SWAMPSCOTT — The Historical Commission made a final sweep through the Stanley School on Thursday to gather historical objects and save them from the impending demolition of the school building.
For a little over an hour, members of the commission wandered the dusty halls of the now-closed school, armed with screwdrivers and drills. They looked through closets, classrooms, and offices, looking for anything of historical value.
Jonathan Leamon, secretary for the commission, said that they were focused on finding “everyday things that are no longer used.” In a classroom on the second floor, the group removed what Leamon described as a cloakroom. It was a cutout in the classroom with rails spanning the width. On the rails were hooks for both coats and hats, as well as umbrella holders.
“Boys and men were still wearing hats all the time when they went out,” Leamon said. “What you find here are hat hooks. In old coat rooms, they would always be hat racks…. Here, it’s a school, so you see something a little less formal, but still hooks to hang your hat on, and you just wouldn’t see that now because most kids don’t wear a hat.”
Also of interest to the commission was the old telephone booth built into the first-floor wall. While the original phone is long gone, the facade and folding door still bring back memories of a time before smartphones. Other items salvaged included wall-mounted pencil sharpeners, a child-sized podium, and miscellaneous school supplies.
Leamon explained that the point of the displays and repurposing of Stanley School items is to give people a peek into the past.
“Our hope is to give people an appreciation for the past so they understand why we preserve things…. if you have the archives and people see what life was like [in the past 170 years]… it’s very interesting what was important [then],” he said.
The Historical Commission hopes that the pieces they salvaged can be either repurposed or displayed when the new school building opens, set for fall 2024. During construction, the commission looks to display the pieces publicly. For now, these items will be cataloged and kept in the town archives.
Demolition was originally planned for July 1 but was postponed until August.
Emma Fringuelli can be reached at [email protected].
