A Page from North Quabbin History: Learning about the schoolhouse

Carla Charter pf Phillpston.

Carla Charter pf Phillpston. Paul Franz

Barbara Hanno (left) and Barbara Metzger portray school teachers as part of the Petersham Historical Society contingent at the last Fourth of July parade. The upcoming Oct. 26 event at the historical society building will have exhibits on education in the days of one-room schoolhouses.

Barbara Hanno (left) and Barbara Metzger portray school teachers as part of the Petersham Historical Society contingent at the last Fourth of July parade. The upcoming Oct. 26 event at the historical society building will have exhibits on education in the days of one-room schoolhouses. PHOTO BY PHILIP HANNO

Published: 10-23-2024 2:34 PM

Modified: 10-25-2024 3:27 PM

By Carla Charter

Visitors to the Petersham Historical Society on Oct. 26 from noon-4 p.m. will have the opportunity to see what education was like during the days of one-room schoolhouses. The society is located at 10 North Main St.

It was decided to hold the event at the society this year, as the Ledgeville schoolhouse is far from the center of town and has no electricity or heat.

“This event hopes to bring the schoolhouse spirit closer to the center of the town,” said Barbara Hanno, vice-president of the Petersham Historical Society.

Those attending the event will be greeted by ‘schoolmarms’ and historical society members Chris Eaton, an Audubon teacher, and Barbara Metzger, who worked for many years reviving the history of the schoolhouses.

Activities which visitors can try include constructing a Thaumatrope, one of the most popular toys of the 1800s.

“As an example, on one disc you can draw a bird and on a second disc you can draw a birdcage using a penny for weight and adding two strings, the two discs are placed together. Twisting the toy provides the illusion of motion and the bird will look like it’s in the birdcage,” Hanno explained.

Visitors can also try their hand at writing with a quill pen. On display will be a school bell, slate tablets, and photos of past classes with their teachers.

Your Daily Puzzles

Cross|Word

Flipart

Typeshift

SpellTower

Really Bad Chess

Originally, Petersham had 13 educational districts with a schoolhouse in each.

“This was so there wouldn’t be a long distances for any student to get there,” Hanno said.

There are two one-room schoolhouses still in existence, the Ledgeville #4 School, which is on the National Register of Historic Places and the East School #5. Once the schools were no longer used for education, they became community centers. East School #5 is currently owned by the society, while Ledgeville School #4 is owned by the town, but maintained by the society.

Non-school related gems of the historical society will also be on display to view at the event. Among these will be an 1860s Hack Passenger Wagon Stagecoach, which also served as a mail coach on the Athol-Petersham Line. The coach was driven by George Gibbs

The historical society was founded in 1912 by James and Martha Brook. The society building was constructed in 1926 by John Ames and modeled after the Holden Chapel in Cambridge. The building was purposely designed to fit the mail coach, said Hanno. After being stored in the basement for 60 years the coach was brought to the main level of the building and fully restored, Hanno added.

Carla Charter is a freelance writer from Phillipston. Her writing focuses on the history of the North Quabbin area. Contact her at cjfreelancewriter@earthlink.net.