Smith School - Thompsontown, PA - One-Room Schoolhouses on Waymarking.com

Built in 1835, Smith School housed children from grades one through eight. Most walked to school. One of those students later became the owner of the building in the 1955 when the closed school houses were auctioned off. The ex-student, Stan Sieber, used the building for storage until the bicentennial committee of the county approached him about restoring the building for the 200-year celebration of our country.

With the help of his daughter, Judy, Stan began the work of cleaning out the building. He was pleasantly surprised when he found it easy to put back the desks that had been removed and stored at the back of the building. “I just matched up the holes on the floor with the holes on the feet of the desks,” he said. Arrangement went from small near the chalkboard to large near the door and furnace. Stan found his initials that he had naughtily carved in the top of a desk over fifty years prior, as well as, initials of his two sisters, Beulah and Kaye, who had sat side-by-side. They had added a line down the middle to keep from fighting over the space.

The restored school opened in 1976 as planned and has been open for prearranged tours ever since. The nostalgic era that one steps into as one enters the building is enchanting. Most of the furnishings are original. Besides the desks, Stan found the original teacher’s desk at the township building where it had been taken when the voting location had been moved from Smith School. One oil lamp is original along with the maps, basin, water cooler, and some of the books. A retired school teacher, Ruth Dimm, wrote the alphabet across the top of the chalkboard the same as it had been when Stan attended school.

(from listed website)

Is the schoolhouse still open as a school?: no Address: Cocolamus Road Thompsontown, PA United States of America 17094 Web Address (if available): [Web Link] Does the school offer 19th century classroom reenactments or day camps?: yes Original or Re-creation?: Not listed Year the school first opened.: Not listed Year the school closed.: Not listed

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