Found at: http://www.goffesfalls.org/article/articleprint/27/-1/2/

The Bell Tolls No More: Harvey School District 5

Top level

Lost Landmarks

Author: Joseph Labbe

Publishing date: 06.16.2004 12:21

The last lesson learned from the "Old School"......

The Face of "Old Harvey"

.....is that preservation of Historic Landmarks in Manchester is a battle of politics, money, and those who truly appreciate their "Communal Heirlooms". (quoted phrase of Bernie Cowette, Dec 1993)
Who will win the battle? If the case of the 1865 Harvey School is any indication, opinions of the people have been, and will be ignored.
The Bell Tolls No More is a prime example of how little influence the voices of the people have had over big developers, here in Manchester. Developers didn't lose, though the people lost a significant, tangible connection between themselves and their community.
Often times, despite our dismay at the loss of such places, we can reap new benefits otherwise impossible. In order to keep a balance, and our emotions in check, we need to see both sides of the coin.

In stark contrast to the present....

...is this view in July of 1993 of the Harvey School looking south down South Willow St. This was formerly known as Nutt Rd, for the family so prominent here at the time. George Washington Morrison Nutt was raised in this area, and was hired by P.T. Barnum in the 1860's, being the "shortest man in the world". This family then was the source of the name for the road. He was commonly known as "Commodore", a title bestowed on him by President Abraham Lincoln, likely during his campaign stop here in 1860.
The preservation effort of this school a decade ago was spearheaded By Bernie Cowette III. His father and uncle were students here in the 1930's. Bernie, by the light of the moon, slid into the coal chute in the '50's, and therefore got his hands dirty in the effort to preserve it, what would be some 40 years later. What he found at the time, was the lone book to remain here in a closet: an arithmetic book blonging to...... none other than his own father.

Had you ever even noticed it?

The answer to the question probably lies in how old you are. Youth and young adults of today likely never noticed Harvey School, yet those of 35 and older certainly did. The school seems to have gone to commercial uses in the 1950's, though this actual parcel's recorded boundaries date to November 2 1840, when then "Derryfield" laid out the boundaries of the school districts. The original structure to stand here, was actually built long before, about 1816, and was a wood frame. This beauty was constructed of brick from a brickyard just south of here, (under the direction of the then "80-something" Jonas Harvey) and cost in 1865, $67.10. This included the room and board of the workers, as well as the three gallons of rum to keep them happy. (Manchester magazine, Network Publications, April 1994)
So, what was the historical significance of the Harvey School to stand here for 129 years? Well, it was of similar construction to a small handful built in the early days of Manchester's schools. Where it was unique, is it was the one to have stood upon the dusty "Nutt Rd", when it was surrounded by farms, fields, saw and gristmills; today, a sprawling expanse of asphalt, automobiles, and the hectic bustle of commerce.

Details you won't find.....

...on any school built today. These eave returns and modillions depict a style of construction lost to the ages. Though once common, the Italianate style was incorporated into quite a few schools in Manchester about this time. Today, one remains. It's situated on the extreme north end of Manchester. Now a private dwelling, its location and name, will not be revealed. The owners have not responded to my letter last year requesting a photo shoot. Photo by Bernie Cowette, 1994.

What was a circular window....

This was at one time a circular window, of a design which can today only be imaged here and now. Later used as a vent, this miniscule detail, is also the ONLY evidence of vandalism ever known to deface this place. These are holes likely caused by B-B's. As mentioned by Bernie Cowette, the photographer in July of 1993, this was astounding, to have found this school to be unmolested, at the time of its demolition.

Details of a functional shutter

Shutters once flanked the windows of this school, as is apparent by these hinges still in place on May 5, 1994. How these survived so long is not known, but suggests that the shutters didn't disappear all that long before. Today, we know shutters in Manchester as decorative window treatments. Back in the 1860's they served to cut the glare of the southern winter sun, in the case of this example.

Holding the shutter open....

...was a mere remnant of something once more intact. Believing at the time, of this, my first photo project, that this was a hook which once held such shutters open, I can arrive at no other conclusion today. To go back to the site and study them further, would be ....well....impossible. Gone Ten Years Now!

Cleaning only the girls' boots....

......was this bootscraper I noticed still affixed to the granite step. For those who may not be aware, the scraper served a very useful purpose: unlike the way we travel today on paved roads, horses pulled carriages all those years ago. While they did not pollute the environment to the extent that the traffic does here now, horses did leave a mess behind them. Such dainty boots did scrape here, and assisted in keeping floors clean. Photo May 5, 1994.

As noticed by Bernie

Bernie Cowette noticed too, this scraper, but he beat me to the shutter. While I thought I was the only one who noticed these things, I was to find out a decade later, he too had the same vision, in black and white, before me.

The boys had their own door

This, the north door, is that which was used in the early days exclusively by the boys. I had wondered if "Commodore" Nutt once passed through this door, though it seems unlikely. Undoubtedly, he had seen it, though given his age of 17 at the time of this building's construction, he was well beyond school-age. He must have attended the first structure on this site. Commodore died in 1881 at the age of 43, and was buried in the Merril Cemetery which sits adjacent to this school's location. Bernie Cowette photo, 1993.

The Girls had their own.....

