A few years back, I was asked to help revive an abandoned limestone schoolhouse hidden in the hills of the Galena Territory.  I passed it many times throughout the years while on hikes through the woods.  It sat so alone, dilapidated, but strong.  One could tell it was rich with history and if its walls could talk, it could speak volumes. Belden School was waiting to be rediscovered.

    I took on the challenge.  I was given the name of an elderly gentleman farmer from Stockton, Illinois who had knowledge of the area.  He had many years ago pulled school journals from a dumpster.  He was able to retrieve journals from 1871 and 1921 of Belden School.  I was given possession of those two journals which enabled me to begin my journey.  It was a journey that opened many doors and would change my life forever.

    Our farmer ‘Big Bob’ gave me names of those surviving students of the 1930s and 1940s.  I was able to contact those elderly students and interview them.  Many told tales of their antics at Belden School, their jobs on their family farms, and their long walks through the valleys. Many spoke of their teachers and assignments given to them during those years.  They also spoke lovingly of the school that was their friend as it was the center of their life.  The meetings the adults had at the school, the plays given by the children during the holidays, the games played out by the creek at recess, and the constant upkeep of Belden were part of their life.  I was given first hand stories by students of the past. It was oral history in its finest form.

    As my journey progressed, many articles were written in local papers about Belden School and about Big Bob’s contributions.  A proposal was made to the Galena Territory Association as to how best to preserve and utilize Belden School in today’s world.  A miniature model of Belden School was made and used as a teaching aid when I traveled to Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania to speak about Belden School’s history and restoration for the Country School House Association.   One thing led to another and a committee was formed to take on the daunting task of preserving the 1859 limestone schoolhouse set deep in the woods of the Mississippi Valley.

    After numerous fund raising events, and donations of time and purchased bricks, meetings with historians and experts about restoration of historical buildings, and several reunions of the elderly students of the past, Belden School was reopened in September of 2009 to an audience of 300 people.  Such a celebration, I believe, Belden School has never witnessed, but it was well deserved.  Belden School was reborn and now awaits its future of educating tomorrows youth of what had been over eighty years ago.  Keeping alive its spirit, Belden School will be open in summer on weekends conducting lessons of yesteryear for those who come through its doors.

    But wait… there is more to the story!  How did Belden Boy and Peter McDugal come into the picture?  We needed to breathe life into the many artifacts we had accumulated, the stories told by historians and elderly students, the wooden model we had built of Belden School –all of these things needed a voice, a narrative.   We wanted the history and the community of which Belden School was once a part to come alive again and for generations to come.

    And so, along comes Peter McDugal—an eleven-year-old boy who lived in the late 1800s, grew up on a family farm in the Mississippi Valley and attended Belden School.   While many of his experiences at Belden School are rooted in actual history, Peter’s story gives us a sense of what it was like to be a young boy living in our country’s rural past.  Peter learns to handle the school bully, a timeless situation repeated throughout the generations.   Miss Bishop, the teacher and Peter’s mentor, witnesses the bullying and helps to guide Peter toward peaceful resolutions.  All the while, Peter enjoys the daily activities of school and friends which make for a playful, enjoyable historical fiction novel for all ages.

    Children can relate to these stories whether in first grade or fifth. Belden Boy-the adventures of Peter McDugal  has experienced success through a variety of audiences.  The books availability is in bookstores throughout the Chicago area and online, and used in school districts for their literacy programs.  Watch for the sequel of Peter’s adventures as they continue in and around Belden School in Galena!

                                                  p.j. hartenaus