Does anyone out there know about a school at or near Sand Flats in the early to mid 1920's? Where was this school located exactly? My grandpa (since passed) talked about going there for several years when he was little. My grandpa's dad, David Jones, a widower, lived with his sons on a ranch near there owned by a McCauley (or something similar). Grandpa also had an uncle, William Arthur Cleghorn living in Egypt, WA at the time and spent time there occasionally working on the farm.

First, when you post, it is important to provide enough information about the person(s) you seek to fully identify them from others having the same name. If you have it, always post their name and date of birth. If you don't have their date of birth, identify an approximate age, names of parents, siblings, etc. Basically, enough information to identify them in the US Census and/or other records. For this search, the name of your grandfather is important as he went to this school. To find this school, land ownership in that area would help locate it. The name of "McCauley" was searched, but no valid person by this name was found in the 1920 or 1930 Census. I looked at other postings you had on Rootsweb, but there was no additional information that helped in this search. In your other postings, the date of birth, etc. may have helped produce answers in those also.

The US Geographical Survey
http://geonames.usgs.gov/
shows "Sand Flat"
Latitude(DEC) Longitude(DEC) Latitude(DMS) Longitude(DMS)
47.8523820 -118.1360881 475109N 1180810W
Map Name: "Inkster Lake"

The 1920 Census for Davenport, Lincoln Co, WA
David J. Jones, born about 1845/6 in Wales, living with spouse Margaret, 63; daughter Bernice 33, and daughter Madge, 30.
But, in another posting you identified your David Jones was born in Ontario Canada.
Buried in the Mountain View Cemetery is this David J. Jones, August 1845 to December 20, 1924:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=jo...;
It does not appear this person is the correct one. He was the only David Jones in Lincoln County in the 1920 and 1930 Census.

The 1920 Census for Egypt, Lincoln Co, Washington
William A Cleghorn, age 53, born in Iowa to both parents born in Indiana, farmer/general farm, owned his land/under mortgage.
Jennie L, wife, age 51, born in Oregon to father born in Tennessee, mother in Missouri
Mabel F, 14. All children born in Washington
Hazel M, 12
Pearl B. 9

The 1930 Census for Mohler, Lincoln County, had a David Jones, son of Eula (female), born about 1908 in Washington to both parents born in N. Carolina.
For Sprague, Lincoln County, a D.E. Jones, age unknown widower, born in the US. Based on the lack of knowledge of this person, either the enumerator couldn't understand him or another reason; or his information was given by a neighbor or other person that didn't really know him.

For your "McCauley:" There is a family of Clyde R. McCall in Egypt; J. David McCallum in Davenport; McCarthy, McClary, McClure, McCulloch, McCullough, etc. etc. The exact name might help in locating the school.

William A. Cleghorn:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=cl...;
Jennie:
http://www.findagrave.com/cgi-bin/fg.cgi?page=gr&GSln=cl...;
There are other Cleghorn burials shown in Lincoln County.

There is a Karen McCauley buried in Wilbur, 1943; but no others found.

The Bureau of Land Management has a database of land patents issued under the Homestead Act (and other Congressional Land Acts). It shows William A. Cleghorn obtained 40 acres of land in Lincoln County on 4/13/1922, Township 27 North, Range 37 East, Section 8, the Southeast quarter of the South East quarter of that Section.
The location for this land is on the "Inkster Lake" map

This topo map shows the Sand Flat area:
http://msrmaps.com/image.aspx?T=2&S=14&Z=11&X=12...
You'll see red squares on the map, they are Sections, by left clicking on your mouse, you can zoom in on the map. Zoom in twice and you can see the Section numbers. I did so, so you can see Section 8 in the map below:
This map shows Section 8
http://msrmaps.com/image.aspx?T=2&S=12&Z=11&X=51...
Cleghorn owned the 40 acres in the bottom left corner of Section 8. A Section has 640 acres and is one mile square.

You wrote that your grandfather had an Uncle William Arthur Cleghorn. It might help to identify how he was his uncle, brother of your grandfather's mother, brother of your grandfather's brother. OR, was Jennie the blood line, being the Aunt and William Cleghorn was Uncle by marriage? This information might have better identified if David Jones was related to the Cleghorn's.
I do find a posted family tree for William Cleghorn, but it does not identify the maiden name of Jennie.

The actual information about the school "might" be held in the State Archives.

Ron Bestrom
Tacoma, WA

Thanks, Ron, for all the good info. I was really just looking for info on the school, but you make good points about posting what information I have as long as I'm here.

