Sample School

Sample School. . You are now standing in front of Sample School. Also known as School #5, it was built around 1874 and was one of six one-room schoolhouses that taught 1st–8th grade students within Cranberry Township. To best preserve, the schoolhouse was relocated from Rowan Road to this location. , The other schoolhouses in Cranberry Township were Hoehn (Haine) School #1, Graham School #2, Bear Run School #3, Garvin School #4, Sample School, and Johnston School #6., The school was named after James Sample, who donated the land the school was built on. It closed in November 1951 when Cranberry Township Supervisors purchased the school to use as their office. The students that attended this school were relocated to Rowan School, which was already slated to close in 1952, when all students were moved to the new Cranberry Elementary School (now Rowan School) that was under construction., Since students as young as 5 years old had to walk to school, the schoolhouses were situated so it was no more than a 2-mile walk for students. In the winter, students would bring in coal from a shed to keep the stove warm in the winter. The school had a water pump, outhouse, and large windows to allow sunlight in before there was electricity., Township Supervisors met in the school building from 1942 through 1951. The building sat empty until 1972 when it was converted into the permanent Cranberry Township government offices. By 1976, the Township had outgrown the building and moved to another site, which was on Rochester Road., The school building was used for storage until it was relocated here on July 17, 1999. It is now maintained by the Historical Society and the Township., Sample School in 1947, courtesy of Cranberry Township Historical Society. , Sample School class of 1944, courtesy of Nina (Medley) Kingan. , School being moved in 1999, courtesy of Cranberry Township Historical Society. , Children experience learning in a one-room schoolhouse (right) McGuffey Reader, the primary textbook used by children playing in front of Sample School, courtesy of Cranberry Township Historical Society. , Six one-room schoolhouses in Cranberry Township, based upon 1938 map courtesy of Cranberry Township. Only Sample School remains intact today.