Harrold One Room Schoolhouse to open doors for events

It might not have a teacher standing in front of the chalkboard, but a historic school-turned-new event space promises to take guests back in time.

The Harrold One Room Schoolhouse, which was built in 1881 and has recently been used by Hempfield Area School District students, is now opening its doors to people who want to rent the space for business meetings, seminars, small entertainment, weddings and more.

“If you name it, you can have it,” said Thomas Harrold, president of the Baltzer Meyer Historical Society.

Harrold plans on charging $200 for four hours of use. Events such as birthday parties could get a discounted rate, he said.

A ribbon-cutting ceremony is planned March 24, featuring speakers who will discuss the historical significance of the school, followed by live entertainment and a raffle. Tickets are $30.

The school, located on Baltzer Meyer Pike, was originally built for $1,250 in 1881, Harrold said, and was one of five Harrold schools in the area. The schoolhouse closed in 1928 and was used by the Harrold Junior High School as a shop until 1957.

After that, it was used as a storage building by Hempfield Township until Harrold took it over in 1995 as part of the Baltzer Meyer Historical Society. After about eight years of renovations, the schoolhouse had its first grand opening and spent 10 years being used by third grade Hempfield students.

“The schoolhouse will always be used as a schoolhouse. In fact, we are hoping to reach other local school districts so it can be used in the same way,” Harrold said. “We can do appointed tours of the schoolhouse giving a bit of the local area history, the history of the schoolhouse.”

Reservations can be made to use the space by messaging Harrold on the Harrold Schoolhouse Event Center Facebook page or by emailing harroldschoolhouse@out look.com.