w and noble
era of usefulness.

[Illustration: ELIZA HARTFORD.]

[Illustration: ANNA E. CAMPBELL.]

[Illustration: PRISCILLA G. HAYMAKER.]

[Illustration: REV. EDWARD G. HAYMAKER.]

[Illustration: THE GIRLS' HALL, 1889-1910.]

[Illustration: THE OLD FARM HOUSE.
The Pioneer Home of a Choctaw Chief, Leflore, and of the Oak Hill School.]

FEBRUARY 14, 1886

On Sabbath, February 14, 1886, one week after the arrival of Miss
Hartford, her first meeting was held and a Sunday school was organized
under her leadership. At its close a prayer-meeting was held in which she
read the scriptures, the hymns and a sermon.

On Tuesday, February 16, 1886, the school was opened with seven pupils.
The opening exercises consisted in the reading of a chapter by the new
teacher, the singing of a hymn and prayer by elder Henry Crittenden. The
latter was profoundly impressed with the fact that, in the auspicious
opening of the school that morning, the colored people of that section
were realizing the answer to their oft repeated prayers, the fulfilment
of their long delayed hopes.

The new teacher had never heard such a prayer in any school she ever
attended. He thanked Our Heavenly Father, "That the prayers of his
people were answered. In their bondage they had cried unto Him and He
had heard their cry. In their ignorance and darkness they had asked for
light and the light had come." He prayed for the teacher that "God would
give her wisdom and enable her to be faithful." He prayed for the
children and their parents that, "they might be able to see and
appreciate what God had done for them," and for the school, "that it
might abide with them and become an uplifting power to them and their
children."

On the following Monday the number of the pupils had increased to
fourteen. The chills were prevalent and frequently half the pupils would
be seen huddling around the log fire in the chimney fireplace, and
making a chattering noise with their teeth.

A BOARDING SCHOOL

On April 15, 1886, Miss Hartford began to live at the school building
and some of the pupils brought their corn-meal so they might live "wid
de teacher," and Oak Hill became a boarding school with an enrollment of
24 pupils.

At a prayer meeting of the women held soon after this event, it was
decided to build a kitchen at the west end of the log house so "de
chillen might have a place to bake and eat their corn bread." While they
were building this kitchen a m