The Shandaken Historical Museum began as the second school house of Pine Hill, District #10. There were two school rooms on the second floor. Where the office of the museum is now located was the library. The rooms were divided by a cloak room used by both rooms. The room to the right was used by the upper grades. When they started to send high school children to Fleischmanns High School their room was closed. The large room on the left them housed grades 1-8. Downstairs was the gym. On the west end was a stage that folded up against the wall. The stage was used for recitals and at Christmas time, a play was put on for the whole town. For most of the year it was the gym, the favorite sport was basketball.

The old school could tell some pretty good tales. It has housed a coat factory, a furniture stripping business, a community center, as a village building it held Boy Scout meetings, Red Cross gatherings as well as free vaccination clinics and is now the Town of Shandaken Historical Museum.

Programs of interest to Shandaken Township residents and tourists are frequently offered by the Museum.