In 1864, the Nova Scotian government introduced a new Education Act, establishing Nova Scotia's "free"school system. Pursuant to the Education Act, the jursidictions of Nova Scotia's regional Boards of School Commissioners were clarified and confirmed. These jurisdictions, identified in the new Act as "school districts", were based, in most cases, on county boundaries. The school districts were, in turn, divided into school sections, with each sections being responsible for establishing and maintaining a school, the operation of which was to be overseen by a board of trustees. Trustees were elected for three year terms at annual meetings of a school section's ratepayers and were responsible for holding all school property, employing and maintaining teachers, making regular visits to the school, looking after school facilities and equipment, summoning regular meetings of the ratepayers of the school section, filing returns with the divisional inspector, making arrangements for the conveyance of pupils, and, in later years, enforcing the Public Health Act. The first teacher in New Annan, Colchester County, N.S. was John Currie, who began teaching in 1820. He was succeeded by John Bonnyman circa 1860. The 1861 census states that there were six school houses in the New Annan area. Following the passing the Education Act in 1864, it appears that a member of the Byers family, a prominent local family, donated land for the construction of the new school. In 1926 Byers School Section 13 became part of the District of North Colchester.
Published
Records were donated by Joyce MacCall, Tatamagouche in 1990.