43
By ALEXIS BARTOLOMUCCI
The Little Red Schoolhouse in Poland, built in 1858, is currently owned by the Board of Education and leased by the Poland Township Historical Society. The building serves as a location for meetings, educational purposes and a historic landmark.
As time went on, the Little Red Schoolhouse didn’t receive consistent maintenance and eventually fell into disrepair. The Board of Education was faced with selling or investing in the building. The schoolhouse was rescued by a group of concerned Poland residents who were interested in saving the historic building. The residents then formed the Poland Township Historial Society on March 26, 1980 to keep the building from potential destruction. On Sept. 28, 1987 the schoolhouse was dedicated to the residents of Poland.
The Poland Township Historical Society applied for a History Fund Grant from the Ohio History Connection in 2015. At Ohio Statehood Day on March 1, 2016, the PHS was awarded a grant of $6,327 for the $10,545 cost of the Little Red Schoolhouse Window Restoration Project.
This grant allowed the Historical Society to have the eight double-hung, 12 pane glass windows restored and preserved according to the National Park Services Preservation Brief guidelines for historic buildings. Herb Soss, owner of Ace Lumber, was awarded the contract to work on the restoration. Soss was required to preserve as much of the original wood as possible in each window. The project was completed by the Dec. 31, 2016 agreement. There are 11 out of 16 sashes that are original to 1858 and contain several pieces of old, wavy glass.
The Historical Society is very grateful for the Ohio History Fund Grant program which provided over half of the project funds. This program is excellent in helping non-profit organizations receive funding for historic preservations so future generations can enjoy the landmarks.
“The Little Red Schoolhouse Window Restoration Project made possible in part by a grant from the Ohio History Connection’s History Fund. The History Fund is supported exclusively by voluntary donations of Ohio income tax refunds and designated gifts to the Ohio History Connection. www.ohiohistory.org/historyfund.”