The first ceremonial shovel hit the ground earlier this week on the new site for Schmuhl School in Hickory Creek Forest Preserve.
Digging will begin in earnest once Will County officials approve the plans, according to Lori Lindberg of the New Lenox Area Historical Society.
The basement and foundation for the school, which will be restored to replicate the look of the one-room schoolhouse that was used by New Lenox Township’s first students, will be dug this year, Lindberg said.
Work is expected to start next spring on a second building, which will serve as a museum showcasing pioneer life, she said.
The New Lenox Historical Society spearheaded the drive to preserve the small one-room school no longer needed by New Lenox Elementary School District 122 and has raised $177,000.
