Historic Treasure of the Week - August 29, 1982
By Dorothy W. Jerse
Curator, Vigo County Historical Society
Historic Treasure of the Week - August 29, 1982
By Dorothy W. Jerse
Curator, Vigo County Historical Society
With school bells beginning to ring throughout the Wabash Valley, a model of a log cabin school house has been chosen as this week's Historical Treasure.
The late Wayne E. Miller, president of the Vigo County Historical Society in 1977, described the model as follows: "This model of an early Prairie Creek School was made by Samuel K. Fisk, one of the first trustees of Prairie Creek Township. Its exact date is unknown, but it was probably constructed about 1828, it was very up-to-date with a chimney at one end and a few small windows on the opposite side. We are told the very first school was built about 1818 with no windows nor chimney; smoke escaped through a hole in the roof.
"The entire roof (of the model) lifts off in one piece showing a central podium, split log seats, a fireplace at one end and a water bucket with a community dipper."
This model was the gift of Helen Fisk, the great-great-great-granddaughter of Samuel K. Fisk. It is on display with other school items of the past at the Historical Museum of the Wabash Valley, 1411 South Sixth Street. Open hours are 1 to 4 p.m. Sunday through Friday.