Old schoolhouse sat abandoned. Couple turns it into dream home

The 19th-century one-room schoolhouse in Weare, New Hampshire, sat vacant for 15 years before Kreg and Danielle Jones wandered down the road, searching for a fixer-upper project to tackle with their 18-year-old son.
It was zoned commercial and had been on the market for 7 years, but once the owner had it rezoned as residential, the couple bought it and quickly began planning to turn the hollowed-out former classroom into a home for themselves and their two children.
Unlike some of its wooden counterparts, the brick-and-granite building was structurally sound but had been hollowed out over the years to an empty shell. The family got to work turning the main classroom space into an open-plan home, patching the tin-and-horsehair ceiling, adding insulation, improving the leaky windows, and installing a pellet stove to heat a space with 14-foot ceilings.
The original school had separate stairs on both sides of the building so girls and boys could climb to the lunchroom separately": "Girls wore dresses back then.", explains Kreg. "That's what we've been told was the reason. The girls went up the really steep stairs and they didn't want the boys co-mingling at that point."
The family has maintained the old reminders of the children who passed through here: graffiti carved into cladding, names etched into wall panels and even the old pulley from the school bell.
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On *faircompanies: faircompanies....

[@deniseferron3397]

That schoolhouse got lucky and snagged itself an architect and a teacher as owners. And not just any architect - one who specializes in historical preservation!! The perfect family for the perfect house in a perfect village.

[@lisareed5669]

That girls wore dresses "explanation" is malarkey.

[@sbffsbrarbrr]

@@lisareed5669 Maybe, but it's pretty funny and could be true. Otherwise, why have two doors and two staircases?

[@lisareed5669]

@@sbffsbrarbrr it's been a long-standing custom to separate girls and boys.

[@ayatollahlalalola]

@@lisareed5669 They were taught together it's a one-room school house.

[@sandyschneider6792]

❤️💖💗😍🎉🎉

[@buddyneher9359]

Everything about this project is heartwarming! The family taking it on together, the preservation of town history, the design, the colours, the materials..... a feast for the soul. Thank you!

[@DragonfliesAntiques]

My husband and I almost bought this schoolhouse in 1988. My husband's family, the Sykes had a very long and storied past in North Weare owning 600 acres just around the corner from this building. Prior to being a Sykes home, it was the Flanders Farm, and before that the Emerson's, all of which was one family going back through many generations. His family-owned their farmhouse and barn for over 100 years. You sure did a beautiful job.

[@RockerRed]

👍

[@flautalee3090]

How nice of you to send your comment!❤

[@flautalee3090]

My elementary school in Seattle WA looked very old to me when I began First Grade in the fall of 1960. (edit: I found it large and frightening, to be honest -I’m thinking now that it was likely built in the early 1900’s.) The school had separate entrances for girls and boys. Girls wore dresses. When it snowed we wore pants underneath our dresses. I think I walked to school by myself, down down a huge hill in the am, returning up the large hill in the afternoon. I missed a lot of school that year from ear infections and then having my tonsils and adenoids out. I’m sure my mom and dad helped me keep up with my class. I learned to read.❤🎉🎉🎉🎉 Thanks Mom and Dad!🎉

[@mmatson5030]

One of the best repurposed homes I've seen in a long time! Thanks for sharing!

[@carolewarner101]

WOW! What a wonderful job they did on that old schoolhouse. How lucky for the community that a restoration architect couple came to town and bought it with restoration, WITH THEIR KIDS, on their mind! A match made in heaven. Gorgeous...

[@rsuriyop]

They did a fantastic job with this. But it takes not just money, but commitment and know how to make it all come together perfectly. And just the right people came to the rescue.

[@karensmith9662]

This is truly an inspiring conversion! I loved the preservation of the old brick walls and the old wood moldings.

[@StephanieJoRountree]

I love home conversions preserving historic buildings.

[@sg639]

Agreed. I wish there were more incentives for people to do this in the small Midwestern towns of Ohio and Michigan. Plenty of beautiful buildings ready for a second life.

[@temitopeej8407]

One of my childhood friend's lives in a converted lighthouse and I love it so much.

[@dimatis5222]

Красивый дом. Очень приятно увидеть частичку России.

