R.C. Waters first-graders visit Old Union Schoolhouse

        First-graders from R.C. Waters Elementary in Oak Harbor recently enjoyed a visit to the Old Union Center Schoolhouse – the only restored one-room schoolhouse left as a schoolhouse in Ottawa County.
        Norm Witt, the owner of the schoolhouse, talked about what school was like for students long ago. Students learned many interesting facts, including how their predecessors often walked two miles to get to school back in the day.
        The schoolhouse, located on Witt’s farm on Muddy Creek Road outside Oak Harbor, was part of the Oak Harbor school system and operated from 1899-1934. Witt restored the brick building, which was also once used as a granary.
        Students sat at vintage desks, which came out of the current Oak Harbor Middle School and feature holes for ink bottles. They also saw a fire stove original to the schoolhouse. The original pump where students would have gotten water to drink is still out in the front of the school.
        The Witt family has collected many old books from various time periods, which were laid out on the desks for the students to look at.