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Friday, February, 9 2024 5 Brooklin Town Crier Was it a misunderstanding, an accident, or a mistake? When a wrecking ball demolished the 111-year-old Dryden Schoolhouse in June of 1991, the shockwaves reverberated throughout the community, affecting previous students, former Reeve John Dryden and even Whitby Town Council. The original school structure at the northeast corner of Thickson Road North and Columbus Road was originally built in 1851 and was christened Union School Section No. 6, encompassing Whitby and East Whitby Townships. It was later named Dryden as a tribute to James Dryden who had sold half an acre of land for the construction of a brick school house. Through four generations, the Drydens were trustees of this school with four consecutive generations attending classes. The original structure was replaced by a brick building in 1880, which eventually closed its doors in 1967. Brooklinite Neil Crawford fondly remembers his three years at Dryden before he transferred to Meadowcrest School on Vipond Road. One room held 25 students spanning grades 1 to 8 with a single teacher handling all the grades. Building converted After the school's closure, Marjorie Kennedy bought the building and converted it into a residence, leasing it for several years. Eventually she sold it to Markborough Properties which continued to rent it out. As for the demolition, it took many by surprise. Former Whitby Councillor Gerry Emm was unhappy with the way the corporation treated the by-laws and a heritage building. He was certain that if the Town had been aware of the building's jeopardy, council would have hurried to designate it as an historical site. The school was on a list of buildings considered worth saving by the Local Architectural Conservation Advisory Committee (LACAC). When a building is placed on LACAC's designation list, it cannot be touched until Council approves a demolition permit. But the permit was not given and so Markborough had no reason to tear it down. Developer plans According to Markborough's then vice-president Peter Langer, company officials were surprised to learn of the building's demolition since removing it had no bearing on the developer's plans. Markborough was in the process of evicting the tenant due to pressure from the Town to get the property cleaned up. The tenant had discarded junk and rubble around the place and it had become an eyesore. The company went through legal channels to terminate the renter's lease and a local contractor was hired to clean up the site and apply for a demolition permit. However, following the tenant's departure, a mistake was made and the heritage building was razed to the ground. Today, only two rural schoolhouses are still standing in the area: Spencer School (circa 1877) now a community centre on Concession 7 west of Brooklin and the Ashburn School (circa 1881). For many, the demolition of Dryden School erased a piece of Brooklin's rich history and was a devastating event that still resonates. What happened to the Dryden Schoolhouse? By Jennifer Hudgins Oops on us! In our Jan. 26, 2024, issue, we ran a Heritage Society story about the Dryden family and Maple Shade Farm. On page 5, a sentence read as follows: "Whitby is named after this family." That sentence should not have been there as it is false. Later in the story, it is acknowledged that Dryden Boulevard is in fact named for the family. The error was by our editor, not the story's writer. We apologize for the error and any confusion it might have caused.