Doan's Hollow Public School

Doan's Hollow Public School is a defunct public elementary school for the mentally challenged that existed from the early 20th century until circa 1980. Until special education programs were introduced to the other elementary schools in Norfolk County, Ontario, Canada that integrated the students into the regular system, this school and the Simcoe Lions School in Simcoe to the north were the only schools that taught people with special needs. Until the 1970s, all other schools would turn away the mentally challenged and force them to either become institutionalized or have their parents home school them if attending Doan's Hollow was inconvienent. Prior to its closing, this school was also a feeder to Simcoe Composite School.

After that event occurred, enrollment reached a sharp decline and the "Norfolk Board of Education" was forced to shut down this school due to legislation that called for the integration of mentally challenged children into regular elementary schools. Doan's Hollow wasn't operated as a centralized school. It was considered to be a one room schoolhouse located northwest of Port Dover within walking distance to the "Doan's Hollow Cemetery", and the declining enrollment problem faced by the school board was also compounded further with the need to eradicate one room schoolhouses as "antiquated forms of education" and to divert funding to the modern school structure that had different rooms for each grade.

The former site of the school is currently being used as a meeting hall for members of the Jehovah's Witness faith. The building that once housed the Doan's Hollow Public School can be reached from Simcoe or the surrounding communities by driving along the Queensway (also known as Highway 3) until the driver reaches the Blue Line. Then he must turn right (if approaching it eastbound) or left (if approaching it westbound). Then the driver must remain on the Blue Line. After one stop at St. John's Road (also called Red Kelly Line) you will see the school on the right. If the driver sees a mausoleum, then he has traveled too far and must backtrack to see the old school building.

Red Kelly attended Doan's Hollow Public School during the 1930s [cite web | url = http://www.nornet.on.ca/~jcardiff/submissions/doan/index.html| title = Doan's Hollow Public School 1938-39 | publisher = Nornet | date = | accessdate = 2008-05-12] . He later became a "National Hockey League" all-star player, a member of Parliament and internationally famous in the world of ice hockey. He would forever be known as one of Norfolk County's greatest sons and would also temporarily own a bowling alley in Simcoe before it was burned down to the ground.

References

External links

* [http://www.classmates.com/registration/registration.jsp?cType=school&communityId=19722821&location=Doan's%20Hollow%20School Classmates - Doan's Hollow Public School]