To most people, the crumbling brick building at 1116 Mount Joy Road in Manheim looked beyond saving. Abandoned for decades, riddled with holes and home to generations of pigeons, it was little more than a ruin with a roof. But to Ken and Teresa Nolt, the structure felt like a calling - their personal Noah's Ark. It was a project that didn't make sense on paper but somehow made sense in their hearts.

"We live in the neighborhood, and driving by, we'd say, 'Wow, that is a cool, old building. It would be cool to own that some day,'" Teresa recalled. "We didn't really have a vision of what we would do with it, because we didn't know what it looked like inside, but we felt like this is what God was asking us to do."

In December 2020, the couple purchased the property, once home to a two-room schoolhouse built for children in the Sporting Hill and surrounding areas. Constructed in 1890, the school served students in grades one through eight until 1952, when it closed and students moved to a new school. Over the years, the building was home to an egg processing facility, a lawn mower repair shop, an auction house and a car sales lot.

The Nolts spent the next few years restoring the space and transforming it into Schoolhouse 1890, which opened to the public for private events in March 2024. For their efforts, the couple received the Adaptive Reuse Award from the Lancaster Historic Preservation Trust at the C. Emlen Urban Awards program in May of this year.

Restoring and renovating the site was daunting. The Nolts discovered an old boat in the rear of the property, complete with a 30-year-old tree growing out of it. The attic was full of pigeon carcasses, and much of the interior was in disrepair.

Despite the challenges, the Nolts pressed on with their plan, even though the details of what they wanted to do with the space were still unfolding.

"We started out wanting to make it a nice, open space for our family to gather," Teresa said, noting that her family includes five children and six grandchildren. "But as word spread of what we were doing, people asked if they could rent it out."

Neither Teresa nor Ken had experience with construction or the nuances of zoning and other requirements for a public space, but they learned on the job.

"The neighborhood has been very supportive of what we're doing," Teresa said. "Neighbors came to zoning meetings and voiced their approval."

While they worked to open the new space, the Nolts focused on preserving as much of the past as possible. Teresa spent hours researching the site at the Manheim Historical Society and speaking with neighbors about their memories. Her own extended family also provided insight into the original space. One of the most special moments came when her aunt, who had attended the school in the 1940s, sent a class photo from 1948 and later visited the restored building in person.

As they renovated the site, the family tried to reuse what they could, including original windowsills and trim and four chalkboards that now line the walls in their original spots from when the site was a classroom. Teresa found original coat hooks in a closet and installed those on a wall inside the entrance.

What they couldn't save, including brittle wainscoting and interior lights, they copied as closely as possible with the new installation. They repaired the original bell tower, and while they could not locate the original bell, they found a similar one at a Manheim auction.

The space, which has room for up to 65 people, now features an open concept with distinct sections. There's a warming kitchen, a full coffee bar, a children's play area, a living-room-style seating area near a large-screen TV and room for tables in the middle of the space. The Nolts upgraded the HVAC system, installed ADA-accessible bathrooms, repaired the front porch and added both a back porch and a patio to the site.

It's truly a family affair for the Nolts, as all of their children help in some aspect of the business, whether they are providing landscaping services or serving as baristas during an event.

Their son-in-law Noah Martin nominated the couple for the Lancaster Historic Preservation Trust award, and the Nolts were also recently honored with the Red Rose Award from the Manheim Historical Society. That honor recognizes the restoration of a historic property in the borough.

Schoolhouse 1890 has hosted birthday parties, bridal showers, baby showers and more.

It's become exactly what it was meant to be, Teresa said.

"We wanted to take the place from falling down and a place of darkness and destruction and turn it into a place of connection, fellowship and a blessing to the community," she shared. "It's been really fun to see all of the pieces come together."

For more information, visit http://www.schoolhouse1890.com.