The Little Red Schoolhouse

Originally Aired: September 7, 1938The Lone Ranger #876, "The Little Red Schoolhouse," follows young rancher Jim Hudson as he faces mounting troubles in the cattle country. Jim has worked hard to build his modest spread, but powerful landowner Silas Markheim wants Jim's land for its water rights and will stop at nothing to get it. When Jim's cattle mysteriously die and his horses are poisoned, he suspects Markheim is behind the sabotage. Making matters worse, Jim has built a schoolhouse hoping to bring Mary Stevens, a teacher from back East, to serve the community and perhaps win her hand in marriage. However, Markheim controls the town so completely that he forbids families from sending their children to any school connected to Jim.When Mary arrives on the stagecoach, she's met not by Jim but by his hired hand Dan, who reveals he has romantic interests of his own. Mary discovers there are no students for her school, as Markheim has intimidated the townspeople into keeping their children away. Young Dick Markheim and Sally express their disappointment at not being able to attend, hinting that not everyone supports Silas Markheim's tyrannical control. Meanwhile, a mysterious stranger takes interest in the situation and heads up the hill to confront Markheim directly.