Blizzard Ridge School
By Steve Lent, Crook County Historian
This school site was located about seven miles south of Ashwood and near Clover Creek. It was first built in 1904 and was known as Huston school as it was on the land owned by Wade Huston. An older school was also near Blizzard Ridge and was known as Old Blizzard Ridge School.
The Blizzard Ridge School was a one room school building of rough wooden construction. It had four long hand-made tables and benches for pupils. The teacher had a desk along a back wall in front of the only blackboard. The blackboard was a three foot by ten foot board that was painted black. Five pupils attended the first class and the first teacher was Lottie Montgomery.
The school became known as Blizzard Ridge school because of its location on the south eastern slopes of the region known as Blizzard Ridge. According to Lewis McArthur in Oregon Geographic Names John O’Kelly, a local rancher, named the ridge in 1900. Mr. O’Kelly was headed from Ashwood to his home on a winter day when a severe snowstorm forced him to return to Ashwood.
Ellen Telfer taught school in the area in 1912 and the school was in need of much repair so she taught at the Kibbee Place. She was hired to teach for three months, July, August, and September and was paid $45.00 a month and she paid $10.00 per month for room and board at a nearby homestead. The school was operational for about ten years. A new school house was built in 1914 and the district became known as Fairview.