will not be forgotten."

The white building with green trim has been restored to its original appearance, including authentic period blackboard, a cast iron stove and school bell, kerosene lanterns, desks and chairs and textbooks.

Plaques have been added to honor the school's history and the students and teachers who attended. The school even has an outhouse in back that is still being restored.

The school now has electricity, but it never had running water. A hand pump and sink in the vestibule have also been restored.

"The Godwin School represents a very, very important chapter in both Delaware's and America's educational history," said Richard B. Carter, chair of the Delaware Heritage Commission.

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Built in a time far different from today, Godwin's was the result of a petition from Millsboro farmers whose children had no school to attend.

At the time, school districts were created in response to demand.

In March 1896, the state school board sent a recommendation to the Sussex County Levy Court that a new school district be created on the outskirts of Millsboro.

They attached a petition from 15 landowners attesting that the area had more than the 35 students required for a school district.

"At that time, there were something like 420 individual school districts in the state of Delaware. Every little place — and the Godwin School is a typical example — had its own local school district with its own local school board," Carter said.

District #190