Help Preserve Old Bluemont -- and
Restore the Snickersville Academy

In September 2010, Friends of Bluemont received the Snickersville Academy and the .28 acres on which it sits as a generous charitable gift from the Hatcher Family. This remarkable donation opens a new chapter for the "Old Schoolhouse," and for all of Bluemont.

Built in 1825, the tiny log cabin served as a one-room schoolhouse and "free church" (that is, a nondenominational house of worship) until about 1872, when the Mountain Shadow School was built.

Today, the cabin sits at the side of the Old Mountain Road, next to a lively stream, sheltered by woods, looking pretty much as it has from the beginning.Obviously, 186 years of weathering have taken a toll on the chinking, roof, even the logs and foundation. Luckily, however, restoration experts tell us that the cabin still has a lot of strength in it.

Just a stroll from historic Clayton Hall and the Bluemont Store, beloved by hikers and Bluemont children for generations, the Old Schoolhouse was also the treasured summer home of Catalina Hatcher, mother of the donors.

Last summer, in talking with us about the gift they planned, Tom Hatcher remarked that he and his brother Walter wanted to donate the Academy and its .28 acres of land in memory of their mother, "for the community."

Now that Bluemont has this unique new resource, we are vigorously exploring its many potential uses.

We hope that the Snickersville Academy grounds will serve the community and tourists as an authentic historical village park.

We hope to make the Snickersville Academy a place for meetings and special events.

We hope that schools, parents, and grandparents will bring their children or grandchildren by for a visit to the Academy, letting them see for themselves how kids learned (and worshipped) a century and more ago.

The Snickersville Academy rounds out and complements the more familiar Victorian-and-Railroad-Era conceptions of Old Bluemont.

We are beginning our physical restoration and fund raising.

We need the help of all our neighbors to make this dream a reality. Here's what you can do.

Join Friends of Bluemont for 2011. Complete your membership on-line or use the U.S. mail.
Help with the physical work of restoration. A group of volunteers has already carried out a significant site-cleaning project, but there is much more to do.
Work with our fundraising committee. Reaching out to major donors is a big job, but it is a great way to make a difference in the effort.
Make a special donation this year. Since our inception in 2002, we have been putting money aside for a restoration project, but still only have a portion of what we will require. This year, consider making a special donation of $50 or $100, or more, for Snickersville Academy restoration. You can also donate by credit card at www.friends-of-bluemont.org.

All contributions to Friends of Bluemont are tax-deductible to the extent allowed by law. xoxoxo

Friends of Bluemont, Inc.
P.O. Box 214
Bluemont, Virginia 20135
(540) 554-2964
www.friends-of-bluemont.org
Email: susanfre@roadstarinternet.net