Dodge County Historical Society readies Ashland School for Marigold Days tours

Members of the Dodge County Historical Society have been hard at work readying the Ashland School for this week’s Marigold Days celebration.
“We’ve been cleaning and scrubbing,” said Historical Society member Linda Jervis.
The Lions Club has helped with painting and the flower gardens around the school have also been cleaned.
The school, known as School District #38 in Ashland Township, was built in 1883 at a cost of $1,000 on land donated by Rueben and Lloyd Henslin.
When the public stops by the restored building they will be looking at a classroom as it would have been in the 1880s.
The building now includes the original desks, chalk board and a Red Wing pottery water cooler. Over the years many school books have been donated to the Historical Society but the ones that will be on display in the building are representative of those used by students in the 1880s.
The school and the Historical Society building in the old Episcopal Church will be open for visitors during Marigold Days, said Board President David Hanson. The Ashland School will be open Saturday and Sunday from 10 a.m. to 4 p.m. Hanson said he hopes there will be some former students at the school who will be present to talk about their experiences.