One-room schools, or schoolhouses, were commonplace throughout rural portions of Robeson County. A single teacher would typically have students in the first through eighth grades, and she taught them all. The number of students varied from six to 40 or more. The youngest children sat in the front, while the oldest students sat in the back.

The teacher usually taught reading, writing, arithmetic, history, and geography. Students memorized and recited their lessons.

This one-room schoolhouse would have a teacher on a platform in the front of the room. A wood heater for heat. The bathroom would have been outside in an outhouse. The water source would have been a hand pump located also outside. The bell shown would have been rung to alert the students that school has started. Students would have walked to school early in the morning. Many would not have shoes to wear.

However, thousands of students would have sat in this building learning to read and write. Many, I am sure, grew up together, possibly married, and started families of their own. This would be the beginning of lifelong friendships and learning.

This schoolhouse was moved from the Union Chapel Community in 1972 to its present location in Lumberton off of Exit 19/I95. Since it is located in a flood zone, community members have joined in an effort to relocate it to the historical Lumbee site, the Cultural Center, where it will be preserved for years to come.

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