A Face From Sonoma County’s Past
Lucille Armstroff
Cuthill: 1896-1978
Only a few Sonoma
County communities can
boast of teachers who
gave four or more dec¬
ades of knowledge and
inspiration to their
young pupils. Jenner
had such a teacher in
Lucille Cuthill, who
taught at Jenner's one-
room schoolhouse for
forty-three years, and
who continued to be at
the heart of her com¬
munity until her death
in 1978.
Born in San Fran¬
cisco, Lucille Arm¬
stroff began her own
schooling in a one room
school near Austin
Creek near Cazadero,
where she continued to
keep close ties all of
her life. The Cazadero
School was often closed
when the creek was too
high for the children
to wade across. As a
teenager, Lucille walk¬
ed to the ridge above
Fort Ross where the
George Call Ranch pro¬
vided summer work. She
was also familiar with
the Rule Ranch which
dominated the lumber
mill town of Jenner.
Charles Rule gave
land for the Jenner
schoolhouse soon after
the A.B. Davies Mill
opened in 1904. Lumber
was donated by the com¬
pany and the men pitched
in to build a tradition¬
al one-room schoolhouse
large enough to serve
as a community center
as well. The school was
modern enough to have
only one door for the
children instead of the
two doors of the earlier
schools in Western Sono¬
ma County.
When Lucille fin¬
ished McMean’s Normal
School in Santa Rosa
at age eighteen, she
had her heart set on
an adventurous life
in a city. More pract¬
ically however, she
accepted the position
as teacher at Jenner
School for her first
experience at teaching.
On weekends she could
walk over the hill for
ten miles through the
Rule Ranch to visit
her family in Cazadero.
A 1918 news clip¬
ping tells of her adven¬
ture on Jenner Beach.
After six hours of
clinging to a rock af¬
ter being swept out to
sea by a wave, the post¬
master of Jenner, Mr.
Cuthill, rescued her.
The following year,
Lucille consented to
marry Mr.. Cuthill on
the condition that they
leave Jenner for the
Bay Area.
After three years
in Oakland, life in
Jenner seemed more at¬
tractive to , the young
couple. When Lucille
(10)
learned in 1924 that
her old job at the
school was once more
available, she applied
for it.
Thus began her
long years of teach¬
ing successive gener¬
ations of .Jenner •
chi Idren. She made the
ranches and the sea
she loved a part of
what she taught thru
the years; Liveliness,
humor, and curiousity
were pri cel ess qua! i -
ties she possessed
herself and was able
to pass on to her stu¬
dents.
Through the 20's,
the Depression, and the
War Years, Lucille
Cuthill and the Jenner
School were the heart
of the town. In the
50's and 60 1 s some of
the "Teach's" former
students began sending
their own children to
her. On June 24, 1962 ,
her former students
turned out to honor
their teacher at a re¬
union-picnic on
"Lucille Cuthill Day".
Few people can have
affected the values and
traditions of a town so
thoroughly as did
this "Teach". Jenner
was fortunate to have
as its teacher so in¬
dependent, gay, coura¬
geous, and spunky a wom¬
an as Lucille Armstroff
Cuthill .
by Norah Barr
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ANNUAL BANQUET HIGHLIGHTS
YOUR DUES ARE DUE! IF YOU HAVE NOT ALREADY DONE SO, PLEASE
SEND IN YOUR 1980 DUES OF $3.50 TO P.O.Box 1373, SANTA ROSA,
CALIF. . 95402. THIS WILL BE THE LAST JOURNAL YOU WILL
RECEIVE IF YOUR DUES ARE NOT PAID!
0
л
! mickey’s grove outing a w
Sunday, April 27
BUS DEPARTS SRJC BAILEY FIELD AT 7:50 AM PROMPTLY!
OAKMONT PASSENGERS BOARD AT THE COMMUNITY CENTER IN OAKMONT
AT 8:15 AM PROMPTLY!
ARRIVE MICKEY'S GROVE AROUND 10:45. GUIDED TOUR OF THE LARGEST
COLLECTION OF HAND TOOLS IN THE WORLD.
BRING YOUR OWN LUNCH FOR A PICNIC IN THE BEAUTIFUL PICNIC
GROUNDS.
ARRIVE AT RIO VISTA LIVING TRAIN MUSEUM AROUND 3:30. WE WILL
SPEND ABOUT AN HOUR RIDING TRAINS AND WANDERING AROUND. NO
FORMAL GUIDE HERE.
ARRIVE BACK IN SANTA ROSA AROUND 6:30.
TOTAL COST INCLUDES BUS FARE AND ENTRANCE FEES TO BOTH MUSEUMS:
$8.50. RESERVATIONS A MUST! SEND YOUR MONEY TO THE SONOMA COUNTY
HISTORICAL SOCIETY C/0 EMILY DOLL 126 VALLEY OAKS DR. SANTA ROSA,
CALIF. 95405. ALSO SEND YOUR PHONE NUMBER AS EMILY WILL BE
CONFIRMING YOUR RESERVATION BY PHONE.
DAY FOR MAKING RESERVATIONS IS APRIL 19th.
MORE INFORMATION CALL EMILY AT 539-5917-
■ 1 1 (3)— . . ■■■■■
