District officials have donated a bust of President Abraham Lincoln, a gift to the “old” Otisville School from its Class of 1925, to the Friends of the Otisville School organization, which is overseeing renovation work to repurpose the old school building into a new community center.
It’s not known how old the Lincoln bust, which has been housed in the Otisville Elementary Library since the school opened, actually is. But what is known is that bust has been in the safe keeping of both the old and new schools for 100 years. A plaque at its base confirms it was a gift of the Class of 1925.
“We’re happy to give this to the Friends of the Otisville School and know it’ll be housed in a secure and visible area for all to see when they visit the new community center,” Superintendent Brian Monahan. “The Otisville School will always have a historical place of prominence for both the Otisville community and the Minisink Valley School District. We’re happy to contribute to the very limited artifacts which still exist and tell the story of the old school, which represent an important time in the life of the Otisville families."
The “old” Otisville School was built in 1914 and expanded in 1933. At one time, it was nicknamed the “Little M” by former students because it was one of the school district’s smallest schools for its youngest learners.
For several decades, the school served as one of the state’s oldest single-school buildings, housing kindergarten through 12th-grade until the 1970s. Then, it was used for varying elementary school grades until it officially closed in 2008, when the construction of the new K-5 elementary school was completed and ready for students.
At the time, the Otisville Town Board explored options of demolishing it or selling it, but residents turned out to vote in record numbers to save it. In 2017, the Friends group assumed ownership.