Freedom Twp. – The Drakesburg Schoolhouse # 2 looks just about ready for “in-person” classes right now…and considering that it first appeared on the Portage County tax maps in 1874, that’s pretty darned good, considering that it also housed township equipment, sheep & other critters, a church and lots of trash over the years since the township schools were centralized in 1916. In 1941 the whole building was turned around to face the highway (St.Rte. 303), got an addition at each end and a basement. A church moved in and after it moved out, things went kind of downhill. It was taken over by the Portage County Land Bank in 2017, with ownership transferred to the Freedom Township trustees, with the payment of title and transfer fees as the only cost to that entity.
And then the whirlwind!
The Freedom Township Historical Society, its members and friends and committed community members got to work. Abandoned and dilapidated auxiliary buildings were removed.
Contractors and volunteers got to work on the rehabilitation and restoration, Boy did they!
The place is amazing.
It has been opened up, cleaned, painted (a very soothing green, with trim), fitted with school-room-looking lights. The front of the interior space, raised and added by the church as a chancel/altar area, was emptied out and is now home to genuine old school desks( #5 Eclipse) donated by Sandy Tittle, as well as an honest-to-gosh black potbellied stove (Wisdom Oak # 17, Wherle Co., Newark, Ohio) – Grafton gift. The floor in front of this area illustrates the community-wide contributions which have gone into this project, as the boards used there came from the two buildings taken down in Garrettsville for the construction of Taco Bell; those vintage houses have found new use in another vintage edifice. The windows are now of the original size, as evidenced by the discovered frames under the removed wall surfaces. The basement is a cement-floored workspace, with visible old beams and plumbing a work-in-progress (One might also take a look at the pretty-spiffy outhouse out back–a four-holer. It was built to match what must have been an up-scale house of its time. It’s not currently in use–thank goodness.
One of the keys to the success of this project is the amount of time effort and community outreach which has gone into it. The FTHS is currently applying for a grant that factors in the amount of volunteer participation and so far Charles Duffield has toted up some 429 hours; Pete Thornton has probably chimed in a similar contribution, as have many of the members of the group. Early and late, in-the-building and out, scrounging up donations, free labor and other donations in-kind (Big kudos to Maplewood crews, Turos driveway materials, the estate of Martha Harris Cain which contributed vintage yearbooks, lumber companies, electricians, etc.). Fund-raising continues, since the group hopes to put a Freedom-green metal roof on the structure ASAP–no need to endanger all of the work inside by having unwanted and destructive leaks from above…and a building this age needs all of the help it can get.
The Open House on October 17 was a success, drawing FTHS members (Who could point out points of interest in the pictures on display), neighbors, community members alike. They’re not done yet, not by a long shot; new members contributors, well-wishers, purchasers of shirts or informational booklets are always welcome.
More to come. Keep your eyes on Freedom!
