AMERICAN FORK — In the basement of the old Harrington School, students ate plenty of cold lunches.
Back when Juel Belmont was in school, cafeteria workers placed student lunches on the table before the bell rang.
"Before the time you got there, the food was cold," said Councilwoman Belmont, remembering her days at the old American Fork landmark.
Belmont, whose great-great-great grandfather Stephen Chipman founded American Fork, has fond memories of Harrington School. You see, after the old Forbes school was torn down, Harrington teachers taught all American Fork children until the sixth grade.
"Everyone in this town went to that one school because the town wasn't very big," Belmont said.
With gleaming hardwood floors and spacious hall ways, school administrators held students to strict rules.
"The worst thing you could do in school in those days was to step on the grass or chew gum," Belmont said. "It was a very strict rule. You had to use the sidewalks or play on the playground."
Times have changed in American Fork. After 150 years as a city, cutting corners on the grass is one rule teachers aren't as strict about.
American Fork celebrates its 150th birthday today, and Belmont wants to make sure the city maintains its rich historical tradition.
Five buildings turn 100 this year, including the Harrington School.
But some people want the school torn down to build for the future. Mayor Ted Barratt even called Harrington a "moving target."
"We don't know the future of that building," said Barratt, the city's 35th mayor. "At some point in time something will take place with that school."
Belmont said the building is significant to the city's history. The school was the first free school in Utah, named after the first mayor of American Fork, Leonard E. Harrington.
"It's in danger because not everyone understands the history of the building," Belmont said. "Not everyone thinks history and old buildings is the way to go."
As a member of the Historic Preservation Committee, Belmont fights to bring back the "clean, beautiful town" she grew up in where everybody knew each other's names.
"It was small enough that everyone knew everyone else," Belmont said. "It was easy — you knew every family and who lived in every house on every street. It was a very comfortable place."
But Belmont worries the city has lost some of its small-town flavor. She joined the Historic Preservation Committee after seeing landmark after landmark torn down.
"We've lost a great deal, which is very distressing to me," Belmont said. "I feel that if people really understood the history of the town, maybe they wouldn't be so willing to see the landmarks go."
Belmont said she is afraid of what American Fork's next 150 years will bring.
"Growth isn't always controlled quality growth. Sometimes it comes in booms and spurts, and it's whatever makes the most money for some people. I don't think that is how a town should grow."
E-mail: ldethman@desnews.com