[@claymccleery9451]

It takes an architect, with vision, to preserve/conserve such a beautiful structure.

[@lagringa7518]

I went to a one room schoolhouse like that, the best school and teachers in my life! Every day was an adventure. Perfect... the older or brighter kids helped the younger and slower ones, we were outside under a huge pine tree when the weather was good, wonderful for poetry and botany, the 3Rs inside when the weather was bad, it was much more free flowing than the regimented schools of today... lots of good memories. This would be a great place to live, they've done a beautiful job!

[@Artasim]

Wow, may i ask you please how old are you? And where were you styduing?

[@lagringa7518]

@@Artasim 75 , a very small town in northern California. 😉 People don't understand how much the world has changed in the last 60 years. 🤣 It really was a kinder place where people actually cared about each other and there was an incredible sense of community.... in small towns.

[@blueman5924]

Same here, in central BC🇨🇦 community. Fond memories of getting the “strap”(hands, not butt) by the principal….but I’m sure I deserved it for something.😂 My best childhood friend and his new bride ended up buying it and transforming it into a livable space, complete with an old urinal for him. Plus it came with 5acres of pasture for her beloved mare. cheers.🤙

[@lagringa7518]

@@blueman5924 Both of my 1room teachers were great and never used corporal punishment, that happened later in a far bigger school, one teacher had a ping pong paddle and another would make you stand on tiptoes and then you put your nose in a circle he drew on the chalkboard... diabolical. Then there was the year with the nuns, they were fond of rulers across the knuckles 🤨. I must have been a very bad child I suppose, while I never remembered what I did wrong, I'll never forget them. 😇

[@Artasim]

@@lagringa7518 I am very greatful to you for answering me! So it was about 60 yrs ago?? I am 28, and just as i can tell according to my observations and consultations it is getting worse for every generation. I am interested in education, and being a psychologyst myself and working with kids as well can see how much adults affected by kindergardens and schools in a bad way. And mostly because of the teacher's treatment. Now I did my research and find out that teachers in schools are under collosal pressure of formalities they shoud do and rules they need to follow at least in my country. Most of them are not helping kids to get any actual knowledge but simply check the information of styduing materials they have! So i have a feeling that i've never had experienced some real education except of reading stories about Tom Sawyer of course. I would appreciate if you could tell me more about your life back then. It may can help me to make right methodology and avoid mistakes of my own. If you don't mind to have some short conversations please let me know about it on my email: [e-mail]

[@leroyessel2010]

What a wonderful accomplishment and so glad to witness this award winning presentation on KZbin!

[@liorsinger1]

Beautiful

[@sandrahaller1273]

Love it !!! Appreciate when people save old buildings. Another cool one is the 1870 Studio in Pennsylvania. An old church saved by a lovely couple.

[@beaterose3759]

I love that they incorporated the memories of the building and left those intact, like the kids carving their name sinto the walls. What a stunning preservation!

[@SpanishEclectic]

I loved the job they did on this school. Handy to have a spouse who is a historic preservation architect!! I like that they didn't make it overly modern.The tin ceiling and original windows make the difference. My paternal grandmother as born in 1894, and received her teaching credential in 1912. She taught at several one room school houses in rural Northern Wisconsin, as well as in North Dakota. Driving the horse and wagon to school and chopping wood for the stove to make a hot breakfast (oatmeal, usually) for the children were some of my favorite stories as a child. I still have her sheet music (the Little Red Riding Hood operetta is amazing!), textbooks, and other books of poetry and classic literature. The artwork in them is wonderful. Loved the nod to the ancestry of their children. A really nice family. I enjoy the really fascinating homes you explore. :)

[@Artasim]

Nice story thank you for sharing!!

[@tlockerk]

Love the school, my Gram who is 103 also taught in one room, rural Kansas.She's a hoot today, and in her county she's still referred to as "Mrs. Smith" by the senior citizens she taught.

[@asdisskagen6487]

This house is STUNNING. They have done such a fantastic job with this!

[@thinkplanetearth2946]

Simply stunning. How fortuitous to have someone with their background in architecture and historical preservation buy the place. He mentioned taking off a year from work. I wonder how long it actually took them to complete and the cost. It was a lot work. What a great thing to share with their son. Also, New England really is a gorgeous. Trying to imagine it in the Fall.