My grandfather's name was Ralph Marvin JONES. His father was David Henry JONES. David was born in Prince Edward County, Ontario, Canada, and immigrated to the US as a teenager in 1892 (he came by himself, although at some point it seems an older brother lived in WA as well). David married Myrtle Alma PASLEY, daughter of Moses PASLEY and Elizabeth (BELIEU) PASLEY, both of Oregon. David and Myrtle married in Entiat, WA, and by the 1900 census were in the Methow valley.

Myrtle's sister Jennie PASLEY married William Arthur CLEGHORN around 1888 and by 1900 were living in Davenport, WA. In 1910, Jennie and Arthur were living in Condin Precinct in Lincoln County, WA. In 1920 they were in Egypt as you discovered.

As for David and Myrtle, their first child, daughter Doris Minnette JONES was born in the Twisp area on 4 Sep 1900, then another daughter, Carrie Rignetta JONES, was born in Peach, WA (now underwater due to Grand Coulee Dam backflow, where Hawk Creek ran into the Columbia) on 4 Jun 1902. They then set out for California. Son Stephen Henry JONES born in Yreka, CA on 25 Dec 1904, and then son Elmer Warren JONES in Eureka, CA on 30 Aug 1906. They were still there for the 1910 census, but on 14 May 1911, their son Ronald Randolph JONES was born in Hood River, OR, so they had begun their journey back to WA. Another son, my grandfather Ralph Marvin JONES, was born near North Powder in Oregon on 12 Oct 1915.

Around this time frame, on 18 Apr 1916, David's brother John W JONES (also born in Canada, with David's parents listed as his parents) died in Medical Lake, WA. I haven't yet obtained much information on him. He may be the same John W JONES living in Riverside, Okanogan County, WA in the 1900 census, working as a hotel keeper, but can't be sure yet.

On 19 Oct 1916, Myrtle died in Zillah, WA, leaving David a widowed single father. Family lore confirms that the younger kids were first raised by the older kids, and later farmed out to Myrtle's sisters Jennie and Minnie. Minnie married an Al Bonwell, and they lived variously in Adams County, WA (1910 census) and Douglas County, WA (1920 census). By the 1920 census, David was living in Kittitas County, WA with his sons Steve and Elmer. They were boarding and working as farm labor there. Doris was living as a boarder in Newport, Lincoln County, OR in 1920. At some point she married William SPURGEON, who was boarding at a different place in Newport in 1920. By 1925, she married a second time to Charles VERD in Seattle, WA. Also in 1925, Carrie married Lloyd FRAKER in Yakima County, WA.

By the 1930 census, David was living in Peshastin, Chelan County, WA with sons Ron and Ralph (my grandpa). He (David) had recently remarried to Phoebe KOMN, originally from Spokane, WA.

I have not located Carrie, Ron, or Ralph in the 1920 census and have pretty much exhausted the variables. I strongly suspect that at the time of year the census was taken, it was not a harvest time of year, so the two young boys (5 and 9) were staying with sister Carrie, probably in Yakima. When harvest time came, the kids probably went to one of their uncle/aunt's places.

Carrie's notes indicated that the family had a ranch in Buena for a time (near Zillah, so probably around the time that Myrtle died) and Ron's notes indicate he remembered going to school in both Yakima and near Davenport. Grandpa always remembered Sand Flat school. He remembered walking to school from the ranch (owned by McCauley/McCallum/McCall - all possibilities). Grandpa also remembered hopping trains when his dad was in Kittitas County - they didn't have a stop, so they'd have to throw off their bags and jump off, then gather the bags and hike back to the farm.

By the late 20's David was working briefly in the Puget Sound area, and grandpa went to school in Richmond Highlands, near Edmonds. He remembers being embarrassed because he wore rugged coveralls and the fancier-dressed city kids made fun of him. He graduated there (from 8th grade) so that would have been around 1929 or so, before they ended up in Peshastin.

The 1916-1930 time frame has been difficult to piece together. There are lots of fragments indicating they moved around a lot, but I'm starting to piece it together.

Thanks again for your information. Good find on the headstone pictures. The USGS map information, along with the BLM land patent leads me to believe that if this isn't the ranch that Grandpa remembered, it must have been nearby, as this land is very near Sand Flats, and would have been a logical school to attend. Maybe the "McCauley" ranch was elsewhere (the Buena one near Zillah, or some later one). Thank you, thank you, thank you. More pieces are falling into place!