The Lowrie School House

The Warriors Mark Area Historical Society at its first meeting expressed interest in the Lowrie Schoolhouse, which is a historic landmark of our community. The schoolhouse building and the land were graciously donated to our historical society by Neil and Nancy Smith, the owners. Over the next few years, the society acquired the funds for repairs and upkeep, landscaping and building maintenance.

The next step was to acquire historical items from the community that could be displayed in the schoolhouse. Once we had sufficient items and inside painting and repairs completed, we opened the schoolhouse for visitation.

As a historical society we continue to collect items representative of our community. But more importantly, we are researching not only the history of the Lowrie family and their schoolhouse, but many of the families who settled in Warriors Mark and made it the agricultural community it has become.

The Lowrie Schoolhouse was built in the 1860’s by the carpenter Balzer Rumberger as a private school for the Lowrie children of the Lowrie family. It has been a Warriors Mark landmark ever since the days when they, and the other children of the town crossed the street from the old Lowrie Mansion to learn the “three R’s”.

Many local men and women were employed in the Lowrie home, on the grounds and the farm. Jonathan Roberts Lowrie was a lawyer, with a practice in Hollidaysburg. The family moved to Warriors Mark when his health failed in 1854 and he became legal advisor to the firm of Lyon, Shorb and Co.

Although Mr. Lowrie had the school built for his own offspring, the other youngsters in town were invited to attend. There were three Lowrie children by his first marriage to Mary A. Lyon: Sarah Roberts Lowrie (1854-1947), William Lyon Lowrie M.D. (1859-1945) and Robert Lowrie (1861-1945). Five children were born to his second marriage to Matilda Hamill Nassau: Charles Nassau Lowrie (1869-1939), Matilda Lowrie (1871-1892), the Rev. Walter Lowrie (1873-1901), Calhoun Stewart Lowrie (1874-1891), and Matthew Lowrie (1876-1962).