The Hornbine School’s Woodstove

We have a wood-burning stove at the school that was installed when the school was restored in 1968. This enabled the association to have FUNCTIONS and class visitations, using the stove for heat, in the cold months of fall, winter and spring. In 1974 Doris Johnson, retired teaching principle at the North Rehoboth School and one of the Charter Members of the Hornbine Association, invited my (Mr. Downs) 3rd grade class to visit the school just before Thanksgiving. I remember how cozy we felt with the warmth from the stove. Mrs. Johnson gave us some history about the building before the children took part in educational activities. One activity included a short Thanksgiving presentation the students had practiced.

During the 60s and 70s the association continued to use the building for functions in the cold months. By the 1980s the association membership had dwindled. The school was mostly used for school visitations in the spring and fall.

During the mid-1980s, the Fire Chief declared the need for a fire exit if the school was to have occupants while the stove was in use. Because the expense for a “Fire Exit Door” was beyond the association’s ability to finance, activities were brought to a halt in the cold weather. For years, in the spring, the schoolteacher would arrive early to warm the building. Then, she would extinguish any remaining flames before each class arrived.

A few years ago, we determined that the stove was becoming too old and unsafe to use. At that time the association looked into many forms of heating for the building, including replacing the stove. We settled on electric baseboards that were not very noticeable. We had the electric service updated at the same time to accommodate the heaters.

The old stove remains in the middle, front of the schoolroom for atmosphere but is no longer used. We can now accommodate groups like Girl Scout Troup # 338 that visited our school this October. (see our Facebook page = “Hornbine School Museum”)