Sunday Feature: Restoring the one-room school house
These historical schools — Belleview (left) and Spring Creek (right) — were built in 1894 and 1904 respectively.
by James Jordan, Sumner Newscow — Mike and Valerie Brunhoeber have been restoring one-room schoolhouses on their farm north of Caldwell for a few years. It is a little remote, and to try to get more people out to see the place, they are planning a special event for Oct. 15 at their farm.
The program will feature the Belleview school, which has been restored to the late 1800s, and the Spring Creek school that was moved to their farm last April, and is a work in progress.
She will give a program of school type lessons in the Belleview School at a cost of $4 per person. She plans on having a silent auction in the Spring Creek school building, and is still seeking items to be sold. There will also be some vendors who will sell things like crafts on the day of the event.
Part of the reason for the event is also to raise some money for further restoration of the Spring Creek school. She plans on restoring it to the 1930s era.
One room school houses of six rows of desks to seat round 30 or more students.
In the early days of settlement of Kansas, there were one-room school houses all over the county. She has spent a lot of time studying them and doing research. They had been trying to get the Spring Creek school moved for a few years and the goal was finally realized earlier this year. It was in pretty bad shape and needed a lot of work. The building is on the National Register of historic places, so that much was done several years ago, but it was pretty much forgotten after that. Brunhoeber said is checking to see how moving it will affect that designation.
Both the schools are registered with national and state historic associations, and they are a non-profit museum.
They are also restoring two outhouses, and a coal shed, that were on the property when they moved the school. Another project is to get rock on the path between their driveway and the schools, which is not far, but would allow easier access in bad weather.
She is hoping to have special events at least three times each year to raise money and awareness of the museum. She also does programs for schools.
The museum on their farm is a place to learn about the old one-room school houses that once dotted the Kansas landscape. Many are rotting away, and she has saved at least two. There is another one called Knowledge Hill, but it may be in too bad of condition to move.
The Spring Creek school has had the roof replaced, and much of the siding had to be replaced as well, but the building itself now is sound.
The Belleview school was built in 1894. It had two entrances, and separate entrances were used by boys and girls and they sat on opposite sides of the classroom. The Spring Creek school was built in 1904. Spring Creek was used until 1947, when many schools consolidated. Belleview was used until 1956 when there was another wave of consolidating.
The museum is open by appointment for groups of any size.
The website for the museum is www.countryschoolmuseum.org. Their phone number is 620-845-4392
