Union School
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The Union School is a historic building located at 516-518 Bethlehem Pike in Fort Washington, Pennsylvania, in the United States.
Built in 1773, the Union School was one of the very earliest public schools in Pennsylvania, and the first that did not discriminate based on social position or religious preference.
As part of his will, local Quaker businessman Samuel Morris stipulated that a sum of money from his estate be set for the building of a school and a teacher's salary. The school was to provide for free education for all within a 1-1/2 mile radius of Hope Lodge, his country mansion. After Morris' death in 1770, his brother Joshua had the school built. In 1792, the Union School was incorporated as the Union School in Whitemarsh. The school was in continuous use from 1773 until 1936, except for a brief period in 1873 when it served as a lyceum. The trust fund established by Samuel Morris remains in existence today, supporting education in the townships of Whitpain, Whitemarsh and Upper Dublin in Pennsylvania [1].
The Union School is listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.
Today, the Union School building is a privately-owned residence. However, the museum of the Fort Washington Historical Society in the Clifton House contains a replica of the school room.
[edit] References
- ^ National Register Of Historic Places Inventory -- Nomination Form (PDF) (June 1977). Retrieved on October 2, 2006.
