Dry Creek One Room Schoolhouse, 1880 Town, Midland, SD

OLD SCHOOL OF THE DAY

Dry Creek One Room Schoolhouse

1880 Town

24280 SD Hwy 63

Midland, SD 575524.4

South Dakota’s Original 1880 Town is a history museum, cultural center, and village in Jackson County, South Dakota featuring 19th-century buildings, a museum, entertainment, and artifacts.  The town has more than 30 buildings from the 1880 to 1920 era, authentically furnished with thousands of relics, historical accounts and photographs, a Casey Tibbs exhibit, Dances with Wolves movie props, and fun activities for kids.  When Richard Hullinger bought 14 acres at Exit 170 back in 1969 he had no plans for an attraction. In 1972 a gas station was built at this location along with forming an idea of an old west attraction. Later, an additional 80 acres was purchased.

     About that time a movie company came to a small town nearby to film an 1880 era movie. A main street set was constructed from old buildings and a number of Indian relics and antiques were borrowed from Clarence Hullinger, Richard’s father. Winter set in and the filming was abandoned. The movie company returned home giving the main street set to Clarence for the use of his artifacts. The movie set was moved to the 80 acres and the 1880 Town was born!  Along with the beginning of the 1880 Town began years of collecting what is now an authentic 1880 to 1920 era town from buildings to contents. Clarence and Richard have kept historical value on an equal balance with public appeal, choosing buildings that not only interesting to look at but are also historically correct for an early South Dakota town. The displays and buildings range from Indian relics from the 1970’s to the fourteen-sided barn built in 1919.

     The tour of the town begins here. The barn boasts an automated hay and manure handling system. It took three days and thousands of dollars to move the barn the 45 miles from its original location south of Draper, SD. In the barn there are fine antique buggies, toys, stalls with horses in them and a working, turn of the century, coinola, saloon piano from Deadwood.  From the barn, the whole town lies in a beautiful panoramic view. The first building on the north side is the Vanishing Prairie Museum. The museum was built to house the more valuable collections, many from the General Custer period. Items displayed are a pair of boots and an old army saddlebag from the Custer battlefield that were found at an Indian campsite, parade helmets worn by U.S. Cavalry Indian Scouts with the crossed arrow insignia, Indian dolls, arrowheads, a complete authentic cowboy outfit, photographs and selected interiors of fine Dakota homes. The collection also includes Buffalo Bill items, a tribute to the late Casey Tibbs, 9 time World Champion Rodeo Cowboy, and many props that were used in filming the movie “Dances with Wolves.”

     The Dakota Hotel was moved from Draper, SD. Built in 1910, it still carries the scars made by cowboys’ spurs on the staircase. The Gardel and Walker Livery Barn holds a variety of early engines and two wagons from the Indian war era. On an open lot next to the livery is the antique machinery display.    St. Stephan’s Church, built in 1915, was moved from Dixon, South Dakota, with everything intact, from the stained glass windows to the bell (which along with the school and fire bells, kids are free to ring).  The C&N Depot, Express Agency, and Telegraph Office was relocated from Gettysburg, SD. It is filled with railroad equipment right down to a piece of wood with “Tex K.T.” carved by the king tramp in 1927.  The town hall which came from Belvidere was renovated in 1984 and the film “Love for the Land” can be seen throughout the day. One can step inside the back door to see the Mayor’s office. Next door are the lumber yard and pioneer home.

     The one-room schoolhouse will bring back many memories for those who were lucky enough to attend one. Visitors can ring the bell and step inside to see the ink-well desks, textbooks, reciting bench and roll-up maps. Up front by the blackboard sits the huge stove that never did heat the back of the room and the view through the windows is still the same beautiful prairie that lured the attention from many young students’ studies.  East of the town is a homestead complete with windmill, corrals, barn, house and of course, outhouse.

District #87 Abraham Lincoln Elementary School, Lincoln Leisure Center, Bloomington, IL

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District #87 Abraham Lincoln Elementary School

Lincoln Leisure Center

1206 S. Lee Street

Bloomington, IL 61701

The two-story Lincoln Leisure Center, 1206 S. Lee Street, Bloomington, IL, a former District #87 elementary school named after the 16th U.S. President Abraham Lincoln, located on the corner of Lee and Miller Streets, is a programmed recreation center for the community. It features nine classrooms and a gymnasium available for practices, games, demonstrations, clinics, and special events,.

