Mildred Sutch gleefully yanks the rope dangling from the belfry at the Old Bell School.
She grins like a schoolgirl as it rings. No one on the busy street outside seems to hear it.A century ago, the pealing would have called children throughout Pleasant Grove to school, including some of Sutch's relatives. "My mother went to school here and so did my grandmother," she said.
The ringing also might have signaled the 9 p.m. curfew of the day. Or rousted the city's volunteer fire department. It also was rung for solemn tribute or to declare joyous occasions. It will clearly be the latter when the bell tolls again Saturday.
Residents will rededicate the more than 130-year-old school Saturday, bringing to a close an extensive renovation. The Pleasant Grove Historical Commission raised $36,385 in grants and private donations and the city contributed $18,623 to bolster the deteriorating building. Hundreds of volunteers donated labor and materials to the project.
The Old Bell School, 80 S. 100 East, is believed to be oldest standing school in Utah.
The one-room adobe schoolhouse was built between 1861 and 1864 using bricks salvaged from Pleasant Grove's first school, which burned down. "There's a disagreement among the old settlers as to what the date was," said Sutch, 74, chairwoman of the city historical commission.
The middle room - the one containing the bell tower - was added in 1880. A third room was built on the east side in 1888 to accommodate a growing student body. The adobe exterior was later covered with stucco.
The building ceased being a school about 1910 as new schools were built. Pleasant Grove bought the abandoned school in 1914, using the original schoolhouse as a library and the other two rooms for storage.
The city planned to raze the structure in 1946, but the Daughters of the Utah Pioneers pleaded with officials to save it for a museum. Officials told the DUP it could use the original room if it would raise the money to repair it, spruce up the adjacent park and move a log cabin from another part of town to the park.
Pleasant Grove used the back two rooms for storage until 1986, when it turned them over to the DUP to expand the museum. The city charged the historical commission with maintaining the school, which will continue to be used as a DUP museum.
Although the building is structurally sound, moisture seeping into the adobe walls and rock foundation weakened it, said Frank Mills, city administrative services director.
Much of the renovation involved replacing the bricks and coating the rock. A drainage system now keeps water away from the building. Outside walls are covered with new stucco. Sealant protects the wood shingles. New flagstone steps adorn the porch. And the repaired bell rings clearer.
The Old Bell School is an essential part of the city's heritage.
"It's important because it indicates to us that the people who settled in Pleasant Grove were very education-minded," Sutch said. Several prominent people emerged from the schoolhouse, including A. Ray Olpin, who served as president of the University of Utah. Sutch's mother and grandmother went on to become teachers themselves.
"It's important to preserve these things so people know what happened in the past," she said.