NOTES – 1992

Pine Mountain Settlement School
Series 17: PUBLICATIONS PMSS
Notes – 1992
Spring (April) and Fall 1992

NOTES – 1992

“Notes from the Pine Mountain Settlement School”
Spring (April) and Fall 1992

GALLERY: NOTES – 1992 April

[Big Log] house was chosen by the [Kentucky] Bicentennial Commission to be a part of this historic celebration by awarding $10,000 toward the renovation and restoration of this historic building.

TAGS: NOTES – 1992 April, Kentucky Bicentennial, Bicentennial Commission, Big Log renovation, restoration, Trustees, Katherine Pettit, construction

 TRANSCRIPTION: NOTES – 1992 April

P. 1

[Featured color photograph: Big Log in the spring]

PINE MOUNTAIN
SETTLEMENT SCHOOL
PINE MOUNTAIN     HARLAN COUNTY    KENTUCKY
Telephone: (606) 558-3571

April             PAUL HAYES, DIRECTOR            1992

P. 2

Spring, 1992

Dear friends of Pine Mountain,

This year, 1992, Kentucky will celebrate her 200th birthday. The Kentucky Bicentennial Celebration is an opportunity for Kentuckians to celebrate the heritage and culture of our great commonwealth. It is also an opportunity not only to set the stage for our future, but also the future of our children.

Most importantly, the celebration will leave a lasting legacy through historic and cultural preservation efforts statewide.

Pine Mountain’s “Big Log” house was chosen by the Bicentennial Commission to be a part of this historic celebration by awarding $10,000 toward the renovation and restoration of this historic building.

The restored “Big Log” will serve as a meeting center for community groups, both those of the immediate neighborhood and of the mountain region. Pine Mountain has served and seeks to increase its opportunities to serve as a forum for the discussion of problems of mountain life. In addition, the building will be used to provide additional classroom space for visiting school, college and elderhostel groups. All portions of the building will be restored to show what living quarters were like in a mountain boarding school and will be part of the living museum aspect of the school program.

The estimated total cost of this project is $58,800. Our Board of Trustees has committed itself to the long-range preservation of this special building to ensure its safety and ongoing appropriate usefulness. The Board pledges $20,000 which will give us a total of $30,000 in hand to begin this work on April 1, 1992. Our need is for $28.000 so we might complete this work by November 1, 1992.

Pine Mountain has been a leader in education and social service in eastern Kentucky since 1913. Over the years it has received national recognition for its efforts in Curriculum Reform, Community Planning, and more recently in Environmental Education. A restored Big Log will enable the school to serve more effectively as a meeting place for the study of problems confronting the mountain region. Please be generous, send what you can to help us in our effort to restore this historic building.

In the spirit of Pine Mountain,
[Signed] Paul
Paul Hayes, Director
Pine Mountain Settlement School

P. 3

[Photograph: Big Log]

Big Log House was constructed in 1913-14. It was called Big Log because of the huge, hewn logs contributed by people of the neighborhood. It was the home of Miss Katherine Pettit, founder of Pine Mountain Settlement School, and twenty-five students.

Miss Pettit, a native Kentuckian, was a woman of action, she strongly believed in learning by doing. In seeking funds to build, she related the difficulties to surmount. “Hundreds of logs donated were living trees on the hillsides, which must be measured, marked, cut, hewn, squared by hand, snaked down the slopes by ox team and then floated or hauled to the school grounds. Stone for the foundation and chimneys must be quarried from boulders on the mountains. Shingles for the roof must be hand-riven with fro and mallet. Window frames, glass, nails, and lime for the mortar chinking had to be hauled, a three day journey from the railroad, across five ridges and a dozen rocky creek and branch beds. Furniture was made in the school woodshop.” The entire operation was supervised by Miss Pettit.

P. 4

[Two Photographs: “Big Log House under construction 1913-14”]
*
1992 Calendar of Events

May 8-10
Black Mtn. Weekend

July 26 – Aug. 1
Elderhostel

September 20-26
Elderhostel

November 15-21
Elderhostel

June 14 – 20
Elderhostel

August 8
Homecoming

October 23-25
Fall Color Weekend

December 13
Nativity Play

GALLERY: NOTES – 1992 Fall

Five black snakes were found during the [Big Log] renovation project [and] were caught and moved to other areas of the campus.

TAGS: NOTES – 1992 Fall, Big Log restoration, re-dedication, Environmental Education, Intervention Program 

TRANSCRIPTION: NOTES – 1992 Fall

P. 1

PINE MOUNTAIN
SETTLEMENT SCHOOL
PINE MOUNTAIN     HARLAN COUNTY    KENTUCKY
Telephone: (606) 558-3571

Fall             PAUL HAYES, DIRECTOR            1992

[Featured color photograph: The Creech Cabin]

P. 2

Dear Friends of Pine Mountain,

Big Log House has been saved, thanks to you and our many friends who remember this first building erected at Pine Mountain Settlement School. It served as a home for boarding students and Miss Katherine Pettit, our founder.

This summer has been an exciting time – in seeing Big Log restored and trying to meet a deadline to have this historic building ready for Homecoming in early August. The weather, at times, would throw us off schedule as we worked in restoring the roof. Workers scattered when someone came across one of the residents of Big Log, a 5-foot long black snake! Five black snakes were found during the renovation project, they were caught and moved to other areas of the campus.

When the house was first occupied in 1914, small boys stayed in the large attic, and it was there that we found a pair of eye glasses (like new) in 14K gold frames that must have belonged to one of those small boys.

Big Log House, on November 6, 1992, will be re-dedicated to a new century of service. Big Log is beautiful, yet we still must renovate the second floor, the attic, put in a new heating system and furnish the building for use as guest quarters and a conference center. So, again, we ask for your support.

In the spirit of Pine Mountain,
[Signed] Paul
Paul Hayes, Director

[Photograph: Men working on the roof of Big Log.]

P. 3

[Photograph: Miss Pettit seated, reading a book in a library setting.]

Katherine Pettit had three life mottoes – “If a thing ought to be done, it can be”, “God never fails”, and “Learn by doing”. Her dreams have remained durable and you will see that evident each day, every year, at Pine Mountain. We continue to adapt to the changing educational needs of the community and region.

For 20 years we have had as our central focus an environmental education program, where students learn of the delicate balances of the environment and the importance of conserving our natural resources. Over 4000 kids benefited from our program last year.

We sponsor four retired teachers who go into the elementary schools in four different counties with our Intervention Program. This program works with children who are at-risk. Last year we worked with 178 kids in the basic skills. This program has been so successful that the state of Kentucky has adapted this program for the entire state. Now every student, both high school and elementary, have this help available to them.

Miss Pettit worked longer than any living person in Appalachia and knew mountain people and problems as no other person did. Before her passing she wrote to an old friend and fellow worker, “This has been a glorious world to work in! I am eager to see what the next will be”.

P. 4

[Photograph: A group of people gathered on or near a porch.]

CALENDAR OF EVENTS 1993

Wildflower Weekend
April 23-25

Black Mountain Weekend
May 7-9

Elderhostel
June 6-12

Homecoming
August 7

Elderhostel
September 12-18

Fall Color Weekend
October 22-24

Elderhostel
November 14-20

Nativity Play
December 12

Previous:
NOTES – 1991
Next:
NOTES – 1993

See Also:
HISTORY PMSS Summary 1991-1992

Return To:
NOTES Index