And so the door swung here for so long, as the pretty girls in ornate dresses passed beyond it, it the warmth of the southern winter sun. This was their own door. The door was well remembered by Ruth (Boone) Johnson in 1994. She was then 96 years old.
Our beloved John Clayton featured a heart-warming article in the Union Leader on May 16, 1994. In all likelihood, Ruth is gone now too, as ten years have passed. But she did tell Mr. Clayton "how the teacher would ring her little bell at 7:30, and the boys went in the north door, the girls in the door on the south.. Then we'd hang up our coats and wind up in the same room."
She remembered the teacher too, 91 years later. It was 1903 when an elderly spinster, Emma J. Ela, was thought to be too old to teach "in the city". She was sent to Harvey School, to "get the country children started". Ruth Boone was then, only five years old. Photo courtesy of Bernie Cowette.

That was then......

.....in the early 1990's. While the school stood here, dormant, big business was deciding it's fate. Preservationists had their plans too. A petition signed by some 676 people around the city, suggested this was more than just a pile of bricks standing in the way of a $35 million Mall expansion.
The plans to raze this structure had their inception in July of 1993, despite the fact that New England Development, indicated to planning officials on July 9 they were interested in preserving the structure. Was this just a short sweet song? Yup, the intonation changed drastically on August 11, 1993, when NED told a citizens group they "see no use for the school, but whoever wants it can move it".
Manchester Historical Association Director, John Mayer, likely saw this as a landmark case of how historic structures fall in our city, and wrote to the city, urging creation of an advisory panel to aid in preservation issues.
For the next couple of months, estimates to move the school came in at anywhere from $100,000 to $250,000, not including another lot to put the school on, site work, and a new foundation. Keep in mind, this estimate, at the highest amount was LESS THAN 1 PER-CENT of the Mall expansion total. Planning Director Robert MacKenzie says on November 4, that "There's no public property right near that intersection". In fact, a vacant lot still exists ten years later, adjacent to Fire Station three and the "Harvey House".
Despite the pleas of the people, petitions, and those concerns of the MHA, the planning board accepts NED offer of $150,000 of improvements to the intersection of Mooresville, Huse and Weston Rds. The net gain: four feet of roadway, and a sidewalk on one side. In this sum, "historic preservation" of the school was planned through photographs.

....and this is now...

The lot where the school so hard fought for exists today as the southern entrance of the Mall of NH. Those who use this entrance, myself included, find access to this mall far easier. But, does that justify the loss of a structure, which in 1991 was eligible for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places? That question could be debated for another ten years or more, but there's no longer anything worth fighting for. Or is there? This situation is guaranteed to play out again in the case of other historic structures here in the Queen City. This photo ten years later in may of 2004, from nearly the same vantage point as the photo above of 1994.

Aftermath of the claw

On May 6 of 1994, the walls were smashed, loaded into dumptrucks and carted off. Some smiled, (New England Developers) some grimmaced.(preservationists) While a May 12 Planning Board meeting was still to be held regarding the preservation of the school, New England Development demolished the schoolhouse. Leader of the preservation effort, Bernie Cowette had considered an injunction to prevent such action, but high legal costs made it prohibitive. Cowette theorized New England Development tore it down to avoid further confrontations. Mr. Cowette is a wise man.
At the same time, Bill Mc Cabe of NED said this of the building: "it was an "attractive nuisance" and a liability. It was not occupied and left in some degree of disrepair. I was very concerned about attempted break-ins and having it become a nesting place for people who were going to be involved in activities that I certainly didn't want the liability for". Mc Cabe also added, "I never heard anything about the injunction". He said the Harvey Schoolhouse "has never been determined by anybody to be an historic building. It was not something of real historical significance...."

Mc. Cabe had also said to the Boston Globe on January 2, 1994, " the building had little or no historical significance. I'm pleased to see that the planning board chose the issue of safety (widening S. Willow St.) over what I felt was a weak historical arguement". He added that the School's eligibility for inclusion on the National Register of Historic Places would not alter his company's intent to destroy the school.

So here it sat, just an empty cellar hole, a week before those who wanted to save it had their final chance to speak. This IS how big business plays around here.

Ten Years after the dust settled...

The battle is lost, the dust has settled, and the cars zip on by this ever expanding section of south Manchester. What have we learned?
Have we seen two sides to every arguement? Yes we have. Have we seen that those with the cash typically win? Sure. Have we learned that Manchester needs to devise a plan to keep this balance between increased tax revenue and preservation of "Communal Heirlooms"? I sure hope so.
The case of the wrecking of the Harvey School was a missed opportunity for the City to truly "take the bull by the horns" and devise a plan to eliminate such underhanded tactics which claim these structures. That is not to say that those who appreciate these places don't have their beliefs and ideas. They simply don't have the "dough" to implement them.
As you look at this view of the location of what was once the Harvey School, taken in May of 2004,(looking south, southwest) remember that this was a cause which was fought for, by those who stood to gain nothing financially. The effort was from the heart, while those who decided against the preservation thought with the wallet.
Ten years have passed, and many have forgotten about the battle. It still rages on, though the next battlefield has yet to be determined. We cannot bring back what has been lost, while we can keep those things we truly wish to preserve, if not motivated by money.
A very special thanks to Bernie Cowette. Without the information shared by him, this article would not have been possible. Thanks for reading!!!! Joe

| Back to normal page view | Send this article to a friend |