Library Main Gallery Exhibit

The Little Red Schoolhouse:

An American Icon

The Little Red Schoolhouse at Ship was originally located at Mount Jackson, or Potato Point, near Newburg.  Built in 1865, it was in use as a school until 1954.  

In 2006 the SU Archives & Special Collections Librarian, Karen Daniel, received an email from Jonathan Zimmerman, a professor of Education and History at New York University.  He was writing a book about the history and legacy of the one-room schoolhouse and was interested in the history of the schoolhouse on our campus.  Dr. Zimmerman reviewed materials from the SU Archives which contributed to his book, Small Wonder: The Little Red Schoolhouse in History and Memory. 

In 2009, Shippensburg University was selected by the Pennsylvania Humanities Commission to be the site for Jonathan Zimmerman’s TV program on one-room schoolhouses.  The episode was taped before a live audience on April 30, 2011 in our schoolhouse. The Pennsylvania Humanities Council produces Humanities on the Road, a television series that airs on the Pennsylvania Cable Network.  The program will be broadcast on PCN-TV in November 2011.

The Gallery display features numerous photos and related text regarding our Little Red Schoolhouse:  

· The Little Red Schoolhouse at Mount Jackson

· Reconstruction of the Little Red Schoolhouse

· Teaching in the Little Red Schoolhouse

· The Little Red Schoolhouse on Television