Birmingham Tutors

About Birmingham

Birmingham Michigan has always been passionate about providing adequate education to its residents, with a nice history of how the schools have evolved over time. The first Birmingham tutors were nothing more than the parents of the community, who would meet in barns buildings to read and put together rudimentary lessons. They pooled money together to be able to afford a frontier school teacher, which would provide lessons to the local kids in exchange for room and board and a small salary.

Eventually they graduated to log cabins. Pioneers would build these structures as quick ways of shelter, but the buildings were often used for other purposes once the pioneers no longer needed them. In the early 1800’s the first “school” was started on two different resident’s land, in old log buildings found on the property. The very first teacher was Captain Hervey Parke.

In the mid 1850’s the first actual schoolhouse was erected. It was built on land sold by Elijah Willits. This building was referred to as “The Little Red Schoolhouse” and “The Old Red Schoolhouse”. It provided tuition free education, and attendance was voluntary. Eventually the property was bought by Harry and Marion Allen, who used the old structure as a part of the house that they built. By this point the building was no longer in use, and only one wall was able to be salvaged.

There was demand for higher education beyond grade school, and so private secondary education was made available to residents. These lessons took place in the upper part of a building owned by one of the citizens. Education wasn’t necessary in Michigan at the time, so students who wished to further their learning had to pay for their tuition. Sadly, the building burned down, but demand for such an institution was still high, and so the Union School, which would later become known as Hill School, was born.

The Hill School served the population well for many years, and taught both primary and secondary education. Birmingham’s incorporation as a city meant tax money was available to help build the structure, and it was a nice school that served its purpose well. Eventually the growing population and demand for Birmingham tutors led to the need for another school, the Barnum school. Eventually the Barnum school was destroyed due to misuse, and the Baldwin school took its place.

Even though none of these early schools’ function anymore, they paved the way for the Birmingham school system, and today there is still large emphasis placed on education.