Dildine

The extant Dildine school was built in 1921 (Blackford, 2021) as a replacement for a previous building on the same site. For some reason, a 1905 plat map of Blackford County lists both the Dildine School -then located on the land of J.F. Wentz across from Joseph Dildine’s eighty acres- and the Markle schoolhouse two miles northeast as serving District 3 (Hixson, 1905). 

Built by the local construction firm Clamme Brothers, the school was nearly identical to the school at Trenton, which was built around the same time (Album, 1994). 

In 1959, seventy-six students attended classes at Dildine (Hartford, 1959). Despite this, the District 3 school closed either the following year according to the family that purchased it, or in 1963 when its counterparts -the schoolhouses at MIllgrove and Trenton- shut down in order to send students to a new Jackson Township Elementary opened two miles to the west (New, 1964). 

After its closure, Carl and Lucille Sandhoe purchased the old school for $3,000, intending to demolish it. Eventually, the family converted the structure into three apartments (Routledge, 2001). Interestingly, the extant structure is thought to be haunted (Routledge).

References

Hixson, W.W. (1905). Blackford County, Ind. map. Map Collection, Indiana Division, Indiana State Library. 

Album of Yesteryear (1994, February 27). The Muncie Star Press. p. 15.

Hartford City (1959, September 7). The Muncie Evening Press. p. 10.

New Jackson School to Open on Monday (1964, February 23). The Muncie Star Press. p. 7.

Routledge, R. (2001, October 31). What a scary site! The Muncie Star Press. p. 5.