Photograph of Miss Rowena Dean holding the reigns of her wagon at Lake Beresford, Florida in 1880. In March 1877, the first school house, which Henry A. DeLand donated the land and money to construct, opened to students and MISS ROWENA DEAN of New York state was employed as the teacher. The one-story school, which was used as a church on weekends, had a belfry with a bell donated by friends in New York. The new teacher was described by several young men as “an angel with rare intellect and beauty” (from Story of DeLand and Lake Helen by Helen Parce DeLand). Other students remembered her sitting with a class on a big log, teaching reading. During two years in DeLand she helped in many other ways, from serving as editor’s devil for the local newspaper to helping parents and friends of a deceased child prepare for the funeral then singing in the choir at the service.