The Rice’s Mills Community Association (RMCA) is a neighborhood organization that runs and cares for the Rice's Mills Community Center (RMCC) which is on the State of Vermont Historical Register. This former one-room schoolhouse was built in 1931 and was turned over to the community in 1962, when the Thetford’s elementary school opened.
About us
RMCA Officers
Bob Walker, Jody Biddle & Chris Coyle
Co-Presidents
Bob Walker & Jody Biddle
Treasurer
Christine Coyle
Building Committee
Rick Biddle, Debra Kraemer, Garrett Hack, Carolyn Enz-Hack, Chip Hobson
Webmaster
Jim Taylor
Rice's Mills Community Center
Since 1962, Rice's Mills Community Center is available for events, workshops, parties, performances, rehearsals, classes, yard sales, or anything else for which you need an indoor or outdoor space.
RMCC Restoration
Major renovations from 2003-2005
Bolstered sagging roof
Installed standing seam roof
Installed new sheetrock ceiling, 2 ceiling fans and 6 new schoolhouse lights
Stabilized bowing exterior walls
Installed cellulose insulation in attic & walls
Installed new electrical wiring, outlets and switches
Repaired rotted entryway and door
Reglazed windows and installed new storm windows and screens
Repaired and painted building exterior
Refinished hardwood floor
Installed new propane heater
Bolstered basement piers
Installed spray foam on basement walls and vapor barrier on floor
Replaced greenhouse glazing and clapboards
Major renovations from 2022-2024
Repaired windows to open properly
Patched holes in walls and trim
Painted the whole interior
Purchased, resized & installed new curtains
Built new stairs to access the attic
Upgraded some electric wiring and lighting
Built a new fold-down table for the stage
Painted kitchen floor
Installed dart board & ring swing games in kitchen
Renovated front garden
Removed honeysuckle & landscaped
Built & installed new kitchen counter
Graded & hardpacked driveway parking area
Repaired outside rot on building
Painted west & south sides of building exterior
Historic milestones
1808
92 children in the Rice’s Mills school district
1839
first public mention of Rice’s Mills School
1869
flood destroyed Samuel Rice’s mills
1931
the existing 1-room Rice’s Mills School was built
1934
a small bowling pin factory on site burned
1943
Rice’s Mills School had 13 pupils
1959
Rice’s Mills School closed when the Thetford Elementary School opened on Thetford Hill
1961
building purchased by Rice’s Mills Community Association
1984
addition of a community greenhouse and new roof
2003-2005
major restorations: phase 1
2022-2024
additional restorations: : phase 2
“On May 9th, 1961, a group of residents — the newly-formed Rice’s Mills Community Association (RMCA) — voted to send the Thetford School Board a bid of $535 to purchase a small, unused red schoolhouse”
Undated photo of the Rice’s Mills School after it was built in 1930
Rice’s Mills School
RMCC was a one-room schoolhouse from 1931-1962.
On stage below are five former classmates who attended the Rice’s Mills School in the late 1950s and early 1960s: June (Benner) Baldwin, James Sawyer, Bernard (Bernie) Sawyer, Lee Ilsley, Beth (Jamieson) Tilden. They shared their stories and reminiscences of the Rice’s Mills School at our June 11, 2023 Potluck.
A rich history…
Li Shen wrote an article for the June 2023 edition of Sidenote News “Celebrate community with the renaissance of the Rice’s Mills Schoolhouse” that reveals the fascinating history of Rice’s Mills village and schoolhouse. It goes back to the early settlement of this area in the late 1700s with water powered wool and grain mills, Samuel Rice’s mills, the Rice’s Mills school and the origins of the present day Rice’s Mills Community Association.