The Root Schoolhouse, located at 987 Union Village Road near the intersection of Goodrich Four Corners Road, is one of the last two one-room schoolhouses in Norwich, Vermont. At the time, it was considered the only rural schoolhouse in Norwich to be in excellent condition, earning a “superior” rating from the state and additional praise from state education executives. Despite the new building’s q
uality, the Root Schoolhouse was closed in the fall of 1945, when enrollment had dwindled to only four pupils. Norwich’s well-known commitment to public education goes back centuries, and has its roots in schoolhouses such as this one. Vermont’s first public grammar school was established in Norwich in 1785, a schoolhouse situated on the site of today’s Congregational Church. In the 1800s, Norwich had twenty schoolhouses; five were still operational as recently as 1940. The last rural schoolhouse closed in 1946, when it was decided that all Norwich children would attend the village school. Since the permanent closing of Norwich’s rural schoolhouses in 1946, most were sold to private owners or, sadly, deteriorated or were torn down. The two exceptions are the Beaver Meadow Schoolhouse, located on Chapel Hill Road, and Root Schoolhouse. A 1952 agreement between the Norwich School Board and the Root District Game Club, a small organization of families surrounding the schoolhouse, transformed the building into a community center. Thanks to the stewardship of this small community for nearly sixty years, the Root Schoolhouse was available to the public, the site of many community meals, performances, and even wedding receptions. Inevitably, perhaps, the growing list of the Schoolhouse’s maintenance needs now exceeds the resources of this small group of families living nearby, and the schoolhouse is presently unusable due to the deterioration of its foundation. This problem was first documented in a 2002 professional building assessment, which reported that the basement walls "if not replaced will eventually fail. The only solution is to either move the building or jack it up and replace the entire foundation." Despite the Game Club’s efforts to raise money for repairs, the problem worsened over the next several years, and the Game Club ceased all activities at the schoolhouse in 2011. A children's dictionary has a definition of "support" that is perfectly suited to the Root Schoolhouse: “to hold up in position by serving as a foundation or base for.” In more ways than one, Root Schoolhouse needs support, especially from people outside of the Root community interested in saving this building and once again making it available to the public. Equally important, it will take volunteers ready to share their skills, be they carpentry, fundraising, landscaping, legal, artistic... an opportunity to help awaits anyone who is interested. Once repaired, the Root Schoolhouse can move forward as a community center serving two communities: the Root community and all of Norwich. This is an exciting opportunity to reimagine the schoolhouse, as it was reimagined in 1952, and transform it into a dynamic space appealing to people throughout the town of Norwich. Less than a ten minute drive from Dan & Whit’s on a major road, with a six hundred square foot room, a stage, and a separate kitchen, and currently under consideration for the National Register of Historic Places, this building’s potential is extraordinary. If you are interested in joining this effort, please contact [email protected].
