Fourth-graders at Brown Elementary School, working with the South Portland Historical Society, the city and Pan Am Railways, are lending a hand to preserve a special piece of the city’s history.

The goal of the joint project is to uncover and preserve a side rail used to move goods to factories in the Mill Creek area prior to World War II, like the Lovell Arms factory, and then down to the shipyards after the war started.

It’s the job of the fourth-graders to learn about the history of the railroads in South Portland and come up with information to be printed on an interpretive sign at the site.

The side rail is located just off the Greenbelt between Mill Creek and Mussey Street. Kathryn DiPhilippo, executive director of the South Portland Historical Society, called the project a perfect one for the local students.

“The end result is that the rails will be exposed, a historic marker will be put up and people using the Greenbelt will be able to observe and read about the history of this area of the city,” DiPhilippo said.

As part of their work on the project, the fourth-grade classes at Brown school took a recent field trip to the historic site. While there, they got a chance to document how the area looks now, learn a little bit about how the side rail was used and ask questions of the adults involved in the project.

Those adults include Jane Eberle, director of business partnerships with the South Portland School Department; Marylou Fathke, a horticulturist with South Portland’s parks department; and DiPhilippo.

Eberle said what’s great about the project is that the students are getting a chance to help “preserve a treasure from our past.” But, the project at Brown school is not the only one Eberle has in the works.

Other historic preservation projects on tap include one at Small Elementary School, where the students would learn about the mills and dam once located where Mill Creek Park now stands.

At Kaler Elementary School, the students might learn about and highlight the mile marker on the Greenbelt that was once used by the Portland, Saco & Portsmouth Railroad.

Not too far from the mile marker is the former site of the old Cape Elizabeth Depot, which used to stand near where Tony’s Donuts is now located. Learning more about the depot could be a project for the students at Dyer Elementary School, according to Eberle.

And the kids at Skillin Elementary School could take on highlighting the King’s Highway marker on Westbrook Street, which is next to the municipal golf course.

Overall, Eberle said, “We’ve been so lucky to find so many willing partners. We are lucky to live in South Portland, where people get excited about the city’s history and jump on board.”

During the recent field trip, she also told the Brown school students, “Every time you come by here and see (what’s been done) you will know that you participated in making it all happen.”

Eberle told the Current that the idea for Brown school to get involved in adopting a section of historic railroad first came up several years ago, when third-graders at the school took a narrated tour of the Greenbelt for their unit on community.

“Then-Mayor Tom Blake was doing the narration and he pointed out the railroad. Then, just in casual conversation during that walk, we said, ‘Wouldn’t it be cool to expose that section and do some work on its history to share with the community?’ Over time, that idea bloomed into today’s project,” she said.

Eberle said involving the city’s students in the preservation of some of South Portland’s most interesting historic sites would accomplish a variety of goals, including the students gaining a greater appreciation for the history of their community in general, as well as the neighborhood (around their school).”

She also said these types of projects are a “great way to use a multi-disciplinary approach to learning by incorporating historical research, writing, communication, collaboration and finally hands-on physical work at the site. It is a perfect example of project-based learning.”

What Eberle is most excited about, in terms of the various historic preservation projects the elementary schools are involved in, is that some of the city’s “hidden gems” will be rediscovered and shared with the community at large.

“The community should enjoy discovering (what’s) there, and appreciate the fact that our students are responsible for their exposure and preservation,” she added.

Robin Reinhold and Mike McCann teach fourth grade at Brown school and agreed to take on preserving the railroad as part of their annual unit on Maine history, which is explored through local artifacts, Reinhold said.

What she hopes her students get out of the historic preservation project is an understanding of all the different aspects that will go into the effort, including researching, writing and working collaboratively to create a finished product.

“The piece about doing something to benefit others is equally as important,” Reinhold said, “(especially) helping to clean up the site, creating a place along the Greenbelt that community members can visit to learn about its historical significance, designing and creating a historical marker to commemorate the site, and maintaining the site once the work has been finished.”

She added, “It is so important for children to participate in this type of project because it helps them understand that they can make a difference in their community by sharing their time, talents, and energy. By working together, the kids will see that what started as one person’s idea, can truly become something great, lasting and significant.”

Reinhold said she hopes residents will appreciate the combined effort to preserve a piece of South Portland’s history.

“Our vision is to restore this site to look like it used to, long ago when the railroad was used to bring materials to and from the factories nearby,” she said.

Reinhold also praised Eberle for helping get the project off the ground.

“Jane has been able to pull it all together,” said Reinhold, “and create a learning experience that our students will never forget.”

Jane Eberle, director of business partnerships with the South Portland School Department, talks about the Brown School adopt-a-rail project last week. To the left of Eberle is Allison Bryant and to the right is Jack Nickerson, both fourth-graders. Students are using their iPads to record her talk. Simon Hamm, left, and David Lawlor, front, get a closer look at the invasive plants that are covering a historic railroad track off the Greenbelt in Ferry Village. They are both fourth-grade students at Brown Elementary School in South Portland. These tracks in Ferry Village will be uncovered and their story told in a joint project between the city, the fourth-grade classes at Brown Elementary School and the South Portland Historical Society.

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