GARDEN CLUB R.F.D. PRESENTS
Our Home: The Little Red School House
In every developing community,
there has always been a
need for a school to provide
an education for the children.
In Middletown Township, in
the area then known as Nut
Swamp, that need was felt in
the mid-19th century. And so,
it came to be, that on March
10, 1841, at a meeting called
to discuss the future education
of local children, a decision
was made to establish a school
in this area.
Union School, now known
as The Little Red Schoolhouse,
located at the intersection of
Middletown Lincroft Road and
Dwight Road, was built in 1842
on property purchased from
Edward and John Micheau for
school and received $30 to $40 per quarter for a total of $120 to $160 a
year. A nearby farmhouse provided a room for the schoolmaster.
For warmth in the schoolhouse, a woodburning stove was installed,
and once again, it was the farmers who came to the rescue, supplying the
of cutting the wood into the appropriate stove length.
Many prominent people from that era attended the Union Schoolhouse.
John S. Applegate, a Red Bank lawyer and state senator, attended
as well as James Crawford, Thomas Henry Grant, William Micheau and
Matilda Hendrickson, who later taught at the schoolhouse. Thomas and
Walter Field were also students during those days. According to Randall
30 MAY 2021 | TheJournalNJ.com
Gabrielan, Middletown historian, the area had been a prominent place
since the 18th century, and the grounds where the schoolhouse was built
had been the former village center for the area called "Nut Swamp."
The Union School was in use until 1909 when it was realized that
a larger building was needed. The building and property were sold to
Major Joseph Field for $100 and remained in his hands until 1937 when
it was sold to Hattie Carnegie, a famous New York dress designer, who
created an estate in the area. Union Schoolhouse was on a corner of her
estate and became a building used to store gardening equipment.
Time went past quickly, and not much is known about those years. It
was not until 1954 when, because of the friendship of Mary Brasch and
Hattie Carnegie, the building became the home of Garden Club R.F.D.
Mary Brasch was a dedicated member of this club and well known in
Middletown as a teacher and principal of River Plaza School that was
just down Nut Swamp Road. Carnegie agreed to lease the 112-year-old
building and corner property to the club for $1 a year and granted them
permission to renovate it for their use.
Thus began the Garden Club R.F.D.'s history of its connection with
Union School, a building that had become a storehouse for gardening
equipment, then became The Little Red School House, home to a Garden
Club that is currently celebrating its 80th year of existence – the
last 67 years as the caretaker of a former one-room school house and its
surrounding grounds. The Garden Club has been aided by Middletown
Township who are the present owners. They have generously helped the
club continue its maintenance of what is a New Jersey historic site that
has been listed on the National Register of Historic Places since 1976.
Garden Club R.F.D. is a member of the Garden Club of New Jersey,
the Central Atlantic Region of State Garden Clubs, Inc., and the National
Garden Clubs, Inc. In-person meetings, properly socially distanced, will
soon begin. Anyone interested in joining is invited to contact Ruth Korn
Old photo found at The Little Red Schoolhouse at ruthkorn77@gmail.com.
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