New purpose for old school

By Janet Caggiano, Media General News Service
Published: June 19, 2008

LOUISA — Charlie Hayden has fond memories of Shady Grove School.

Except for the ruler incident.

“I was acting up during class and the teacher made me stand in the corner,“ he said. “Then she gave me a ruler across the hand. That’s one I’ll never forget.“

Hayden, now a Goochland County resident, was a student at the one-room schoolhouse until fifth grade. The structure, on Three Chopt Road in Louisa County, opened in 1925 and served students in first- through seventh grade until 1962.

“We had one teacher for all seven grades,“ said Deloris Hicks, another former student. “The older kids would help teach the younger kids. We didn’t have a choice. That’s just the way it was then.“

Hicks walked 5 miles to school with her friends, but no one complained, she said, because they grew up knowing nothing else. It wasn’t until county schools desegregated about 1970 that they came to realize a different way of life.

“Still, we don’t want to forget how it once was,“ she said.

Thanks to a partnership between Shady Grove Baptist Church and Gum Spring United Methodist Church, no one will. The two churches have joined to restore the old school and are planning to house artifacts inside.

“It will be a museum of values,“ said the Rev. Reginald Cleveland, pastor of Shady Grove. “When you point to this building, you are going to talk about the values of the past . . . so we can instill them in the present and future. Times change, but values and principles don’t.“

Shady Grove Baptist Church, about a mile from the school, owns the 2-acre property. Cleveland said the hope is to build a leadership center on the grounds.

For now, though, more than 30 volunteers are scraping, priming and painting the exterior. They spent Saturday on a scaffold to reach the highest points. Future work dates will focus on refinishing floors, updating electrical systems and repairing drywall inside.

“It feels really good to help people in the community,“ said Nancy Gregory as she scraped white paint from the front of the school. “You get the opportunity to meet new people while working on a worthwhile project.“

Gregory is a member of Gum Spring United Methodist Church, a predominantly white congregation. She worked alongside Clara Shelton, a member of Shady Grove Baptist Church, which has mostly black members.

“As a Christian, I’m really concerned about how segregated Sunday morning is,“ said William Hale, a volunteer and Gum Spring member. “Years ago, a project like this would have been impossible. Now, we are coming together.“

It will cost nearly $20,000 to restore the school, money that volunteers hope will come from donations and sweat equity.

“I’m so excited we are doing this,“ Shelton said when she took a break from scraping in the hot sun. “By sharing my memories, I can help the next generation appreciate what they have today.“

Shelton vividly recalls the potbellied stove in the corner of the school. She and her classmates had to collect wood for it every morning in the winter. They also had to pump water from the well.

“I would hide in the coat closet because I didn’t want to do the chores,“ she said with a chuckle. “Those were the best days. I couldn’t see it then, but I see it now.“

Janet Caggiano is a staff writer for the Richmond Times-Dispatch.