[@norahdenovan8658]

How great to restore this important piece of history, just lovely. Well done. 👍🙏

[@gingerjolley9027]

I just love old school house and church conversions...

[@janekennelly5462]

My husband's grandfather had the same trunk! It sits in our living room. He came from Ireland with it. He met an Irishwoman over here in America, they married and here we are.

[@maryannbennett4461]

The School is in very good hands it is beautiful. Thank you for restoring it to become something wonderful to look at.

[@mbapiki340]

WoW - taken aback wit the seperate stairs to preserve the integrityvof the male and female students

[@liannebedard5521]

That was standard before WW2.

[@marirose19]

Kirsten, TYSM for doing some tiny homes, small homes, & villages in NH. So many channels ignore NH; it’s a beautiful state. I live near “NoWeare” NH-haha. Love NH with all its many features-the White Mountains, quaint towns, ocean (& access to more ocean over the eastern border to Maine), lovely wildlife, birds, & much more. It’s about time this state got featured on someone’s channel. Btw, loved the vid you did on the tiny home village in Dover NH. I used to live in Dover for approx 25 yrs & know exactly where that village is located. Thnx for sharing. Keep up the hard work & great job. Truly appreciate it.👏🏼👏🏼👏🏼

[@kirstendirksen]

My mother is from NH... she's from outside Keene. So I know the state, and she'd agree it does get ignored. We plan to return.

[@jeffreyhotchkiss9451]

I bet they get a lot of visitors, bearing pie, maple syrup, random gifts.

[@pamelagleason2243]

Amazing project encapsulated in the owners expertise and passion.

[@jeannewenrick7265]

When I grew up, my parents restored a Kirkland Cutter home in Spokane Washington. They worked very hard to maintain the historic aspects of it. I really appreciate the care that was taken to preserve the original structure of the schoolhouse. I love everything about it. Well done.

[@mollysmith6055]

As someone who grew up in Spokane, I thank your parents for the work they did. The Kirkland Cutter influences on Spokane were so rich and should always be treasured.

[@anon_y_mousse]

They did really good on the refurb, but the stone for the kitchen countertops is absolutely beautiful.

[@SoCalFreelance]

There is a tiny, charming brick library built in 1883 with amazing details that I think about converting every time I walk by it.

[@alysong5568]

You absolutely should! One project at a time. One room at a time.

[@draselee6131]

This is spectacular! Wow, wow, wow! Thank you for showing this school house some love. 💕

[@eBookHoarder]

Symmetry is very soothing.

[@flyoverurbangarden4315]

It's a beautiful building. The old way of building was so balanced and pleasing to the eye.

[@suelyons531]

This couple did a magnificent job! Thank you Kirsten for bringing this to all of us!

[@roberthayes8246]

WOW! Thank you for this tour! 😊

[@judithcoloma613]

This schoolhouse home is just beautiful. I love seeing older buildings renovated rather than torn down. Kreg and Danielle, you did a marvelous job.

[@jjmjam2749]

Great job! So glad you all saved a piece of history for the future.

[@jangriffiths8013]

Very tastefully and sensitively renovated! I love it! It's a beautiful, warm and welcoming home.

[@hadeev]

My goodness, the term one-room schoolhouse is underrated. This place is immense, and feels like it’s never-ending!

[@KrisHughes]

Thank you for not turning into a "sleek" modern horror. A lot of older schools in the UK have separate girls and boys entrances.

[@Walkingkarma4you]

Love the way the space planned upstairs! ❤ sinks outside the bathroom today looks amazing! 😊

[@christinereich6050]

No words, absolutely stunning.

[@davidobrien3563]

Just love it. My favorite video of the week. This is what people think of when they think of a One room schoolhouse conversion.

[@ShadowMoonFarms]

I went to a school like this in Rural Missour in the 1950's. First thru third on the main floor, fourth thru sixth upstairs. 3 rows of desks in the room, 7 people in my 3rd grade in 1 row, The basement had the kitchen, bathrooms, and the gym. Saturday nights was a community dance in the gym

[@kathyjones1611]

How beautiful!!! I absolutely LOVE this!!!

[@roserocks1979]

That is wonderful! I love how they kept so much the same. The tin ceiling, the carved names, the worn stairs. Generations gone, and now new ones will be able to see them.

