It’s rare that I take great pleasure in proofreading pages. But the other day I was asked to tackle our newest publication, “All In One Room: York County’s Schoolhouses.”
I have always loved looking at old photos — even when I didn’t know a soul in them. But “All In One Room” proved to be a gold mine of memories for me, someone too young to have attended one.
As I carefully read the names in a caption, one caught my attention. Could it be? Could this attractive young woman surrounded by her students be my elementary-school music teacher? Yes, it was! Mrs. Strawbridge (Did any of our teachers actually have first names?) was one of my favorites and here she was as a young teacher, probably just starting her career.
On another page I found Fran Dietz, a wonderful teacher I took cooking lessons from as an adult. How many others will I discover before my proofing job is done?
That’s the beauty of this book. Even though I never attended a one-room school, it turns out I know a lot of people who did.
The recollections included in the book are tender, funny and often eye-opening. Who would have imagined that among the items that teachers had to supply themselves would be toilet paper? Get out the Sears and Roebuck catalog!
If you’d like to share the fun and look for your former teachers, classmates, friends and relatives, and save $10 to boot, go to www.inyork.com/schoolhouses by May 9 to reserve your copy.
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