Valley Energy Sponsors Preservation of Little Red School House in Winchester Center, Conn

Feb. 3, 2015 - PRLog -- “Valley Energy is proud to be one of several corporate sponsors for the renovation and preservation of the historic Little Red School House in Winchester Center,” stated Craig Snyder, president of Valley Energy in Canton, Conn. “2015 will mark the 200^th anniversary of the only remaining one-room school house in the Town of Winchester. Valley Energy is delighted to provide funds to help preserve this historic treasure.”

“Mr. Snyder and Valley Energy have been very generous toward our preservation ambitions, and we are most appreciative,” stated Bill Ahrens, vice president of The Little Red School House Association of Winchester, Inc. David Battista, president of the Association, added, “In 2015 we plan on hosting a celebration to include all the contributors to the restoration’s success.”

Built 1815, the Little Red School House, located at the corner of Platt Hill and Taylor Brook Roads in Winchester Center, was continuously used until 1908 when it was closed due to a diminished number of students. The school was originally one of seven or eight small school houses constructed throughout the rural Town of Winchester. Eventually, the smaller schools were consolidated into larger and more formal schools.

The school house has survived due in part to the efforts of Clifford E. Bristol who, in honor of his father, Charles A. Bristol, a teacher in the school, bought the building from the Town in 1908. In 1916, Mr. Bristol held a reunion for all former teachers and students. It was not until 1923 that another meeting was held to form the Little Red School House Association of Winchester to preserve the building. The Association was made up of former teachers and family members of former teachers and students.

Since 1923, annual meetings were held ‘off and on.’ Mr. Ahrens explained that, “The Association’s ambitions ‘waxed and waned’ through the years but were ongoing until the end of the 1900s. In 2001, the organization voted to have the Winchester Center Historical Association run the Little Red School House Association and maintain the building. Today, the building needs considerable help to remain standing. We need to raise funds to repair it.”

Toward that goal, the Association contacted the Connecticut Trust for Historic Preservation which awarded a Historic Preservation Technical Assistance Grant. Ahrens explained that, “The Trust assigns a Circuit Rider who examines historic structures and guides the board of directors on what needs to be done to preserve a building and raise funds. The Rider suggested that we apply for a grant that would document what was needed to restore and renovate the building. We received a $4,500 grant which we were able to match due to several corporate donations, including $1,000 from Valley Energy.”

Battista stated, “20 to 30 years ago, when the Little Red School House Association was very active, school children came to the historic one-room school house. Association members, dressed in 1800s attire, re-created day-to-day activities popular with children at that time. We would like to sponsor re-creations again as they are being done in several historic school houses throughout Litchfield County. Also, we would like to hold cooperative events with the Connecticut Department of Tourism to conduct tours as they do with historic breweries, vineyards, covered bridges, etc.

Private donations and funding are being sought into the spring of 2015, when the Association intends to file an application for a $15,000 matching grant from the 1772 Foundation. As of December 31, 2014, the Association had secured about two-thirds of the needed $15,000.”

To contribute to the preservation of the Little Red School House, please mail tax-deductible contributions to The Little Red School House Association of Winchester, PO Box 117, Winchester Center, CT 06094.