[@classifiedinformation6353]

My first school was what I remember as a four room school house. It was the area Kindergarten on Heege Road in South City, Saint Louis, Missouri. I can still remember the interior light and woodwork 58 years later. John in Bethel, Missouri

[@pacificnorthwestgirl2725]

The new owners did such an amazing job restoring this old schoolhouse into a new home. I loved learning about the history of this place. It turned out beautiful and even the little Russian and Ukranian art pieces added were so unique. Thank you for sharing.

[@trinasyoutube]

It’s gorgeous inside & out!

[@johnzee691]

another great find to vlog, document. you sure have a knack finding properties and producing great videos Kirsten and company!

[@mrfancygoat]

I passed by this place abandoned everyday to school growing up. I'm pretty sure everyone in town talked about buying it up and doing something with it but no one ever did.

[@domispiaggia]

This is such a beautiful conversion - really weaving a cozy home while respecting the heritage

[@MrPhotodoc]

Those guys did a great job and even tried to keep clues of the past history visible. Nice!

[@daleromdenne]

So cool. Love all the work and art you guys did. Love this place and it’s soul. The story’s it tells.

[@sandrahowell9266]

I love this, I always wanted a old schoolhouse to remodel. May you have many more experiences you love. ❤❤😊😊💙💚😃🙂🥰👍

[@serenakoleno9338]

Me too, they look so cute! My dad attended one in rural Pennsylvania.

[@frankcarter7146]

I love everything about this space.

[@marciabradley7660]

Heartwarming preservation!

[@sylviajones4907]

So glad it was saved. Do you have a few old pictures for a collage keepsake display? Thanks for the video.

[@TheAfezio]

That home is absolutely incredible! I wish I could have done something like that with my folks.

[@debshaw680]

My grandparents had a one room schoolhouse they got in 1968. They lived there til they died in the 90s. I was meant to inherit but my cousin lived there for 3 years and trashed all the beautiful antiques my grands had acquired over the years as well as the interiors of the house. The grands had cut the first floor in half to make a kitchen and small bedroom but left the chalk boards and original floors in place. They had the original light fixtures and windows as well. I loved sitting in the deep window sills on a cushion and reading when the weather was too bad to play outside. My sisters loved to play school, which was amazing because they always hated going to school. The second floor was a big bedroom and bathroom. Downstairs has a bathroom under the stairs in the old cloak room. They built an enclosed porch which was lovely for sitting in three seasons. They also built a garage with an upstairs where we kids slept on visits. It was very hot and there was one rickety little fan for all three to share. No bathroom and we were shut out of the main house til someone got up and unlocked the door. We were allowed to ring the bell once a day on our visits. Otherwise it was used for emergencies as most of the neighbors didn’t have phones, being Amish or Mennonites. Once they had a fire in the kitchen and summoned the neighbors with the bell. Not much was damaged luckily as they got there quickly. We all-loved the schoolhouse. It was very hard to have to sell it but it was for the best as the next people really upgraded it for winters and added central air.

[@Sally-nse2]

I love what they have done with this property. ❤

[@aartadventure]

A beautiful restoration, and a beautifully shot video. Thank you.

[@latinlover769]

Love the restoration. I would have elected a different wallpaper and bed for the main bedroom, but other than that it is spectacular. Much bigger than it looks from the front.

[@gailjames6489]

Cool. You gotta have the knowledge to do this kind of project. Thank you.💙😊

[@ThatGirl-ku5dq]

Beautiful house! I love it and the windows.

[@RichardSedona]

Kirsten, enjoy your website so much. Like how you ask fun questions while filming.... 🏡

[@notconvincedgranny6573]

Oh my goodness that is beautiful!

[@raypeters4525]

VERY GOOD ! WELL DONE !

[@terryyounts8220]

Oh my goodness, Kristen. What a great project!!! Much love to you and your family from Appalachia Kentucky.

[@sarahburke8955]

I really appreciate the blend of antique and modern in the design elements. I'm more of a traditionalist, but I feel they did a great job of respecting the historicity while still making it their own.

