One-room school celebrates 25 years of sharing history

PANDORA — Dale Bridenbaugh has been keeping the history of the one-room school alive for the past quarter of a century. After several years spent restoring District No. 3 Riley Township School and then welcoming thousands of visitors to the sturdy brick building near Pandora, Bridenbaugh is now preparing to celebrate the 25th anniversary of its reopening. A free, family-friendly open house will begin at 10 a.m. Aug. 13 with light refreshments at noon. A short program at 1 p.m. will include the ringing of the school bell, a welcome by Bridenbaugh and an invocation by Marcella Ciccotelli, pastor of Riley Creek United Methodist Church. Bridenbaugh's great-grandchildren will lead the Pledge of Allegiance, and his oldest son, Gary, will present "Do You Have a Little Red School House Safe in Your Memory?" Bridenbaugh will also present a short history of the school, followed by a performance by Living Water, a gospel singing group. The school is located at 14022 Road 6 in Putnam County. "So many things have happened (over the past 25 years), so many events, some good and some not so good," said Bridenbaugh, 88, who owns the school with his brother, Daryl. "It's fortunate it's still here." In 1878, his great-grandfather, Michael Bridenbaugh, donated half an acre of land on his farm for a school. A wooden building was erected and used until 1889, when the present school was constructed. "I always looked at this schoolhouse as a part of the farm," said Bridenbaugh. His grandparents, father and four uncles attended the school, he said. However, Bridgenbaugh, who was born in 1934, attended school in Pandora. He was a member of the first class to graduate from the new consolidated Pandora-Gilboa School in 1952. The one-room school closed due to consolidation in 1927. Afterwards, Riley Township sold it to the Bridenbaugh family for $500. The building was emptied and used for storage for 70 years, he said. Restoring history After reading a book about the history of Putnam County's one-room schools, Bridenbaugh said he became interested in restoring the building in 1995. His first job was replacing the hand pump out front. With the help of historic photographs, he also repaired the windows and rebuilt the bell tower and front porch. Then he turned his attention inside the building. The walls and ceiling were restored to their original colors, and the oak wainscot was hand-stripped to remove years of dirt and mildew. He also began searching for items to furnish the school. Bridenbaugh said he bought 34 desks in three sizes since all ages shared the same space. About half came from an Amish School in Millersburg in Holmes County. He found the rest in Shipshewana, Indiana. These desks had actually been used and some had initials carved into them, he said, making them look even more realistic. The teacher's desk came from an antique dealer in Van Wert. The recitation bench was used in a one-room school in Michigan. Blackboards from the old Vaughnsville School replaced the originals. Restoration took two years. The first event was held in 1997, when Bridenbaugh arranged a reunion of school alumni. Mildred Bierry George, the teacher at the time the school closed in 1927, attended along with about 10 former students. "As I look back, that was probably one of the most meaningful things that's happened here," he said. "We had a little party for them and the teacher sat up at the desk. One of the old students brought her an apple, an apple for the teacher," he laughed. "They just had a great time. They never dreamed they would come back to the one-room school." Bridenbaugh said he heard a lot of stories that day. "One of the guys said you ought to put a corn cob pipe out in the outhouse. He said, 'Us boys used to go out there and smoke. The teacher knew it, but she never said anything,'" he related. Hard times There have been hard times for the school, too, he said. In June 2012, a fast-moving thunderstorm with near-hurricane force winds sliced through the area. The school sustained major damage, said Bridenbaugh. One third of the roof and rafters were torn off, and the west side brick wall blew into the attic. The brothers hired contractors to have the roof replaced. Other work included repairing and replacing the brick wall and rebuilding the bell tower. The school reopened in December 2013 for a Christmas open house that was attended by about 70 people. Less than a month later, an early morning fire started around the wood burner. Bridenbaugh said a neighbor stopped to tell him smoke was coming out of the school house. Inside, embers were showering from the ceiling. "I made my way along the wall (inside). There were a few things I was going to get out. I shouldn't have gone in with all the smoke, but I was alright," he said. Members of the Pandora Fire Department were able to save the building, but there was significant smoke and water damage. Again, the family decided to repair the school. "We had to take everything out, all the desks and repaint everything. And you could smell smoke for quite a while. But you know, everything we saved pretty much," he said. They also had to replace some of the desks and the wood-burning stove. Recognition For his restoration efforts, Bridenbaugh received a merit award from the Ohio Historic Preservation Office in 2000. The school was placed on the National Register of Historic Places five years later. And in 2019, the Putnam County landmark received an Ohio Historical Marker from the Ohio History Connection. In the future, Bridenbaugh said he'd like the building to continue educating visitors on the history of one-room schools. "I hope my kids will look after it. I've got three boys and it's possible one of them will come back and one of them will stay around here on the farm," he said. "It's part of the family," he added. "My dad told me stories about it. I wish dad could see it, and my grandma, too. I'm sure they'd be pleased to see the work done down here." The school is handicapped-accessible, and there is parking on-site.