🎥 Plymouth Schoolhouse gets a bell

Dr. Paul Adams, dean of the FHSU College of Education, presided over Wednesday’s school bell dedication.

By BECKY KISER
Hays Post

Every one-room schoolhouse should have a school bell.

The Plymouth Schoolhouse on the campus of Fort Hays State University, built in 1874 near Wilson in Russell County from post-rock limestone, now has one thanks to the generosity of two FHSU graduates.

A dedication ceremony of the school house bell was held Wednesday morning with Dr. Paul Adams, dean of the College of Education, welcoming the crowd. Boy Scout Troop 101-Venture Crew 101 raised the flag, followed by children from the FHSU Tiger Tots Nurtury Center singing the national anthem.

The FHSU chapter of Phi Delta Kappa initiated the school restoration project in 1975 and the building was dedicated in 1979 as “a recognition of the roots of public education in Kansas,” Adams said. It sits east of Tomanek Hall after serving families living near Wilson until 1936.

The 800-pound iron bell was cast in 1905 in Pennsylvania for the Immanuel Lutheran Church near Dubuque, 10 miles south of Dorrance in Russell County, and used until the church closed in 1956.

Jane Koetkemeyer Kohtz explains the history of the bell she donated to FHSU.

Jane Koetkemeyer Kohtz’s father purchased the bell at an auction. It’s been in storage since then. Kohtz, a 1975 FHSU grad and Hays resident, donated it to the university in memory of her parents, Vernon and Irene Koetkemeyer.

The bell needed some refurbishing before it could be displayed. That was done by Joe Chretien, associate professor of Applied Technology, who also designed the limestone base on which it sits on the north lawn of the schoolhouse.

“This bell represents a bygone era,” Chretien said. “Bells were used to signal the start of the school day, to summon people to church and to mark the time of day in farming communities. They were the telecommunications of a bygone era.”

FHSU Physical Plant employees Blake Weigel, Jerry Dreiling, Dan Disney and Gary Murphy built the base while DeLoyd Sander did the masonry work.

Donald Driscoll accepts a recognition plaque honoring his late sister Elaine Driscoll.

The family of the late Elaine Driscoll, a 1970 Fort Hays State alumna and 37-year FHSU employee, was also acknowledged during the dedication. Memorials made in Driscoll’s honor were used to fund the base the bell sits upon. Her brother and sister-in-law, Donald and Sigrid Rynerson, were given a certificate of appreciation.

With eager anticipation, Kohtz pulled down on the bright yellow cord to ring the bell for the first time and close the dedication ceremony. “I think you’ll be able to hear this all over campus,” she said with a smile.

The bell will be used in the future for special occasions.