DeBorgia raises money for old schoolhouse

DEBORGIA – For the 26th year, the town of DeBorgia held their annual spaghetti dinner and pie sale to raise money for the Old DeBorgia Schoolhouse.

Money raised at the event will go towards the care and upkeep of the historic building. According to John DuBois, one of the event organizers, there are plans in the works to restore the upstairs of the schoolhouse. He said they would like to turn the upstairs into a recreation of a classroom, as a historical attraction.

The room still bears some of the original paint of the gym floor, left from when the building was in use as a school. DuBois said the group was concerned about needing to paint over the marks. They consulted a historian on the accuracy of the floor to the image of a classroom. Fortunately, the historian said there would be no problems and the paint could stay as part of the renovation.

The main room of the schoolhouse still holds the feel of a classroom, housing blackboards along some of the walls of the long chamber. It is easy to imagine rows of desks filling the room. Now, the room was filled with fall-decorated tables set up along the walls leaving a walkway to the back where food was set up. From a small kitchen in the back, spaghetti with a meat sauce and a salad were constantly refreshed.

A variety of homemade pies, a slice of one included with the price of dinner, were available at the end of the food line. There were pies of every sort imaginable, ranging from fruit pies to cream pies and everything in between. Over 100 homemade pies were being sold to be taken home and enjoyed. According to DuBois, 44 pies were sold at the event with 113 out of 150 pies presold and picked up.

Raffle tickets, for a custom quilt among other prizes, were also being sold. According to DuBois, when the raffle was drawn, Phylis White of Superior won the quilt.

With a fairly constant stream of people coming in, either to sit and eat or get a plate to go, the event was clearly very popular. DuBois explained that people come from all over Mineral County, some coming down from remote homes in the mountains, just for the event.

“It grows on you,” said DuBois. “Members of the community want to take care of it.”

According to Gigi DuBois, John’s wife and a fellow organizer, members of the community look forward to the spaghetti dinner every year. John said this was their best year for participation with about 120 people coming to enjoy dinner and support the Old DeBorgia Schoolhouse.

Today, the old schoolhouse is a registered historical building. Built in 1908, it was the first two-story building built in western Montana and served the area’s children for several decades. When a fire destroyed the towns of Haugen, Saltese and DeBorgia, in 1910, the schoolhouse was the only building to survive.

“The fire was coming down [the mountain] at the schoolhouse, but then the wind shifted and it … changed direction,” said John.

The school was eventually closed down in 1956. Thirteen years later, in 1969, maintenance and care of the building was taken over by the Happy Homemakers. Today the building, affectionately called ‘The Old Lady’ by some, according to John, serves the community as an events center and gathering place.