Schools in the 1800s and early 1900s were nothing like the schools we know today.

Most of the pioneers who settled Cranberry Township were self-taught. Few received formal classroom instruction.

But they were determined that their children get the benefit of a better education than they themselves had received. So they enrolled their brightest and most talented youngsters in "subscription schools," what we would now call private schools.

Books and paper were scarce. They were also expensive. Often a Bible or a dictionary would be the only books available.

Instead of paper, students were expected to provide their own slates. Slate is a naturally occurring rock, formed in layers which can be split apart into flat sheets. Slate was found locally, among other places, along Coal Run on the Rowan farm, where the Fox Run development of homes is today.

Stubby pieces of soft, fine-grained white limestone were used to write on the slates. Then, every morning, the students would start with a clean slate.

Students attended grades one through eight in the same room, taught by the same teacher. While one class recited or received instruction, the others listened or studied quietly.

School was held from September to April. The children were then dismissed to help their parents with farmwork and housework the rest of the year.

In 1835, Pennsylvania adopted the "common school system." That was when the Legislature enacted a law permitting communities to tax landowners in order to pay teachers' salaries and buy textbooks.

By 1876, teachers received $30 to $38 per month. Daily classes would begin with a reading from the Bible, recitation of "The Lord's Prayer" and the Pledge of Allegiance. That practice continued until 1962, when a U.S. Supreme Court decision banned prayer in public schools.

By 1874, Cranberry had six one-room schoolhouses. With the exception of Bear Run School, the schools were named for the landowners on whose property they were built. They were: Garvin, Graham, Hoehn, Johnston and Sample. There were four male and two female teachers, and an enrollment of 230 students.

The earliest schools were simple log cabins. By the early 1900s, school buildings had greatly improved.

With the exception of Johnston school, which was of red brick, the school buildings in Cranberry were timber-framed with flat board siding, and glass windows. Wooden desks and chairs with backrests had iron frames and their legs were mounted to the floor.

Teachers not only conducted classes, they also served as building custodians, started the fire in the morning, and assigned older boys to carry in locally produced coal from the coal house outside.

Drinking water was carried in metal buckets from a pump in the schoolyard. Students were expected to use the wooden outhouses (toilets) - one for boys, another for girls –- located on the outskirts of the schoolyard.

When I attended the Sample school, my teacher for the first six years was Mrs. Body; Mrs. Coodson taught for the last two. My favorite subjects were recess and lunchtime.

We played games such as Farmer in the Dell, Crack the Whip, Bull in the Ring, It tag, Hide and Seek, Andy, Andy Over and softball. In the winter, we would ride sleds, have snowball battles with snow forts and run - always running.

We attended school eight months out of the year, and on the last day of class we would always have a nice picnic on the school grounds.

Our mothers would bring all kinds of goodies, and we had a great time playing games, with prizes prepared by our teacher.

Many years have passed since the one-room schoolhouses closed, but we have not forgotten those days, which were so carefree - except, of course, for studying our lessons.

Each year we one-roomers gather for a reunion on the Saturday after Labor Day. We usually have 65 or 70 in attendance.