Q&A with Eric Heidenreich on Sollman School making ‘Most Endangered’ list
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In August, a one-room school building near Fort Branch called Sollman School made Indiana Landmarks’ annual list of the 10 Most Endangered landmarks across the state. The organization said Gibson County leaders would like to move the structure and restore it as a field trip destination, but the rural community has limited resources.
Eric Heidenreich, executive director of Gibson County Visitors and Tourism Bureau, spoke with Inside INdiana Business about Sollman School’s condition and the county leaders’ restoration vision.
Tell me about the history of Sollman School.
It was built in 1875. It’s in the community of Snake Run, right next to a church. I’ve passed by this building many times. It’s located on S.R. 168. I thought it was a part of the church or something to do with the church. Only fairly recently, when the condition of the building came to light, is when I discovered it was a one-room school building and the last one-room school building in the county.
In 1927, [Sollman School] consolidated with schools in nearby Fort Branch and ceased to be a school building. It had a few different uses after that period. I read where it was a wood shop, and I’m not sure what all the other uses were, but it’s not been used for anything for several years.
Tell me about the school’s condition.
It’s really starting to decay. It’s getting in pretty serious condition. You can see the roof is needing to be replaced. The boards are deteriorating. It’s not weatherproof. Of course, you know what rain and moisture are going to do to a wooden structure like that.
How did Sollman School make Indiana Landmarks’ 10 Most Endangered list?
Several people from the community have connections with Indiana Landmarks. About a year and a half ago, there was an effort brought to our county commissioners and our county parks board to try to save Sollman School. So it was in the news then, and I talked to somebody at Indiana Landmarks, but there were others who contacted them to come and look at the school and see what the potential was to save the building. That’s how it came to their attention.
What do Gibson County leaders want to do with the structure?
We have a fairly new park called Hopkins Park, and it’s in the eastern part of the county, not too far from where the Sollman School building stands. We had a family that donated land to create a county park, and it’s the only county park that we have in Gibson County. So over the last few years, they’ve been working to develop the site, and it’s becoming a nice park.
The idea was that if this school structure could be somehow weatherproofed so it doesn’t further deteriorate and then get it moved to the park, hopefully, funds could be found to renovate the building. And it could be an attraction at the park or a place for school field trips or eventually, depending on how it was renovated, used as a meeting place or some kind of a venue for social events.
Do you have any idea how much money that will take?
I don’t know exactly, but I know that the cost to just get it buttoned up and moved was going to be pretty substantial. That didn’t include any kind of renovations or reconstruction.
How will Sollman School being on Indiana Landmarks’ endangered list help this effort?
That’s a big help because, number one, it brings the topic of saving the school, or even the mere existence of the school, back in public discussion. So from that standpoint alone, it’s been great.
There has been at least one attempt by one of our county commissioners to try to get some grant funding. I know the first time he was not successful, but this spurred another attempt to get some grant funding. We’re still hopeful that there may be some grant funds out there.
This school building is a piece of our history. It’s a piece of Americana. There just aren’t that many one-room schools left. It would be great to be able to preserve it. Coming from the tourism perspective, it’s always great to have more things for people to see and do when they come to the area. Providing an additional historic attraction or something for people to see is always going to be something that we want to work toward.
Plus, if it is able to be moved to Hopkins Park, that adds another reason for people to go to the county park, which is something we hope people will do as well. It could be a double win, not only preserve a historic attraction, but add more interest to our county park.
Is Indiana Landmarks doing anything else to help restore the structure?
They’ve been a good resource for those who are working on preserving the building, providing some direction on what steps need to be taken and how to go about it.
What are the chances that Sollman School will have to be torn down?
I have not heard any talk of the school being torn down. Probably the stronger possibility is that the school will just deteriorate to the point where it may fall down. Being subjected to continued weathering, there’s only so long that the building can stay standing.
Why should this structure be saved?
Too many times we tend to just let our historic structures deteriorate beyond saving, or they get torn down. It’s important to preserve some of these structures for the future. It’s a way to see how we lived many years ago. If we can save it, it certainly adds to the interest and the quality of our county. It shows we have an appreciation for our history. It certainly adds to the things that we have for people to experience when they come here.
Anything else you’d like to add?
One other interesting thing, as I look at this whole situation, is we had another structure, interestingly enough another school building, that was once on the Indiana Landmarks endangered list, and that was Lyles Station, our settlement just west of Princeton.
When it was on that list, that spurred the process of getting funding to renovate that. And that’s one of our premier historic attractions in the county now. So it gives me hope that something good can come out of all this because it certainly did in the case of Lyles Station.