By HOYT ELKINS
The Union Democrat
If all goes according to plan, a relic of Gold Rush history will be deeded over to Angels Camp this summer.
In exchange for transferring the title of the old Altaville Grammar School, the county historical society also intends to pass along maintenance responsibilities to the city — costs the society would rather not bear any longer.
The exchange would take effect at the beginning of the next fiscal year, on July 1.
"The city should be able to incorporate the school site into its maintenance program without any problems," said Jeff Tuttle, Calaveras County district attorney and president of the Historical Society.
"They can probably do it for less money than the society pays right now," he added.
Maintaining the building cost the cash-poor Historical Society about $300 per month.
When Angels Camp annexed Altaville in 1972, it inherited some historic treasures and some moldering remnants of the town's past.
Among the remnants was the Altaville School, one of the oldest in California, built in 1858 on property donated by a generous townsman named M.D. Harmon.
The school, as local lore has it, was financed by proceeds from a dance held in the billiard room of the Prince and Garibaldi building, which still stands alongside Highway 49 across from Bret Harte High School.
Unlike the relatively well-maintained Garibaldi structure, however, the old brick schoolhouse was on the verge of collapse in 1981 when the Calaveras County Historical Society galloped to its rescue and spearheaded a drive to move the 90-ton brick structure to a permanent location and restore it.
With $28,000 in donations, the school was moved in 1983 and six years of restoration work began.
The property on which it stands, 125 N. Main St., was deeded to the Historical Society by the state of California in 1988 and the restoration of the school was complete in 1989. The Historical Society has been maintaining the school ever since.
Handyman Brett Webber opens the building for visitors on weekday mornings and closes it in the evening. He also mows the grass and maintains the grounds.
Contact Hoyt Elkins at helkins@uniondemocrat.com or 736-4092.
