©2006 The Chestnut Hill Local

A Facelift for 300-year-old Beggarstown Schoolhouse
by Devon Grieb

Beggarstown Schoolhouse located in Germantown. (Photo by Devon Grieb)

The oldest school in Germantown, a small, one room, stone building that has been closed and boarded up for several decades despite the fact that it is listed on the National Historic Register, will soon reopen its doors once again if a pair of local developers can find the right tenant.

Brinton Housing Partners, LP reached an agreement to lease the 300-year-old building from its owner, St. Michael’s Church, 6671 Germantown Ave. Brinton’s principals, Ken Weinstein and Bob Kaufman, have been actively working on the restoration of the school at 6669 Germantown Ave. for the last three months and are only four weeks away from completing all the necessary updates to restore the property but make it suitable for a contemporary use.

“We want to change the building itself as little as possible,” Weinstein said. The modernization includes Central air conditioning and heat and new electrical wiring. The pair is not new to historical renovations. They were involved in the restoration of the Allens Lane Train Station in Mt. Airy.

The schoolhouse was recently featured in the University of Pennsylvania’s Library exhibit, Educating the Youth of Pennsylvania: Worlds of Learning in the Age of Franklin, from January to May, The exhibit documented the school’s importance as an educational facility in the era of Ben Franklin and the other founding fathers

Because the school was vacant for so long, the two men said they faced many challenges restoring the property. The only thing the school needs now is a worthy tenant.

For more information on The Beggarstown Schoolhouse, contact either Bob Kaufman or Ken Weinstein at 215-848-1133.