A west Saint John daycare has stepped in to save the Little Red School House at Loyalist Plaza.
The future of the historic building was unclear after the city said it would have to be moved to make way for the new provincial museum.
But Hamilton Homestyle Daycare submitted a proposal to take it over and the city accepted it.
“We’re going to restore it to where it was intended to, back in 1969, to be a historical educational museum,” says Heather Hamilton, who owns and operates the daycare.
“In our space, it will be tangible for the kids that are here to learn how their parents and grandparents learned.”
The former school house was gifted to the city from its original location in Gagetown from Saint John District 20 Branch of the NB Teacher’s Association in 1969.
And the chairman of the District 20 Branch at that time? None other than Hamilton’s father.
Hamilton says this project would not have been possible without help from local historian Harold Wright.
“Harold and I have been friends for a number of years and we share the same passion with our local history and relaying that to the younger generation,” she says. “Without him, a lot of those contacts would not have been made, so it was an invaluable resource.”
The Little Red School House will be moved within a couple of weeks and Hamilton says they’ll host a grand opening in the fall.
