Lawrence County Historical Society meeting Tuesday evening, we have come up with some important dates.

We plan to make apple butter but do not have a date for it yet. We still need jars.

The annual Historical Ghost Walk will be 6 p.m. Sept. 19 at Woodland Cemetery. If it is raining at 5 p.m. the walk will be cancelled that evening and will be rescheduled.

The Iron Festival will be Sept. 25-26 at Lake Vesuvius.

The Christmas Tea will be Saturday Nov. 14. The museum will be closed Oct. 18. This will allow us to prepare the museum for the holiday season. It will reopen Nov. 1. This will allow us to prepare the museum for the holiday season.

These are important dates, so mark your calendar.

Recently, a very good worker for the museum passed away. Peggy Smith was a great cook and would prepare special dishes for the tea and for other important events. She was a very special person to be around. She was always entertaining.

It was mentioned to us about the steps out in front of the museum. These came from the property we received from a faithful family over on Second Street. The buildings were torn down for the coming highway.

These are carriage steps. The ladies in their long dresses could get into the carriage by stepping up these steps and entering the carriage. Those days are gone.

Historical fact:

The first school in Ironton was taught during the winter of 1949-50 in a house built by Bernardine Blake.

Dr. J.J. Wood was the first teacher with 30 scholars. The closest school was taught by S.P. Calvin, near Kelly’s Cemetery. The “pioneer” school was built in 1850 and the first teacher was Josiah McClain. Charles Kingsbury was the first superintendent of schools.

The first commencement of Ironton High School, when diplomas were given to graduates, took place at the Presbyterian Church, Thursday, June 27, 1867, under superintendent A.C. Hirst.

The class included Misses Lou Phillips, Mary Richey, Helen Ricker, Julia Sheppard, Marcy Gibbons and Mr. Charles E. Watson.

The street lamps were lighted for the first time in Ironton in February 1879 under a contract with the Mt. Vernon Lantern Company.

There were 109 of these lamps and it took one and a quarter hours to light them.

Naomi Deer is a trustee with the Lawrence County Historical Society.