Also the Center services many local Parks, Recreation, and Cultural Arts classes and programs with some of the rooms available to rent for special occasions such as meetings, educational workshops, birthday parties, training sessions, etc. There is a building supervisor on site during programs, activities, and rentals.

Brattonsville School for Girls, Historic Brattonsville, McConnells, SC

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Brattonsville School for Girls

Historic Brattonsville

1444 Brattonsville Rd.

McConnells, SC

Historic Brattonsville is the 775-acre portion of the Brattonsville Historic District that is owned by the York County Culture and Heritage Commission and Dr. Rufus Bratton, and operates as an open-air museum. Buildings include Hightower Hall, The Homestead, and the McConnell House (moved to the site in 1983).  Historic Brattonsville presents the history of the Scots-Irish and African-Americans in the South Carolina upcountry through preserving and interpreting the buildings and stories of the Brattonsville community. Featuring more than 30 historic structures from the 1760s to the late-19th century, the site provides visitors with an opportunity to see the evolution of Southern culture and architecture in the Carolina Piedmont. Currently, two of the Bratton family houses are closed for preservation.

    The Brick House, built in 1855, has a two-story brick façade with end chimneys, a two-tiered portico, stucco-over-brick columns, and a two-story wooden wing at back which was originally a private boarding school for girls.  A new exhibit entitled, “Liberty & Resistance: Reconstruction and the African-American Community at Brattonsville, 1865-1877” is located inside the recently restored Brick House.  The 800-acre plantation includes farmed land with heritage breed animals, a Revolutionary War battlefield site with interpretive trail, and a nature preserve with walking trails. Seasonal events, re-enactments, and living history programs interpret life in the Carolina Backcountry from the 1750s to the 1850s. Historic Brattonsville’s award-winning African-American programs are an essential part in telling the story of the Carolina Piedmont.

     Historic Brattonsville is also home to an award-winning Heritage Farm Program. Rare breeds of farm animals such as Gulf Coast sheep, Devon cattle and Ossabaw Island hogs are raised and cared for, just as they were hundreds of years ago. Demonstrations of historical farming techniques and day-to-day activities are presented by costumed interpreters throughout the year on the Bratton Plantation.  Historic Brattonsville Gift Shop offers a unique selection of regional items. A visit to the gift shop does not require admission. The site includes the Walt Schrader Trails, more than eight miles of hiking, mountain biking, and equestrian trails.

Brattonsville Tavern and Schoolhouse, Historic Brattonsville, McConnells, SC

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Brattonsville Tavern and Schoolhouse

Historic Brattonsville

1444 Brattonsville Rd.

McConnells, SC

The Brattonsville Historic District is a historic district and unincorporated community in York County, South Carolina. It includes three homes built between 1776 and 1855 by the Brattons, a prominent family of York County, and was named to the National Register of Historic Places in 1971.  The Revolutionary House, built in 1776 by Colonel William Bratton (who fought in the Revolutionary War), was originally a one-room log house with a small porch. Later additions were added to the original structure, and clapboard siding was placed over the original logs.

     The Homestead, Brattonsville’s second house built about 1830 as the home of Dr. John S. Bratton, was significant as the center of an 8500-acre plantation. This 12-room, 2⅛-story antebellum mansion is an example of Greek Revival residential architecture. The interior features Adam mantels, exquisite dadoes, and a carved staircase.  The Brick House, built in 1855, has a two-story brick façade with end chimneys, a two-tiered portico, stucco-over-brick columns, and a two-story wooden wing at back; it was originally a private boarding school for girls.

     Historic Brattonsville includes a working farm and heritage breed animals, with a milk barn, hog pen, tool shed, smoke house, corn crib and the backwoods cabin. These are the kind of buildings children really love. The original Bratton House is a log house with one room downstairs and one upstairs. The family soon opened a tavern nearby and later added the schoolhouse wing. All of these buildings are now grouped close together for ease of viewing.  The district was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on August 19, 1971. In 1997, the district’s boundary was increased to comprise 6760 acres, 24 buildings, 12 structures, and 1 object.

Davisville “Little Red” Schoolhouse, North Kingstown Food Pantry, North Kingstown, RI

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Davisville “Little Red” Schoolhouse

North Kingstown Food Pantry

445 School Street

North Kingstown, RI 02852

The second Davisville Schoolhouse, known as the little red schoolhouse on School Street in North Kingstown, RI, a two-roomer that replaced a smaller one-roomer, was a nursery school for quite a time. It now houses the NK Food Pantry, and those folks brought this school building into the 21st century as a place still in service to North Kingstown.  Many seem to know about the little red schoolhouse which sits quietly on School Street, having visited it for Scout meetings or recreational events, yet the building’s early history isn’t commonly familiar.

