To the Generous Supporters of the Grass Hill School Restoration Project
This is a progress update on the ongoing restoration of the historic schoolhouse. With your help, this renovation has been moving along very smoothly. We are currently in Phase Three. The first two phases accomplished some major exterior pieces. During the third phase, the exterior was completed, and work has begun inside. This restoration project would not be nearly as far as it is without the tremendous support of Bank Hometown. As we were putting together a plan to raise funds, The Board of Trustees of Bank Hometown, with the outreach of President Rob Morton, stepped up and made an offer we couldn’t refuse. They offered to match dollar for dollar, every donation up to $5,000 a year for five years. This has proved to be a major portion of our efforts. In this first year, the bank has donated $5,000 as we collected $24,085 in donations. We received valuable guidance from Rob, along with help from the very talented Lynne Feiz. It really is amazing how the assistance of the bank brought this project to a whole new level! We can’t thank them enough. With the support of State Senator Michael Moore and State Representative Paul Frost, a grant was received from the Commonwealth of Massachusetts for $25,000. These funds were used to complete the siding on the north and west sides of the building. With a generous discount for our clapboards from C & S Lumber, Warren Lampher, our talented restoration carpenter, brought life to windows, doors and remaining sides of the schoolhouse. He refurbished the windows and doors on those sides to the proper period look. With the assistance of the Millbury DPW, old debris was removed from the grounds, and the overgrowth was cleared, an insurmountable task that needed to be done. The next step brought us inside. The building was insulated by American Building Systems Inc., which will help keep the rooms at a comfortable level and conserve heating oil and electricity. The attic space and exterior walls were brought up to today’s standards. Warren Lampher also assisted with this work by creating paths for the insulation in the walls. Due to the generosity of Ken’s Oil in Millbury, the atmosphere in the school will be comfortable. Ken has virtually donated the new heating and air conditioning system along with volunteering his labor to install it. This step is valued at well over $25,000 and is truly appreciated by everyone involved. A major concern for us is the protection of the visitors and the safety of the building. To this end, electrician Larry Morris has donated his time in rewiring the entire school. He has begun by replacing every wire in the building, which will make for a safer structure. In an effort to stay within the period of the school, all fixtures that are visible will be of the proper style. A new main electric panel will provide the proper circuit protection to prevent potential hazards. We can’t tell you how much we appreciate Larry’s work. Through this entire project, Warren Lampher has gone above and beyond our expectations. Warren has done some amazing quality work at the schoolhouse but has also assisted with every step taken in the project. He has done much research to keep us on track for the proper historical nature of it all. He has the proper connections to find the appropriate talent to make this a first-class restoration. The Millbury Historical Society Board of Trustees and President Frank Gagliardi have been providing tremendous support and guidance in this effort. The Grass Hill School Subcommittee, led by Chairwoman Mary Lou Mulhane, has devoted countless hours to create this project that is coming to fruition. Mary Lou continues the work with which she has been involved in the first two phases of reconstruction. With these efforts, the Grass Hill School will be a truly magnificent historical treasure for our town. As we continue with this phase of restoration, we look forward to meeting more milestones. We will install an ADA compliant ramp to make sure the building is accessible to all. The walls inside will be plastered with a period look. The interior will be painted and decorated to be fresh and to bring back the look of historic times. We are always looking for help to complete this phase. If you have a particular talent or trade and could help us out, let us know. Look for further updates at www.MillburyHistory.org or follow us on facebook.com/GrassHillSchool. For any questions or to help, contact us at GrassHillSchool@gmail.com.
Patrons of the Grass Hill School
The Millbury Historical Society wishes to acknowledge the following individuals and organizations for their generosity in helping to renovate the Grass Hill School:
Capital Gifts
Barry & Debra Fjellman Eloise Ducharme Lincoln & Virginia Bordeaux Robert & Barbara Pearson Frank Gagliardi Mary Lou & Stuart Mulhane Diane & Peter Shemeth
Gifts & Services
C & S Retail Lumber Joel Rubbish Ray's True Value Alex & Andree Belisle Gary's Cabinets The Miles Family Doris Wilson Goretti's Supermarket
Memorial Gifts
In Memory of Florence Paine & David Lee: William & Linda Carig Paul & Judy Aubrey Raymond Lee Robert & Elaine Lee Janet Parker Bill & Florence Peacock Robie & Heather Bruce Eric & Alita Bezanson In Memory of Jeanne Power: Carol M. Krumsiek Barbara J. Garofalo Frank & Sandra Lazowski Laurie & Brian Mellen Rebecca B. Bonin Randal Ritter Peter & Barbara Mazziotti Maureen & Daniel Belsito Richard & Natalie Chiaravalloti Maureen Mohan Robert Brikas Marc Weissman Florence S. Weissman Derby, CT Historical Society In Memory of Nancy Winter Taylor: Charles & Elfrieda Parsons Dudley A. Middleton, Jr.
