It has always been said that the school was purchased from Sears.  We have not been able to find any information to substantiate that.  A couple of years ago the original order form was found and donated to the Historical Society.  According to that order form, the school was purchased from the Ambler Asbestos Buildings Company in Ambler, PA. The building, plus two furnaces, cost $3600.

The school is constructed of  panels made of asbestos cement framed in cedar. The buildings were advertised as portable as they were designed to be able to knock them down and move them easily. While they were advertised as being able to "last forever" we have been able to find only one other still standing in Manitou Park, NJ.  Our building is in much better condition than the NJ one.

The construction is unique in that the wall sections are all panelized as well as the doors and windows. The construction with double floors and four thicknesses of material in the walls, with air space between, makes the building warm in the winter and cool in the summer. Even today, sodas and bottled water left over winter do not freeze.

By the way, in case you were wondering, the asbestos used in the construction of the building is deemed safe by the EPA since the fibers are encased with Portland cement. You will notice that anything hung on the walls is attached to the wooden battens between the cement panels to maintain the stability of the construction and the asbestos.

Below are photos of various features of the building.

Here you can see the panels that make up the interior walls and ceiling.	We have several of the original desks that came with the building.	Another shot of the walls and ceiling.  The panels are impenetrable which make it hard to display items on the walls.	An interior shot of the vestibule.	A shot showing the exterior construction of the building.
Here is where the corners of the building are bolted together.	Inside the entry are two doors leading to the boys and girls coatroom and bathroom.	Here you can see the individual panels that make up the walls	The bell is still intact and can be rung. It came from the Sterling Run Catholic Church and is dated 1883	A section of flooring