      Because the building served the local public in various capacities, there are numerous people living in the area who attended school and recreational events there and can offer primary source recollections.  On October 21, 1867, George A. Davis and William D. Davis, sons of Jeffrey Davis of the E and J Davis firm, sold a quarter-acre lot of land on what is now known as School Street to District #11 for $1. On this centrally-located lot had already been erected a new one-room schoolhouse. The new schoolhouse was dedicated the evening of November 8, 1867, with the State School Commissioner invited to address the audience.”

     Separate entrances for boys and girls were added to each side of the schoolhouse along with a needed second room to deal with overcrowding, around 1898.  Electricity arrived at the school in 1916, and eight trees were planted for Arbor Day in 1918. In 1933, new concrete walks and steps were installed but it wasn’t until 1935 that the school was modernized with additions built for running water, steam heat, and modern sanitation near each of the two entrances, according to plans created by Norman M. Isham. Local residents say the building was been empty for about a year since a pre-school that had been using it moved on.

     The school was town-owned, but its long service as a schoolhouse came to an end in 2011, and it was decided to close the building to avoid spending additional money, after discussion at Town Council meetings came up about a need for a new boiler.  Also it was under discussion as one of several town properties that could potentially be sold. In 2012 Bonnie Smith and other community members recognized that food insecurity in North Kingstown was outgrowing the capacity of the Pantry’s home in the North Kingstown Methodist Church where it had been located since 1981. Karla Driscoll, newly retired from the North Kingstown Chamber of Commerce and aware of the Pantry’s limited space, suggested to Bonnie that they form a committee of community leaders to address the problem.

     The Committee, comprised of members of the local business, professional, and political community, set about resurrecting the original paperwork for the Pantry, establishing a new board, and writing new bylaws. They also began the search for free or low-cost space around town. The historic Little Red Schoolhouse, a Town building unoccupied and in need of major repair, seemed like a possible option because its central location would make it accessible to the majority of the Pantry’s clients.  Discussions with the Town Council led ultimately to the Town leasing the Little Red Schoolhouse to the Pantry for five years at $1 per year, after the Committee was able to demonstrate its capital campaign had secured adequate funding to make the building ADA and fire code compliant.

     A team of volunteers led by Pantry Vice President, Richard Jacques, found local contractors and skilled craftspeople who could complete the extensive renovations which included a new septic system, complete electrical upgrades, and a new heating system. These contractors generously donated their services or made equivalent cash donations to the Pantry for the many repairs and replacements. The North Kingstown Fire Department did all the interior painting. Volunteers also spent countless hours cleaning out and hauling almost 150 years of accumulated clutter and debris.  Thus, the “Little Red Schoolhouse That Could” came back to life in 2013 as the North Kingstown Food Pantry.  Today, the Little Red Schoolhouse, home to the North Kingstown Food Pantry, continues to serve the North Kingstown community and is part of the Town’s Emergency Management Plan. Operated with the help of a large crew of dedicated volunteers, the Pantry welcomes North Kingstown residents in need of food.

The Grove School, Old Mill Village Museum, New Milford, PA

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The Grove School

Old Mill Village Museum

5774 PA State Route 848

New Milford, PA 18834

     Old Mill Village Museum is located at 5774 PA State Route 848, New Milford in Susquehanna County, Pennsylvania.  In the scenic Endless Mountains of Pennsylvania, it was founded over 50 years ago to preserve the area’s rich heritage. It has become a center of education and history, showcasing the crafts and artifacts of the late 18th through the early 20th centuries.  Established on donated land, buildings of historic and local interest have been moved onto the land, and others have been built to display these treasures of the past. During the spring, summer and autumn seasons, the Village presents special events that bring different aspects of our history and heritage alive.  All this is made possible by the efforts of the Associate Members of Old Mill Village, a local non-profit organization of dedicated volunteers who give of their time and talents to make Old Mill Village a living, working museum, “Where Antiquity Lives”

     The Grove School located in Old Mill Village was built in 1858 in New Milford Township, Susquehanna County. It is also referred to as the “Shay School” due to its original location on Shay Hill. It served as a school until 1931, was used by the community for several years and eventually abandoned. It sat on its original location until the early 1970s, when it was donated to Old Mill Village. In 1974, the building was moved intact to the OMV grounds, where restoration work was done, and it was dedicated in the fall of 1974.  The desks, organ, and potbellied stove are original to the school. Over the years, the Grove School has gained a reputation as being haunted; many reports of paranormal activity were made and several investigations conducted by a number of paranormal groups. Visitors to Old Mill Village may tour the school. Some new improvements at the village include new stairs for the Grove schoolhouse.

