Price tag can be high for preserving history
Preserving the past can be an iffy proposition.
On one hand, no one wants to lose local history. On the other, hardly anyone has the money to save it.
In Peters Township, the cost of preserving the old Bower Hill School looks to start at $125,300, which is the low bid the township received for stabilizing the structure and repairing its slate roof and a brick wall.
Township council decided the price was too steep, and now the venerable building is going up for sale.
Perhaps someone with deep pockets and an affinity for local history will step up and work toward keeping old Bower Hill intact. More likely, the property will attract a buyer who envisions a much different scenario.
There is precedent: A Bebout Road house that laid claim to being built in 1809 was leveled several years ago in favor of a brand-new version. Property owners are entitled to do what they wish.
There also is precedent, though, for a Peters Township school being preserved.
Since the 1990s, the Venetia Heritage Society has taken responsibility for upkeep and improvements at the former Venetia School, which turned 90 this year. Now known as the Venetia Community Center, the building serves as a meeting place for nonprofit groups.
Just a little way up Venetia Road is the two-century-old Enoch Wright House, under the auspices of the Peters Creek Historical Society, a venue that’s used for a variety of history-oriented events. In the backyard is an authentic 1790s-era log house that was relocated from West Finley Township and has undergone substantial restoration.
Keeping up with the demands of maintaining such structures does come with a cost, in both money and time. Volunteers work tirelessly toward making everything work, but unfortunately, their resources are limited and don’t look to improve with the passage of time.
Old Bower Hill School has been ravaged by time and neglect, as anyone who drives past it on Bower Hill Road can attest. But the building still stands as one of Peters Township’s remaining links to its 19th-century roots.
Let’s hope some deep pockets want to keep it standing.