Lessons From the Past: A Look Inside the Historic West Freehold Schoolhouse

Freehold Township is one of the oldest municipalities in the state of New Jersey.  Established in 1693, it has seen it’s share of history, dating all the way back to the American Revolution. Only a handful of relics from the past remain standing and those can be lost in the white noise of local commercial business. Perhaps nothing in town is a better example of this than the historic West Freehold Schoolhouse.

Built in 1847 on Wemrock Road, the schoolhouse is passed by Freehold residents every day without a thought, probably because its been a part of the area’s backdrop since well before any of it’s passerby’s were born.

Petrified in time, the one-room schoolhouse stands on the exact same foundation it was built on before the Civil War and now serves as a museum that pays homage to a time when Freehold wasn’t all about the hustle and bustle.

 “Around mid 1800s education became something everyone wanted their children to have, especially the boys,” said Freehold Township Historic Preservation Commissioner Cheryl Cook. “They got 4 subjects a day, math, reading, writing, and especially science. This was all farm community, so botany was important.”

Before the school closed its doors in 1935 due to the condensing of the school districts, it was attended by 55-60 students at any given time, Cook said. Students in first through eighth grades were educated under the same roof. However, the age limit was never exactly black and white, she noted.

“They weren’t all kids, sometimes they were parents. If they had an opportunity, maybe it was a rainy day in the fields and they couldn’t get any work done, they’d come over and see if they could learn anything,” Cook said.

The schoolhouse was re-opened to the public in 1995 and, as it stands today, displays a number of artifacts from its tenure as an operating learning establishment. Some of these include desks from the turn of the century, a class attendance list from the late 1800s, and original wood floors from the schoolhouse’s opening.

, with future events planned for Sunday, July 17; Sunday, August 21; and Sunday, September 18 from 1 p.m. to 3 p.m. The schoolhouse is also available for private tours upon request.

Cook finds the experience of showing the historic West Freehold Schoolhouse to the public during these open houses and tours rewarding.

“The kids walk through these doors and are transformed. They want to learn about the history of a place like this. I think if we try to keep history like this to ourselves, we’re doing these children a terrible disservice,” Cook said.