Seth Kelley, of Plainsfield, Vt., looks up to ensure his hammer does not hit the underside of the floorboards of the Jericho Schoolhouse in Hartford, Vt., while placing cribbing under the building, the first step in renovating its foundation in Hartford, Vt., on July 6, 2016. After years of fundraising, donors from the Jericho district have hired Kelley and crew to begin renovating the historic schoolhouse, and Kelley wanted to ensure that the job was done using stone, instead of concrete. “I’m trying not to change history, that’s an important part,” he said. (Valley News - Mac Snyder) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com.
Seth Kelley, of Plainsfield, Vt., looks up to ensure his hammer does not hit the underside of the floorboards of the Jericho Schoolhouse in Hartford, Vt., while placing cribbing under the building, the first step in renovating its foundation in Hartford, Vt., on July 6, 2016. After years of fundraising, donors from the Jericho district have hired Kelley and crew to begin renovating the historic schoolhouse, and Kelley wanted to ensure that the job was done using stone, instead of concrete. “I’m trying not to change history, that’s an important part,” he said. (Valley News - Mac Snyder) Copyright Valley News. May not be reprinted or used online without permission. Send requests to permission@vnews.com. Credit: Valley News photographs — Mac Snyder

Hartford — An old one-room schoolhouse that was in danger of collapsing has been saved, following a $65,000 fundraising campaign by a volunteer community group.

It took two years for the Jericho Community Association to raise the money, but work to shore up the stone foundation of the Jericho Schoolhouse began on Tuesday, according to association member Erik Krauss, who helped organize the effort.

“It’s a wonderful, lovely little building,” Krauss said. “I don’t think there are that many schoolhouses that have been preserved, and it also serves a purpose. It’s a meeting house for the local community, so it strengthens bonds within the community.”

For years, the association has had thrice-annual meetings at the water-damaged schoolhouse, which sits near the intersection of Jericho Street and Jericho Road.

It’s unclear how many of Vermont’s historical one-room schoolhouses are still standing. The National Register of Historic Places has 34 places identified as “schools,” and another 12 identified as “schoolhouses,” but that doesn’t include the Jericho Schoolhouse, which doesn’t have its own entry but is rather listed as part of the Jericho Rural Historic District.

The fundraising campaign, which began in 2013 under the leadership of Leo and Pat Zacharski, met its goal by January of this year, according to Todd Allen, an association member who, along with his wife, Maggie Allen, helped expand the fundraising campaign beyond the association’s membership.

Knobb Hill Joinery, of Plainfield Vt., won a $58,000 contract to rebuild the stone foundation and repair timbers in the floor system, while Norwich contractor Webster and Donovan Excavating won a $6,200 contract to do excavation and drainage work outside the building that will prevent future water damage.

Krauss said that, while the current project will work in conjunction with a recently renovated roof to protect the schoolhouse from future water damage, more work still needs to be done, including repointing the chimney, rewiring, plastering and painting.

“An old tin ceiling needs some work as well,” he said. “And the question of accessibility came up. That’s something we’ll look into too.”

The building was built in 1849, and was used to teach children through 1947, according to a description of the historic district on the Hartford town website.

In a history of the building compiled by Leo Zacharski, he cites town records that provide for the building to be built at a cost of $568.

“What did the citizens of Jericho get for their investment in 1849?” Zacharski wrote. “One answer is a well-built structure. Consider the enormous change in construction techniques around the turn of the 19th century. Earlier construction from timber felled by the settler with only a sharp axe, was hand-hewn into beams 10 or more inches square and up to 30 or more feet long. It ‘took a village’ to lift such beams into place.”

Allen said much of the original timber is still in place.

“It’s an anchor to the past,” Allen said. “We would love for future generations to have that connection to the schoolhouse. It would be a shame if we didn’t keep it up during our time of stewardship.”

The work is expected to be completed by early September.

Matt Hongoltz-Hetling can be reached at mhonghet@vnews.com or 603-727-3211.