Bonanza

The Bonanza School District was formed in 1930. Board members included David Nickel, chairman, Mrs. E.S. Iverson, secretary/treasurer, and Paul Radke (later replaced by Eric Hingley). Construction of a school was begun in 1931. Miss Hilda Bland (age 60) was offered a teaching contract for 1932, at a wage of $700, and a mill rate of 25 mills on the dollar was assessed.

Miss Bland preferred to live in a teacherage, so Elmer Iverson built one in his yard. In 1933, permission was requested from the Department of Education to hire a teacher for $50 a month. A barn and an ice house were built in 1934. At this time, Mr, and Mrs. Jack Remenyk plastered the inside of the school using a straw and clay mixture. Whitewash was then applied giving the walls a clean, fresh appearance

In 1943, the original building was replaced by a two-room frame structure, and then replaced again in 1955-56, before being sold in 1959. By the 1956-57 term, the school included high school aged students, including six grade 11 students. Students from Clark and Many Creeks were bussed to Bonanza, with Bay Tree students joining them in the fall of 1957. By 1959-60 the school had expanded to four classrooms. A staff room, principals office, two washrooms, and a mud entrance were added in 1962, and the heating changed from coal to propane.

By 1963, the school was overcrowded, with 110 students. As a result, in 1964, two more classrooms were added - a library and a portable building brought in to act as a gymnasium. By 1965, high school students were being bussed to Dawson Creek.