[@JupiterMoon19]

Congratulations 👏🏻👏🏻👏🏻 Beautiful ❤ Well done! 🙌🏻

[@sharonadlam3195]

What a respectful restoration

[@juliealtenburg9671]

Love this! So charming!❤

[@flautalee3090]

Beautiful home!❤

[@artlover4ever974]

Beautiful!!! I am a retired teacher and I could love living in this space!!

[@leslielutz6140]

All that brick is so special. It looks like a blown up Christmas tree ornament. Perfect.

[@kj7653]

Beautiful job. I am very impressed by how you preserved so much of the original features and characters of the school house. Saving the children's names is priceless.

[@user-uo9br9fe2s]

Loved it!❤

[@serenadevon]

Love this whole project 😍! So nice to see historical buildings done over & enjoyed for future generations! LOVE that bed board! 🏚️🏫❤🎉

[@beverlysmith9854]

Beautiful inside and out! Love the landscaping and colors.

[@MaryDalton64]

The restoration and converting into a family home is beautiful. I love seeing someone take an old, abandoned space and breathe new life into it while still preserving so much of the original feel and architectural details. This was definitely the right family to take on this project. They have made a gorgeous home for themselves while still honoring the original purpose of the building and it's place in local history.

[@khanhhoangngoc7865]

Thank you very much..!

[@tamararagerart2344]

This is amazing. I went K through eighth grade in a one room school house in Gordon Nebraska. It had a bell tower, and occasionally we had bats in the school house. That was always thrilling. This is amazing. You guys just did an amazing job.😊

[@darlene9154]

Wow! Fantastic!❤

[@janesmith9024]

What a wonderful job they have done. here in the UK we have a lot of very very old buildings and we do try the same. in my own house i have my grandfather's 1910 typewriter - symbolic of so much for our family and for myself. Youngest of 10 he was forced to give up school aged 12 and spend a year in bed ill and never went back so he read and read and read and was probably better educated than the rest of us in a sense by the end..... (He was born in 1880 the youngest of 10 with a father of almost 50 and he had my father when he was almost 50 so in a sense they had 2 generations when others have 4 in a family which gives us a very close connection to the UK Victorian age when he was born.

[@fredsimmons2793]

All the character, work,the love that went into this restoration is so hope inspiring.And then Kirsten running it all down and presenting it to us is the crowning touch.

[@mariastellamelendez8670]

This building was just waiting for this family. The husband is an Architect who specialized in historic buildings and the wife is a Professor a perfect partnership for this building. They did a perfect job. The property is jut beautiful.

[@louisianarainwater]

Beautiful 💚💚💚

[@bill6390]

I used to live in Weare and drove by this house countless times. What a fantastic conversion!

[@cynthiajones1113]

Beautiful ❤

[@leroyessel2010]

In 1856 when this School House was built the famous Nicola Tesla was born and I was born in 56 one hundred years later just one week before Tesla birth.

[@larsstougaard7097]

Congratulations your birthday must be next week then 🎉🎁🎂

[@sandrahowell9266]

I was born in 1956, 100 years after Tesla. May you have a good day 😮😊😊💚💙🌲🇺🇸🌻❣️

[@sandrahowell9266]

March 18 1956😊

[@amynoosun3703]

What a shame the previous owner got rid of one of the staircases.. got rid of that beautiful symmetry the school had, not to mention the extra fire safety..

[@khanhhoangngoc7865]

very very beautiful..

[@justmaria5806]

You guys find the most interesting and off the beaten path places to showcase. Thank you. Your channel has always been and continues to be interesting, thought-provoking, and a wonderful way of bringing the world into our homes.

[@rhondashotwell7358]

Very nice!!😃

[@mystars5283]

I was in elementary school in the fifties, and all the schools had separate entrances for boys and girls We didn't have separate stairs for each gender, though. So I wonder if the fact that girls wore dresses was the reason. Don't know.

[@josephforsuh6929]

The landscaping out front works beautifully. Some of the most impactful I have ever seen. Lovely dark rich ground covering/soil with the green plants dotted around. Love the play on curves to work off the entrance. They have improved the site 1000%

[@ThePinkBlush]

This warms the heart, to see a beautiful old building getting saved and restored by people who have such respect and appreciation for the original features like the worn wooden stairs, floors and brick walls 🥰

[@1weazy291]

Very cool!

[@elisiabarber7541]

So cool!