Pandora one-room schoolhouse reopens

Aug. 14—PANDORA — "Little House on the Prairie," a 1970s and 1980s television series based on the series of books by Laura Ingalls Wilder, popularized the 19th and early 20th century American wagon-train settlement phenomena, complete with regular scenes in a one-room schoolhouse, where there was one teacher and kids of all ages who learned their lessons together and wrote on slate boards.

Over time, classroom sizes outgrew the one-room schoolhouse concept, and only a handful remain open to the public in Ohio today.

The Bridenbaugh one-room schoolhouse, also known at the time it was in operation as the Riley Township District #3 school, located in Pandora is one such example. It has been recognized many times for its historical importance. In 2000, Bridenbaugh received an Ohio Historical Preservation Office award, followed by inclusion into the National Register of Historic Places in 2005, and then the Ohio History Connection placed an Ohio Historical Marker in front of the site in 2019.

Renovations followed after an 80-mph windstorm in 2012 ripped a third of the roof off, and then, in 2013, the structure filled with smoke and the fire department had to be called.

Saturday, the Bridenbaugh family, along with the public, gathered at the schoolhouse for a celebration and family reunion for its reopening. Approximately 300 people turned out for the event along with roughly 20-25 family members, including Bridenbaugh's great, and great-great grandchildren. Family members traveled from as far away as Tennessee to attend Saturday's event.

Originally erected in 1878 as a wooden school and used for 11 years before being moved and then replaced with the present-day standing brick edifice in 1889, the school sits on what was and is now the Bridenbaugh's family farm. Michael Bridenbaugh (1820-1895) sold a half-acre to the Riley Township in 1875, and the school operated on that land until 1927 when students were then sent to classes in Pandora.

A notable farming family, the Bridenbaughs are included in an entry beginning on page 919 of the "History of Putnam County, Ohio: Its peoples, industries, and institutions" by George D. Kinder.

During Saturday's celebration, Dale Bridenbaugh, 88, gave a presentation in which he shared remembrance stories about the schoolkids who had attended.

The schoolhouse included first through eighth grade, which was the highest grade many of its first students were educated to at the time because the first high school in Pandora did not open until 1895.

Alumni from the Bridenbaugh one-room school went on to become farmers, like the Bridenbaughs, but others went on to college, became teachers, missionaries and a banker, Bridenbaugh said.

"I'd like to see it continue to be used educate people about the history of the one-room schoolhouse," said Bridenbaugh.

The re-opening will enable rental of the schoolhouse, located at 14022 Road 6 in Pandora, to be used for educational purposes, weddings, or meetings. Call 419-384-3374 to make a reservation.

Reach Shannon Bohle at 567-242-0399, by email at sbohle@limanews.com or on Twitter @Bohle_LimaNews.