The Schoolhouse Museum

In the hamlet of Middlefield, the schoolhouse has long been a cornerstone of community life, shaping the minds and hearts of generations of local families. Beyond its role in shaping young minds, the "Old Schoolhouse" stands today as a silent witness, not only to the history and evolution of our local community, but also to the evolution of education in New York State. In 1795, New York State passed legislation to form a system of common schools, a groundbreaking effort to ensure that education was no longer reserved only for the wealthy. With an allocation equivalent to approximately $3 million in today's currency, the Act for the Encouragement of Schools empowered towns to elect school commissioners, build common schools, employ teachers, appoint trustees and levy taxes, marking the first time New York State directly funded public schooling.

In historic Clarksville, now the hamlet of Middlefield, four early schools have been documented. Formerly located across from the present day Baptist Church, the first was established in about 1807, largely through the efforts of Joshua Pinney, a local tavern keeper and entrepreneur. By 1870, Clarksville had grown into a thriving community and needed a new, larger schoolhouse. On April 1, 1871 district trustees purchased a plot of land from George Clarke of Springfield for $300, though they unfortunately never received a deed for the parcel. Years later, when the majority of the Clarke holdings were lost in bankruptcy, the schoolhouse parcel was acquired by a banker from Rome, NY and the trustees were forced to re-negotiate the purchase in 1904.

In 1875, the new, larger school building was constructed on a rise of land overlooking the east side of Cherry Valley Creek. It is reported that the Galer brothers walked from their farm on Galer Hill, now Roscoe Jones Road, to the site and, for 75 cents a day, erected the two-story frame building. It featured a large front double door with separate interior entrances to each of the two first-floor classrooms, accented by double hung six-over-six pane windows, wide projecting eaves with Italianate brackets, a belfry, an attached single-story wood shed, and an outhouse.

Drawing from trustee minute books preserved at the New York State Historical Association in Cooperstown, we find a record of the many changes and state-mandated improvements made to the building. These updates included building a fence to separate the property from the adjacent saw mill, modifying the front doors to have windows, and installing new toilets within part of the wood shed. Additional windows were also installed to provide more natural light. While the rest of the hamlet was electrified 10 years prior, it wasn't until 1939 that the schoolhouse was wired for electricity. Finally, in 1950 a well was drilled to provide a permanent water source.

For nearly eight decades, this schoolhouse stood as a cornerstone of education. Within its walls, generations of students learned by natural light and the steady warmth of a woodstove, while practicing their lessons on blackboards and perfecting their penmanship with traditional inkwells. As the local population grew the landscape of education began to change. In 1954 the district voted to consolidate with the Cherry Valley School District, transferring the property to the new administration. Students, teachers, school supplies, and some furnishings were moved to the central school in the village of Cherry Valley, along with the school bell, which was later returned after TMHA leased the building.

Today, the schoolhouse remains at the heart of the community as the headquarters for the TMHA and locale for festivals and events. Though its doors closed as a schoolhouse decades ago, the building stands today as a cherished monument to the town's dedication to education and community, serving as a link to the past and a bridge between generations in the Town of Middlefield.