Hayton School, district 41, operated in section 32 of Carterville Township. It was organized about 1890 from the south part of North School district. The new schoolhouse was built on land owned by George Hayton, and stood across the road from his doctor father’s home farm.
Dr. James Hayton (1815-1904) was born and educated in England. He came to Williamson County in 1841 by way of New Orleans, and began practice on Grassy Creek. Later he taught at Bainbridge, and then returned to Grassy where his practice had a radius of thirty miles. In 1848, Doctor Hayton took the oath of allegiance to the United States and became a strong Union man. Governor Yates appointed him to supervise the military draft of Williamson County Medical Association. His home stood on the northeast corner of section 32, Carterville Township.
J.W. (Wes) Hayton, a grandson of the doctor and schoolboy in this country district, is a leading citizen of Carterville. He was mayor from 1921 to 1927, and reelected in 1937 for a four year term.
Dr. Dallas B. Phemister, chairman of the surgery department in the University of Chicago medical school since 1926, spent his ninth to fourteenth years studying in Hayton School. He attended North School three years, and moved into the new school for its first term. Among his teachers was Joseph Hayton, another son of the doctor and notable as a teacher for the emphasis he placed on character training.
William Phemister (1790-1881) was the first of the family in the county, coming in 1833 to a farm in section 6 of Grassy Township. His son John R. Phemister moved north and lived in section 31 of Carterville Township. The son and grandson, Doctor Phemister, is internationally known for his work in bone pathology and orthopedics.
(Extracted from Pioneer Folks and Places, Barbara Barr Hubbs, 1939, on sale at the Williamson County Museum)