Carus Historic Schoolhouse (the “White Building”), Evans Farms, Oregon City, OR

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Carus Historic Schoolhouse (the “White Building”)

Evans Farms

22289 OR-213

Oregon City, OR 97045

The Carus Historic Schoolhouse just outside of Oregon City, OR, was built in 1926.  The schoolhouse, also known as the “White Building,” is the third structure to serve as a school for the unincorporated community of Carus, according to the Friends of the Carus Historic Schoolhouse website. In 1963, the first parts of what would become today’s Carus Elementary School were constructed, and the White Building ceased to be used as a school in 1977.

     The need for more parking at Carus Elementary, for which funding was secured by the Canby School District in 2020, led to the decision either to sell the building to someone who could move it, or to demolish the schoolhouse to create room. The Friends of the Carus Historic Schoolhouse, a volunteer organization made up of five women with connections to the Carus school and community, spearheaded an effort to save the building by moving it. They found a destination roughly a mile away in Evans Farms, a wholesale nursery that was the source for some of the timber used to construct the structure originally.

      The nearly 100-year-old structure has been relocated to its new location at Evans Farms, but to get there, it needed to traverse several fields and cross two roads. The building couldn’t be moved on nearby Oregon 213, a more direct route, due to its size.  The move, for which Wolfe House and Building Movers was hired, required crossing hills, a stream, and two roads in addition to multiple fields and horse pastures. It took three days before this 1926 Craftsman style two-room schoolhouse arrived at its new home.

     Work on the Carus Historic Schoolhouse won’t be finished even after the relocation is complete. A new foundation will need to be constructed, as will a new roof, ADA access, and other improvements. The Friends of the Carus Historic Schoolhouse says it will seek to raise an additional $250,000 and matching grants to make this possible. The Friends of the Carus Historic Schoolhouse has been working tirelessly since the fall of 2022 to ensure the building’s safe relocation. It was fitting for it to be moved to Evans Farms, whose lineage includes Clarance Evans, one of the original builders of the school.

Flint-Beckwith one room school, Old Schoolhouse Wedding and Event Center, Colcord, OK

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Flint/Beckwith one-room school

Old Schoolhouse Wedding and Event Center, LLC

56531 County Rd. 660

Colcord, OK 74338

     In addition to being a unique place to host weddings, festivals or family reunions, The Old Schoolhouse Event Center near Flint Creek offers a peek into Oklahoma history.  The one-room schoolhouse was originally known as the Flint/Beckwith School, and has also gone by the name of the Whitmire School, according to owner Troy Crites. Over the years, it served not only as a school, but also a community building, dance hall, polling center and local court, Crites said.  The school house, located at 56531 County Road 660, less than a mile north of the U.S. Highway 412 bridge over Flint Creek, was once part of a thriving community that included a general store, a post office and a ferry for crossing Flint Creek to the nearby Hildabrand Mill, which is on the National Register of Historic Places.  Now the community is gone but thanks to Crites’ restoration, the schoolhouse will continue to live on.

     For Crites, restoring the building and surrounding property has been a labor of love. He first visited the schoolhouse on a field trip from Colcord Schools in third grade, then got to know it even better as he cared for the property for his friend and previous employer Sharon Beck.  Crites purchased the building and surrounding 107 acres from the Beck family and immediately got to work on the building. For him, the priority was preserving the history of the schoolhouse and the idea for turning it into an event center came second.  When Crites began, the desks with inkwells were still in place and the chalkboards with writing were still on the walls. The building even has its original school bell, which is in working condition and can still ring to celebrate special events.

     Crites used all original or reclaimed wood from other buildings of the same era on the property or from the Rose Post Office to restore the schoolhouse and create an addition, which includes a kitchen for catering, bathrooms, a bridal suite, and a groom’s dressing room. Outside, he added a wrap-around deck and has a rustic gazebo in the works.  As Crites spent many hours and late nights working on the schoolhouse it began to tell him a story. The walls are full of bullet holes, some with the lead still in them, he said. In addition, the building has a double tongue and groove floor, with one floor laid on top of another still in perfect condition.

