ROOMS - ONE ONLY
Building a new one-room school house? That would seem to be an odd project for anyone to undertake today. Most of us were a bit upset with the tragic events at such a school building at Nickle Mines, Pa. a month a go. Young school girls murdered. The crimes shocked the entire nation and we agreed on he ntentof the local people - "simple folk" of the area - to raze the old school, plow the land and let it revert to the pasture land it had been.
It made sense, we realized, that the local citizens neither wanted,or needed another show place, an exhibition area, an added to tourist trap attraction - perhaps a dramatic restoration of deed and actions best forgotten or vilified into obscurity.
The suggested plan is now for erecting a new one-room school house on the same site. "A fitting memorial" for the young victims.
A simple, brass marker and an area for prayer might be more fitting.
If you are among those who like to visit one-room school houses, I assume the fine one built in 1871 at Rymer, West Virginia is still on display. Paul Yost, who was head of the College Centennial t, Fair mount, West Virginia - where he later - I'm told - became Dean Yost.
The new site for the one-roomer school was twenty-five miles from home. Yost and his host of students started looking for authentic furnishings for the school. One of the first things found was an old brass classroom bell, the type schoolmasters would ring to get the attention of their charges. a nearby county gave a long-burning Franklin stove; others gave book collections including many from the 1890's when the school was built. McGuffey Readers, Mitchell's Geography, Ray's Arithmetic, desks, chairs and the American Legion and the VFW found a 1891 flag with thirty-five stars.
It serves well as a memorial to early American educators. The old school is used to train new teachers. It quickly became a sight worthy visiting sing the Fairmont, W. Va. area.
Andrew McCaskey amccsr@adelphia.net 11-10-06 [c359wds]