Grass Hill School Being Restored, In and Out (Older Article from 2008.)
With great pride, the Millbury Historical Society is restoring the schoolhouse on West Main Street as a museum. On the first floor are the original drinking water fountains, original bathrooms off to the side of the hallway, and one classroom. One can easily imagine mischievous little boys dunking girls' pigtails in the inkwells of wooden desks, which are bolted to the floor. In the classroom, slate blackboards cover the front and one back wall. Wooden benches are in the last row and along the side wall under the windows. The teacher's wooden desk is in the front of the room and has antique beverage can on it. The back walls are adorned with copies of early 20th-century School Committee meeting minutes as well as annual town reports with statistics and school budgets. Copies of students' papers are also on the back wall. These and other items are being painstakingly restored and displayed. The schoolhouse museum is a stop on the Millbury schoolchildren's local Heritage Tour, which includes the Asa Waters Mansion and other landmarks. A few years ago the Millbury Historical Society took over maintenance of the building, and now the town leases it to the society. Mary Lou Mulhane, vice president of the Historical Society, is chairman of the restoration committee. The current Committee for the Restoration of the Grass Hill School began meeting in the fall of 2007 and consists of Ms. Mulhane, Linc Bordeaux, Barry Fjellman, Jane Pojani, Eric White, and Linda Roach. This committee is responsible for procuring funds and hiring restoration expert Warren Lanpher. Warren designed and re-built the school's cupola and completely refit the front of the building with new clapboards. Chairwoman Mulhane reported that Phase I of the restoration has been completed, with the painting and replacement of the clapboards on the front of the building. The original Grass Hill School was across the street, where the West Millbury Community Meeting Center now is. However, the structure burned down in the 19th century and was rebuilt across the street, where it now stands. Although Millbury residents remember it as being red or brown, its original color, Mrs. Mulhane said, was white. Lincoln Bordeaux, former president of the Millbury Historical Society and a member of the board of trustees of Old Sturbridge Village and Higgins Armory, consulted with Brad King, the head of conservation at OSV, about the restoration. Mr. King drew up restoration plans, and OSV was involved in the research. Phase I, Mrs. Mulhane said, included reproducing the bell tower last year. Benjamin Miles of Millbury bequeathed the original bell, which he had obtained at an auction. When he died, he bequeathed an additional $5,000, which was used for the bell tower restoration. In the spring of 2008, the Historical Society celebrated the ringing of that bell by Mr. Miles' grandson, Benjamin Miles III of Millbury. Living alumni would not have heard that bell, Mrs. Mulhane said, since it wasn't there in latter years. The carved sign on the school was donated by Alex and Andre Belisle, former owners of the Millbury Sutton Chronicle. And C&S Lumber Co. donated lumber to help complete Phase I, Mr. Bordeaux said. Gary's Cabinets of West Millbury restored two 7-foot-long wooden benches in the schoolroom. Mr. Bordeaux said the society has spent about $15,000 in cash on Phase I, and has received other donations. Phase II will involve replacing the clapboards and windows and painting the east side of the building. Mrs. Mulhane said the society needs about $12,000 more for Phase II, and that it is halfway to that goal from private donations. The building needs new heating and alarm systems and new bathrooms, as well as painting inside. The Historical Society is trying to get the schoolhouse named a National Historic Landmark, as well as on the state register of historic places.
Cat's Meow of the Grass Hill School $18
Take a trip down memory lane to a small old schoolhouse in West Millbury. The former Grass Hill School, which became the West Millbury School, opened in 1861 and continued in operation until 1968. When the school closed in 1968, there were four classes in it: first and second grades downstairs in one room, and third and fourth grades upstairs in a second room. However, in the early years of the school there would have been Grades 1-8 in the building, and children would have pretty much taught themselves. Children only went to school summers and winters because they were needed during the rest of the year for farm work. Families had to provide books and other materials. There were a variety of rules and regulations and punishments that today would be considered politically incorrect or abusive. If a student was disobedient, he or she would come to the front of the classroom and stand with arms raised to shoulder height, with a piece of firewood in each hand. There was the traditional standing in the corner, also. Disobedient boys might have to wear a girl's bonnet. Standing with feet apart and touching nails in the floorboards in a kind of Twister position was another punishment.
