As a bobbin-boy and a farmhand, Joseph G. Edgerly knew hard work. He also recognized the value of education and so studied by candlelight after his work until he went to Dartmouth College. Although he graduated from a private school, he was a strong advocate for public education and the driver of establishing the Normal School in Fitchburg. He knew Fitchburg needed a teacher training school to ensure the best education possible for the town’s children. 

 

As more and more communities clamored for a normal school, Edgerly testified before the Board of Education on December 21, 1893 regarding the need for more trained teachers. He argued that it was the Commonwealth’s responsibility to supply professional educators. Given the state laws requiring that students attend school full time until the age of 14, and the reality that many communities had to turn away students for a lack of teachers, the Commonwealth was not properly providing for the educational needs of its populace. Edgerly said, “Whatever you would put into a nation, you must put into your schools.” 

 

Tactful man that he was, Edgerly complimented the state, saying the Commonwealth of Massachusetts was the “most favored part of the country” in regards to education. However, should Massachusetts like to continue to lead the rest of the nation, it must “in some way provide trained teachers for the children.” Edgerly quoted a German educator: “A normal school without a practice school is like a swimming school without water.” The Board of Education agreed and scheduled another hearing on January 31, 1894 to determine locations for future normal schools.