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The village of Salamonia sits about seven miles southeast of Portland, Indiana. Laid out as Lancaster in 1839, the community got its current name after postal officials realized Lancasters existed elsewhere in Indiana¹. The town’s first schoolhouse was built in 1877².

Salamonia’s extant schoolhouse was erected in 1911. After its abandonment, the original frame schoolhouse was used as a theater, a feed mill, and even the town hall before it was demolished³. Students in the 1911 building started at the south wall. Over time, they progressed to larger desks at the north side of the building as they got closer to graduating after their eighth year of studies⁴.

The Salamonia schoolhouse was the second-to-last of Jay County’s one-room schools to close when it was shuttered after the 1949-1950 term. Its students were sent to Madison Township’s consolidated school about three miles southeast⁵, and Salamonia’s fire department acquired the building.

The fire department removed a chunk of the building’s east wall to store an antique fire engine⁶. The school’s bell was used to call volunteers to the station⁷. By 2001, the building was boarded up and in need of assistance! Fortunately, a group of boosters stood at the ready: the Friends of the School society was formed, and funds were raised.

The old schoolhouse was expanded, improved, and restored to serve as the Salamonia Community Center in 2006⁸! It received another round of renovations in 2023⁹ and, today, the revitalized Jay County’s Salamonia schoolhouse continues to serve people living nearby.

Sources Cited
1 Incorporated Cities and Towns (n.d.). The Jay County Historical Society [Portland]. Web. Retrieved November 30, 2023.
2 Shepherd, S. (1969, May 21). Salamonia Residents Don’t Miss Town’s Heyday. The Muncie Star. p. 6.
3 Routledge, R. (2006, April 9). One-Room Restoration. The Muncie Star Press. Pp. 23-25. 
4 Eads, B. (2001, January 8). A little help from friends. The Muncie Star Press. p. 7. 
5 Township Schools Consolidate (1950, June 17).  The Muncie Star. p. 10.
6 (See footnote 4).
7 (See footnote 2).
8 (See footnote 3).
9 Salamonia schoolhouse’s renovation nearly complete (2023, October 15). The Muncie Star Press. Pp. A1-A3.