Encyclopedia Dubuque
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OLDT, Franklin T.
OLDT, Franklin T. (New Berlin, PA--Dubuque, IA, Jan. 21, 1927). At the age of eighteen, Oldt graduated from Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. He taught for two years and then was chosen to be the principal of the Winnebago school in Winnebago County, Illinois. He was the superintendent of the Lanark school in Illinois for seventeen years; served as superintendent in Green Bay, Wisconsin for one year and moved Freeport, Illinois for two years. He was once a nominee for State Superintendent of Public Instruction in Illinois.
On April 19, 1894 a resolution to employ a superintendent was introduced at the board of education meeting in Dubuque and was adopted on May 18th. On April 22, 1895 James Kirk was elected but resigned before beginning his duties. Franklin T. Oldt was then appointed the first superintendent of the Dubuque public schools. There was much opposition to the creation of the position. Oldt quickly established himself by accepting the invitation to address the 42nd session of the Iowa State Teachers' Association in 1896 speaking on the topic "Rational Correlation."
In January, 1904, F. T. Oldt served as chairman of the committee on phonetic spelling at the State Teachers' Convention in Des Moines. He introduced resolutions, which were adopted, endorsing the simplified spelling of such words as thoro, thru, demogog, thorofare, etc.
Franklin T. Oldt resigned on February 1, 1910 and was replaced by James H. Harris on May 1, 1910. He became a professor of history and political science at the UNIVERSITY OF DUBUQUE and in 1924 was named dean of the College of Liberal Arts at the university. (2) Oldt was the editor of History of Dubuque County, Iowa published by the Goodspeed Historical Association in 1911.
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Source:
1. "State Teachers," Dubuque Herald, December 29, 1896, p. 4
2. "Final Tribute Paid to Dean Oldt," Telegraph Herald, January 25, 1927, p. 23. Online: http://news.google.com/newspapers?id=4dxYAAAAIBAJ&sjid=l7sMAAAAIBAJ&pg=1666,6218761&dq=linwood+cemetery&hl=en
Oldt, Franklin T. History of Dubuque County. http://www.ebooksread.com/authors-eng/franklin-t-oldt/history-of-dubuque-county-iowa-being-a-general-survey-of-dubuque-county-histor-tdl/page-22-history-of-dubuque-county-iowa-being-a-general-survey-of-dubuque-county-histor-tdl.shtml