Deep Run Schoolhouse

Deep Run Schoolhouse (c. 1900)

Deep Run Schoolhouse (2017)

Site Name: Deep Run School (formerly Deep Run Grade School)

Date of Construction: 1902

Reason for Construction: Built as a school, offering seven grades of instruction, after the Stand Spring School burned down in 1901 and doubled as a small public dance hall.

Site History: In 1901, Stand Spring School, the predecessor of Deep Run Grade School, burned down in a fire, prompting the construction of the Deep Run Grade School. The Deep Run Grade School opened in 1902 on present-day Three Chopt Road. The school served seven grades of instruction. The building consisted of two rooms with a center folding wall as a divider. Water for the building came from a nearby well and the two rooms were heated by wood stoves. Bathroom facilities were outdoors behind the building. On the weekends, the folding wall was opened to allow a public space for dances and other social activities. In 1911, the Short Pump School opened, so the Deep Run Grade School was closed. When the property was sold to a developer, the two rooms had been divided so that the building had four rooms and was repurposed as a private residence. The developer recognized the value in the historic building, so they offered the building and funds for financing a move in exchange for the county’s agreement to move the building off of the developer’s property. The Division of Parks and Recreation acquired the responsibility of renaming the building and determining how the building would be used after the move. This move occurred in 1996 and the renamed Deep Run Schoolhouse was moved to its current location in a small park next to Short Pump Elementary School. The Division of Parks and Recreation ultimately decided to refurbish the building to look like the authentic one-room schoolhouse that it once was. Today, the only way to get inside the building is by an appointment with a park ranger, but anyone can walk around the building because it is situated next to a public park. There is a historical marker sign in front of the building summarizing the historical relevance of the structure.

Area History: The area known as Short Pump got started as a stop along the road west of downtown Richmond. In the early 1800s, Short Pump Tavern was established by Robert Hyde Saunders, a Revolutionary War veteran. The tavern became very popular as a place to stay because there weren’t many stopping places between downtown Richmond and the Shenandoah Valley. In front of the tavern was a short-handled pump for people to provide water for their stagecoach horses. This “short pump” became the token symbol of the area. Both the tavern and the short pump are gone today as a result of the recent expansion and growth of the area. Where the tavern once stood is a Wal-Mart, 7-Eleven, and a Taco Bell, just across the street from Short Pump Town Center, the area’s largest and nicest shopping mall. The neighborhoods in Short Pump have grown exponentially and house some of the best schools in Henrico County.

What about the site has changed? The biggest change in the site is it’s location. The original structure is still intact and the building was successfully moved from Three Chopt Road to Short Pump Park. The original site of the building on Three Chopt Road is now populated with apartment houses and neighborhoods. The building is not surrounded by woods anymore and a local children’s football team practices in the football field right next to the building. There are paved walkways around the building so that visitors at the park can examine this piece of local history.

What about the surrounding area has changed? Short Pump as a whole has grown significantly and is now the home of several large public elementary, middle, and high schools, and could not get by with just a small schoolhouse to educate seven grades of students. Commercial development has skyrocketed along with residential development in Short Pump, and large wooded areas are becoming fewer and far between. What was once a blip on the map from Richmond to the Shenandoah Valley has become a shopping hub and major suburban area attracting families who work in the city but want to avoid the busy city life that comes with downtown living.

Reflection: By completing this project, I got to learn more about the area in which I live. The Deep Run Schoolhouse is just down the street from where I live and it was very interesting to learn so much about a little building that I pass everyday on the way to school. It is mind-blowing to think that all of the students in Short Pump spanning seven grades of education could fit into such a tiny building. The research I conducted on Short Pump was very interesting to me too because I remembered a nice old man at a Memorial Day Parade telling me about the story of the “short pump” but I had forgotten most of the story and I wanted to learn more. I wanted to look into Short Pump Tavern some more, but unfortunately the building was torn down in order to make room for a Taco Bell and 7-Eleven. I enjoyed learning so much about the area where I live.

Author: Natalie Quick

Sources:

“Deep Run Schoolhouse.” Virginia is for Lovers. 9 February 2017. Accessed 14

February 2017. https://www.virginia.org/listings/Museums/Deep

RunSchool/

“Deep Run Schoolhouse.” Visit Henrico County. 2017. Accessed 14 March 2017.

http://www.visithenrico.com/business/deep-run-schoolhouse

Dickerson, Trevor. “It Truly Was a Short Pump.” Richmond Times Dispatch.

17 June 2009. Accessed 14 March 2017. http://www.richmond.com/city-

life/it-truly-was-a-short-pump/article_88e123a1-27f6-59f7-af50-5

98b73d70c77.html

“Three Chopt District Historic Sites - Deep Run School.” Henrico County

Historical Society. 2017. Accessed 14 February 2017.

http://www.henricohistoricalsociety.org/threechopt.deeprunschool.html

Walker, Julian. “What’s in a name? - Short Pump near Richmond.” The

Virginian-Pilot. 12 November 2012. Accessed 14 March 2017.

http://pilotonline.com/news/local/history/what-s-in-a-name-short-

pump-near-richmond/article_876f6931-5b2c-5d29-a7ef-

0b542dc7ad41.html