DonationS in memory of Susan McDonald can be sent to the Town of Surry. Please make checks out to “Town of Surry” with “IMO Susan McDonald” in the memo line, and send to:
Town of Surry
PO Box 147
Surry, ME 04684
If you would prefer to donate using a credit card, please call the Town of Surry at 207-667-5912
All donations will be allocated towards care and maintenance of the Old Surry Schoolhouse.
We appreciate YOUR support.
Thank you
The Surry Village School has served the community of Surry in a variety of capacities since the two-story Greek Revival and Italianate schoolhouse opened its doors on 1872. The building, considered modern for its day, was built by Jesse M. Ray for the handsome sum of $2000. The school served as both the primary and high school, until 1926 when it was decided that Surry would send its high school students to nearby Ellsworth. After years of increasingly expensive maintenance problems and a desire for more modern amenities, the school closed its doors in the spring of 1952. The following year the Surry Volunteer Fire Department took the property over and it was used as the town’s fire house until it was replaced by a new fire house in 1987.
During its tenure as a firehouse, substantial changes were made: a cement floor replaced the maple flooring on the first floor and two large doors were installed to accommodate the fire trucks. The front stairway to the second floor was moved to the west side of the building. The fire department added a kitchenette on the second floor and two bathrooms and a furnace room on the first floor.
The building was next transferred to the Surry Woman’s Auxiliary. This group returned the front of the building to its 19th century look, with one large room on the first floor and one large room on the second floor. The Auxiliary used the building as a meetinghouse until the Auxiliary disbanded in 2014 and the building was returned to the Town of Surry.
In 2015 the town officials pursued different options for the schoolhouse, including demolition and, amidst mounting concern over this potential outcome the school was added to Maine Preservation’s list of Most Endangered Historic Places. The community galvanized to save this important local place and the Old Surry Village Schoolhouse Preservation Group was formed to help save the building. The town rallied to the cause and at a special town meeting in 2016 the town voted to officially form the Old Surry School Rehabilitation Project. At no cost to the taxpayers, the group would return the schoolhouse to its 19th century appearance. The team’s goal was to identify, protect, repair and replace the necessary areas of the building while accommodating the necessary changes that would make the building compliant with 21st century life safety and ADA requirements.
The restoration efforts were meticulously executed by a group of dedicated volunteers who both tirelessly raised the substantial funds to pay for the materials and professional teams as well as providing countless hours of labor to bring the old schoolhouse back to life. The structure was found, to the delight of all, to be structurally intact so the largest part of the restoration effort was restoring the interior of the building. The work included installing a new subfloor and 2-inch maple flooring over the firehouse concrete floor to match the second floor and the stairway was returned to the front of the building. New 200-amp electricity was installed throughout the building and schoolhouse lights were returned to both floors. Traditional bead board and wainscoting sheathing as well as windows and trim were installed and painted on the first floor to match the second-floor features. The rehabilitation efforts were coordinated with the Maine Historic Preservation Commission to ensure that all restoration complied with the Secretary of Interior’s Standards.
In June 2019, with the final nail nailed and the last coat of paint dried, the schoolhouse opened to the public as a museum and community meeting space for lectures and events. The Maine Historic Preservation Commission has indicated that the property is eligible for listing in the National Register. With the love and labor of the volunteers with the Old Surry Village Preservation Group, the structure has been saved.
Project Participants
Glyneta Thomson, Old Surry Village Schoolhouse Preservation Group
Angela Smith, Town Clerk, Surry
Chester Kane, C.H. Kane & Son
Dan McGraw, Atlantic Engineering
Andrew McCullough, Andrew McCullough Engineering Consultants
John Herrick, John Herrick & Son
Volunteers
