View of W. Franklin Me 36.

View of W. Franklin Me 36.

View of W. Franklin Me 36. "This West Franklin schoolhouse, located on the corner of the Great Pond Road, was built in 1897 to replace an earlier, deteriorating building. Both a primary and a grammar class studied here until 1948. In that year all of Franklin's district schools were consolidated at the present Community Center building. After consolidation the building was sold and used for storage and as a garage. Paul Giles had a garage there when the building burned in March of 1973. To the right of the school stands the Percy DeBeck house, originally the Swan house. Earlier it had been the home of his father Edward DeBeck. Today it is the home of Karen Macomber-Thomas, Percy's granddaughter and the fourth generation of the family to occupy the house. Percy was able not only to watch the school being built in 1897, but also to watch it burn three-quarters of a century later.