#schoolhouses

[carrzeecarbon]

Schools close in London, hurting ordinary folks as the rich get richer

Continue reading Schools close in London, hurting ordinary folks as the rich get richer

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[digitalfossils]

[doug-peabody]

Little Brick Schoolhouse - Canterbury, New Hampshire . . . #schoolhouse #schoolhouses #schoolhousesofinstagram #oneroomschoolhouse #oneroomschoolhouses #oneroomschoolhousesofinstagram #canterbury #canterburynh #canterburynewhampshire #newhampshire #nh #newengland #unfiltered (at Canterbury, New Hampshire) https://www.instagram.com/p/ChqcTnpM0Yl/?igshid=NGJjMDIxMWI=

[weemsbotts]

Foe or Folk Heroine? The Arsonist of Cherry Hill

By: Lisa Timmerman, Executive Director

On Saturday, 04/14/1917, between 2-3am, Cherry Hill Public School went up in flames with rumors of arson spreading like wildfire through the community. The residents of Cherry Hill and the surrounding area immediately pledged their aid in capturing and apprehending the arsonist, including the following persons identified in The Manassas Journal: G.E. Soutter ($5), F.W. Walker ($5), W.M. Sullivan ($5), O. Carney ($5), G.E. Shepherd ($5), H.O. Russell ($10), W.G. Bushey ($5), J.F. Hicks ($5), J.E. Morgan ($5), J.G. Crane ($5), R.A. Oertly ($1), and John O’Neal ($2). While the community vowed to find and convict the culprit, would they feel the same when investigations identified a local schoolteacher as the criminal?

Police and investigators from the Aetna Insurance Company quickly homed in on Cherry Hill Schoolteacher Minnie Keys and the family’s boarder Lawrence Harrison. Historian Ronald Turner summarized the case, “The evidence or the case of the Commonwealth was that Minnie and Lawrence Harrison waited until about 2:30 a.m. before they left the house. Then, they walked through the woods and crossed a small stream before reaching the school. They built a huge fire in and around the stove, located in the center of the one room school. After they were sure the fire was big enough, they retreated into the woods, close to the Keys’ house, to watch the school burn.”

(Cherry Hill Location Map by Ronald Turner, PWC Published Works)

According to Lucy Walsh Phinney, “Cherry Hill residents remember that, following many unsuccessful attempts to obtain supplies and get the building repaired, teacher Minnie Keys set fire to the schoolhouse.” However, The Manassas Journal indicated it was a new school and Turner’s research noted it was built in either 1915 or 1916. The clear outrage of the local populace seems to contradict this version of the story as well. The burned school was near the original and, according to Turner, some parents hoped for a new teacher along with the new building…a motive?

Due to various delays, the Circuit Court case did not go to trial until 04/10/1919 and quickly finished the following day. By this time, Harrison had confessed and testified for the Commonwealth, implicating both him and Keys. After a fifteen-minute deliberation, the jury found Minnie Keys not guilty. While eager to punish in 1917, the fervor had declined by 1919, and perhaps more importantly, the community had a new school. The one-room wooden schoolhouse with metal roof was a community project – parents chopped wood for the wood burning stove and students cleaned the building using a nearby stream for water. Oral histories from former students, such as Edward Dent, note their favorite activities included marbles and fighting. Dent also remembered a parrot named Polly that could speak both English and Greek. The school officially closed in 1938-1939 due to low enrollment with Dumfries Elementary School taking its’ place as Cherry Hill students bussed to Dumfries. Mrs. Nora Tuell purchased the property and eventually sold it to Edward Dent as a family home.

(HDVI Archives: Home of Edward Dents & Family, previously Cherry Hill School)

Robert Waite of Cherry Hill most likely purchased the former burned schoolhouse on 10/28/1927 for $75.00. While acquitted, many people in the community believed she was responsible for arson and eventually her image transformed from suspected criminal to local folk heroine. Whether deserving of the title or not, it is clear that the community looked to the future and eventually crafted a more favorable impression of one of their residents.

Note: Several Juneteenth 2022 activities and celebrations are taking place near and at Historic Dumfries Virginia! On Saturday, the unveiling of the new historical marker at the Dumfries Slave & Free African American cemetery takes place, followed by a Juneteenth Celebration BBQ in Merchant Park sponsored by the PWC Chapter of the NAACP in partnership with Potomac Magisterial District and Pi Lambda Lambda Chapter and Omega Psi Phi Fraternity, Inc. At 1pm, The Weems-Botts Museum is hosting a free program for children with craft items to make flags (tickets required – click here). On Sunday, the Annual Juneteenth Parade will start at 3pm led by Councilwoman Cydny Neville with fellowship, music, and community events happening in Merchant Park until 7pm. More info here!

(Sources: Turner, Ron. Prince William County Published Works: The Burning of Cherry Hill School via his magnificent website https://historicprincewilliam.org/pwcvirginia/pwcvabookspublishedworks.htm; Phinney, Lucy Walsh. Yesterday’s Schools: Public Elementary Education in Prince William County, Virginia 1869-1969, published in 1993; The Manassas Journal, 04/20/1917, Vol. XXII, No. 48; The Manassas Journal, 10/19/1917, Vol. XXIII, No. 22; The Manassas Journal, 04/04/1919, Vol. XXIV, No. 46)

[rebel-heart-gypsysoul]

[rebel-heart-gypsysoul]

Old country schoolhouses

[doug-peabody]

Lower Green Schoolhouse - Newbury, Massachusetts (1877) . . . #school #schools #schoolsofinstagram #schoolhouse #schoolhouses #schoolhousesofinstagram #fall #fallcolors #fallfoliage #foliage #fallfoliage #autumn #autumnleaves #autumncolors #newbury #newburyma #massachusetts #ma #newengland #unfiltered (at Newbury, Massachusetts) https://www.instagram.com/p/CVWnjfirbj3/?utm_medium=tumblr

[doug-peabody]

Old School house - Maggaloway Plantation, Maine . . . #oldschoolhouse #schoolhouse #schoolhouses #oldschoolhouses #fallfoliage #foliage #autumnleaves #inspiration #instagood #photooftheday #nikonphotography #photograph #picoftheday #instagram #instadaily #maggalowayplantation #maine #northernmaine #westernmaine #newenglandarchitecture #newengland #unfiltered (at Northen maine woods) https://www.instagram.com/p/CUJfHGArVij/?utm_medium=tumblr