2017 Open House
Renee & I would like to thank each of you who helped to make the Open House a success this year.
Over 100 visitors joined us and shared so many memories.
It is hard to believe that we began work on the 1855 One-Room Schoolhouse in the Spring of 2015.
It was amazing to see all the cars showing up and an overflow crowd with great big smiles on their faces.
Folks were parking along Church Road and most amazing - several people walked to the school from home. One walker came from over a mile & half.
It seemed appropriate to walk since the kids did that every day to reach their school
Renee took a photo of me at my teacher's desk about 40 years ago so we decided to copy my pose from that day.
I have to admit, I only got to meet about 1 out of every 8 visitors - everyone had such great stories or probing questions. We have to figure out a way that Renee and I can have some personal time with each guest in future Open Houses.
Fortunately we had set up enough exhibits that folks were able to "explore" and experience the school on their own.
Luz and Heriberto have had a big hand in helping to make this school a success. This year they surprised us with these near-life-sized dolls.
Anyone care to help us name them?
In the back corner you can see our small collection of local farming tools. Our latest addition is the "brush axe".
This collection will continue to grow.
It is great to see folks sitting at these desks.
At some point we would appreciate some help in sanding these desks and cleaning them up a bit.
Although the stove is an antique and was here for over 50 years, the original stove was a pot belly stove.
We may downsize and try to replace this one with a pot belly.
It was great to see folks step into the school and just stand in awe and try to absorb it all.
Our most recent big job was sanding and restaining the yellow pine floors that date back 162 years.
Two visitors brought along a stack of historic photos - I didn't get a chance to see them, I only heard someone talking about it....as I said before, I need to find a way to have more time to meet with folks.
One of the best moments was when our friend Mae told us that she actually sat at one of these desks.
And it was in almost the same spot where it was when she went to school here.
This was her desk and to prove it to us, she pointed out a large letter M that she carved into it!
I told her - "You will have to stay after class for that and your parents will have to come up to school".
I built a bench to mimic the original bench we found in the attic. It had been made without any nails or screws and we now have it in the front of the room. But this copy stays outside on the deck.
The conversations between visitors were so interesting - one memory quickly sparked several others being recalled.
CATCHY TITLE
Do you see the flags sitting on the desk? The United States had about 18 flags during the years of this school's use. We have posted each of them on the front wall and are writing a brief history of what was going on in the world during those years.
You can see the flags above the black boards.
These are the original boards.
Conversations were going on in the school, on the deck and outside.
Here I am once again scratching my head and trying to remember some detail...lol
My favorite moments are when youngsters sit at the desks. Their smiling faces cause me to wonder about the children who went here in 1855 - did they also have bright smiling faces?
I wonder if they had an Open School Night with parents coming up to school back in the day?
My heart was overflowing with happiness all day long. Moments like this when parents were taking pictures of their kids posing just touched my heart so warmly.
Here is my neighbor and good friend Brian. He and his wife Kathy gifted us with a lovely "Welcome" banner for the school.
Years ago, students didn't use paper and pencils - they used a piece of slate and chalk to keep notes.
Usually it was for arithmetic or penmanship.
On the wall we have a framed map showing the 7 school districts in Eldred back in 1855.
This school is the last one that is open to the public.
Next year we must stress that folks should include their email address when signing in - that way we can share photos with you directly. Feel free to use the button at the top to send us your email address.
At one point we had a "turn-over" of attendees. We thought the day was winding down, but a whole new set showed up!
We were thrilled.
Our good friend and neighbor to the school is Mike!
Although it is great to see folks come here for the first time - it is even better to see folks who were here in the past and know how much work has been done - thank you!
A few weeks ago we came across two wood representations of kids. They are a becoming a popular photo op attraction.
Although the school taught kids from the first to the eight grade all together, I don't think until now we had parent & child....lol
Here I am, once again taking advantage of Mike to help move heavy things around.
And let me shout a big hello to my friend Jackie Mock in this photo too.
We left one section of the blackboard for visitors to write on. When it is full we will photograph it and mount the pic on the wall and erase the board for more comments.
I have never met anyone who loves history and does more to promote the enjoyment and benefits of learning about our past than - Norm!
Ann surprised us with a gift of a schoolbook dating back to the late 1880's.
And thank you Ann for helping to spread the word about the open house.
More smiling faces warming our hearts.
Everytime we thought the day was ending, new folks would show up and keep the fun going.
This youngster's parents told us that they could see the school from across the valley high above on a mountain ridge. They saw all the cars and decided to wait until the crowd thinned out a bit.....lol, I love that story!
We doubt that there were carpets in the old school. But we are hoping to have toddlers and youngsters would might want to sit on a carpet and listen to some story telling one day.
Now I am so glad that we sanded, stained and sealed the floor....lol
Doesn't this look like a very serious conversation?
Just a chat about Pennsylvania Dutch with the Buskirks.
This is what the school looked like after we worked on cleaning it up two years ago - no electric at the time. The floor was black with dry motor oil.
And last year at the open house you could see the walls needed some work - and about ten gallons of plaster.
Notice the ceiling and the 4 foot fluorescent light fixtures?
And here you can see the windows blocked off with sheets of plywood.
Here you can see some of the plastering
As winter was approaching last year we had finally sanded, scraped and repaired the ceiling and walls and had two coats of primer and one coat of paint on the walls.
Just two weeks ago we added a safety railing in our hope to make the school more accessible.
This summer a whole bunch of young adults from several states came by for a visit.
And about two weeks ago a lovely family came to visit - all nine kids are home schooled.
photo: anna petit-bittenbender
photo: anna petit-bittenbender
Thank you so much for your help in making this dream of saving our past a reality.
Renee & Tony Giordano