Published: August 16, 2008 11:31 pm         

Taking lessons from the past

High school students constructing Thoreau-inspired cabin.

“Why should we live with such hurry and waste of life?” Henry David Thoreau asked over a century ago.

Logansport High School science instructor, Scott Johnson, is asking his classes the same thing now.

Johnson, with the help of his classes, is constructing a replica of the cabin Thoreau built along Walden Pond near Concord, Mass.

The cabin sits in front of the Berry Patch across from the high school. The location is perfect, Johnson said, because of the nature surrounding it.

Thoreau lived at Walden Pond from July 1845 to September 1847. His experience living in the cabin provided material for his book “Walden,” which helped to inspire awareness and respect for the natural environment.

Johnson is trying to teach his students those very same concepts.

The teacher started constructing the cabin at the end of the last school year and spent the entire summer working on it. It should be finished this fall, Johnson said.

The project started with Ed Closson donating 150-year-old barn timbers to Johnson that had been sitting in his shed at Closson Lumber for the past 20 years.

“He had planned on doing something with them, but never got around to it,” Johnson said.

Johnson said if it wasn’t for the donation, the cabin wouldn’t have been possible. The timbers, which Johnson says gives the cabin character, were used for the frame.

He said they are building the cabin with traditional methods in mind.

Many items were donated, including the step outside the cabin that came from an old library. Johnson said the project is not being funded by the school, and he hopes to keep the costs to $2,500.

In Johnson’s classes, he discusses living simply and not consuming so much, or “being owned by the things you own.”

Johnson said his father always encouraged him to take those words to heart.

The cabin isn’t an exact replica of Thoreau’s, but Johnson’s own design. Johnson’s cabin is gray and black and stands at 17-feet. Thoreau’s cabin was brown and smaller.

His environmental science class as well as science projects and technique classes, are spending their days helping to finish the construction.

The project has taught the students how to construct, build, problem-solve and work together to accomplish a goal.

Senior Tucker Rouch spent time nailing boards to the back wall. He said he’s learning about construction through the class.

“It gives everyone a chance to do something they wouldn’t ordinarily do,” Rouch said. “You learn to be self-sufficient.”

The cabin is something their others will be able to enjoy for years to come, said Johnson.

“Buildings built like this stand for 500 years,” Johnson said.

Johnson said they plan on building furniture for the cabin. A wood-burning stove is already in place, and they hope to add a fireplace. He said they may even build an environmentally-sound outhouse.

The class still needs to put in the glass for the four rectangular windows looking out onto the brush behind the Berry Patch. They also need to construct the handmade door.

Johnson hopes the school corporation will be able to use the cabin for story-telling. He hopes teachers bring their students out to the cabin every year for lessons in history and the environment.

He said the project was an experiment, constructing it as cheaply as they did.

Johnson said he was inspired by the chapter “Economy” in Thoreau’s book, “Walden.” He said he read it a few times, but it just recently began to make sense to him.

Johnson said his classes are excited about working on the project.

Building the cabin has required the efforts of many people in the high school. Along with the science classes putting the last touches on it, the football team helped put up the frames during the summer.

Senior Stephanie Servin said the opportunity has taught her things that could help her in the future.

“A lot of kids aren’t exposed to doing anything like this,” Johnson said. “It’s a good chance for them to get a little dirt under their fingernails — to accomplish something they’re proud of.”

Johnson hopes the project makes people think about their own consumption.

“I hope it’s something that inspires people to think about the path we’re all on as a society,” he said. “Do we really need a home that’s 10,000 square feet? Do we really need to make $100,000 a year? Maybe if we didn’t consume so much, we wouldn’t have to pay so much.”

Senior Seth Callaway said the project made him wonder what it would be like to live like Thoreau.

“I think it’d be fun living like that,” he said. “Not as long as he did, but maybe for a couple of months.”

Melissa Soria may be reached at (574) 732-5143 or via e-mail at melissa.soria@pharostribune.com