Subject of Square: One Room Schoolhouse

Quilter’s Name: Pat Bushway

Background on subject: There were six one-room schoolhouses in Hampton and this square depicts the one on the museum grounds that is from District IV North which was originally located on Lafayette Road. Students went to school in the winter and summer so that they were available to help on their families' farms with the planting in the spring and the harvesting in the fall. All students studied reading, writing and arithmetic, and the older students would also study science, geography, and history. The one teacher was often a young, single woman, perhaps not much older than some of the students.

Why you chose this subject: I chose the schoolhouse because I think the evolution of our public school system is an extremely important and interesting topic. It’s amazing that in a small town like Hampton in the 1800's, there was even then such emphasis on education that all children attended school in one room schoolhouses at various locations throughout town. I like to imagine the interaction between the students and the teacher and between the students of different ages and grades.

Thoughts on your representation/design/color choices/etc.: As the schoolhouse on the museum grounds is the last one of the original six that has not been incorporated into another structure, I felt it was important to portray it as accurately as possible. For that reason, the colors and design are consistent with the building. The chestnut tree next to it is one of NH's great trees and a treasure in itself.

What you hope this quilt will mean for the people who see it: I hope that people will get a sense of the long history of strong support for public education and its foundational role in our community that still exists today.