     Crites discovered parts of the building were from an older era, with handmade nails, while other parts looked like more modern repairs. The wood, nails and construction style are the same as the nearby mill and Beck family home, Crites said.  The property, and possibly the building, has some ties to regional and national history. The Hildabrand Mill across the road, on Cherokee Nation property, was the site where the story of the Goingsnake Tragedy, also known as the Goingsnake Massacre, began when Zeke Proctor, was known to object to Cherokee women being involved with white men, shot and killed Polly Beck. The events, which began in 1872, would ultimately test the sovereignty of the Cherokee Nation and would result in the deadliest day for the U.S. Marshals Service, the largest case of Cherokee on Cherokee violence and the bloodiest gunfight in the American west that didn’t involve the U.S. Military, according to David Kennedy, curator of the U.S. Marshals Museum in Fort Smith.

     While there is no doubt that Beck was shot at the Hildabrand Mill, across the road from the Beckwith/Flint schoolhouse, Crites believes the court proceedings and resulting shootout may have occurred in the Beckwith/Flint Schoolhouse as well. He pointed out the layout of the building and surrounding land matches original court documents. Crites also said the school house and property was owned by the same Beck family involved in the tragedy.  Crites believes the bullet holes still in the walls and the replaced window panes are a result of the shootout and wonders if the mysterious second layer of floor he discovered was added to cover bloodstains. Since members of the Cherokee court went into hiding after the shootout, could the official location have been changed in an attempt to further obscure what happened, he wonders.  The U.S. Marshall’s Museum and numerous other sources state the actual shootout happened at a schoolhouse near Christie, Okla., which no longer exists. However, the evidence Crites found in the walls makes him wonder if there could be more to the story.

    Whether or not the school building itself was involved in the tragedy, it does have significant local history.   According to “The History of Schools in Delaware County Oklahoma,” published by the Delaware County Genealogical Society, Beckwith was a small town in Indian territory named for the Beck family.  Before 1900, the school house for a subscription school in Beckwith (Flint) was located at the Bob Barnett home place one-half mile north of the Old Flint Store, the book states, citing an oral history. After 1900, Rich Beck donated an acre of land for a new schoolhouse to be built just across the branch from the post office and store on the hill, it states.  The Kansas Cherokee Hummer reported in 1905 that the school house burned, although particulars were unknown.

     Then in 1906, the same publication went into great detail reporting that the school “mom,” Miss Maggie Brown, went hunting for cows with a friend and used an ax on the Sabbath to cut down two large trees to cross a swollen stream, the book states. The book, citing oral history, states that the Old Beck School House was built in 1909 to replace the building that burned and in 1912, the first record of Flint School was made in the county superintendent’s ledger book. The book also states that in 1923, the old frame schoolhouse was condemned and a new schoolhouse was built, citing an oral history source.  In 1963, the county superintendent’s teacher ledger shows the school was annexed into the Kansas, Colcord and Westville School Districts, the book states. It cites another oral history source that states the current building was moved to the city of Colcord.

     The one-room school had one teacher who would work with all the students in the room.  After the school was closed, it continued to serve as a community building where meetings, such as the monthly meeting of the Flint Riding Club, were held.  Today, the Old Schoolhouse Wedding and Event Center in the historic schoolhouse that was established in 1890 is a beautifully restored venue with its stunning wall of windows and has been designed to accommodate all of kind of event needs.  The kitchen is equipped with a commercial grade refrigerator with extra room for the wedding cake.  The bridal suite includes private bathroom and a lighted vanity.   There is a separated Groom’s room with access to the rear deck and Indoor/Outdoor Ceremony spaces to fit large groups as well as intimate sized events. The 4 acre rural property offers a multitude of fantastic photo opportunities. The Old Schoolhouse includes just the right amount of privacy with the calming sounds of the nearby creek bringing a sense of peace to your special occasion.

Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s Home School, One Normal Plaza, Normal, IL

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Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Childrens’ Home School

One Normal Plaza

601 E. Lincoln St.

Normal, IL  61761

One Normal Plaza, located at 601 E. Lincoln St., Normal, IL, originally started as the Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s home and school in 1865 to house and care for orphans of the Civil War.  It later housed orphaned children whose father served in any war and included cottages for young children, a dormitory-like building for older youths, a recreation center, a central school building, and administration buildings.  The site was abandoned by the state and in 1983 was sold to a corporation known as One Normal Plaza, Inc. for $1.753 million for all 68 acres and buildings, with open space surrounding the buildings leased to the Town of Normal for recreation activities such as football, volleyball and soccer.  In 1992, the land was bought by the town for a public park after One Normal Plaza, Inc. filed for bankruptcy, including the old food service building which was turned into an indoor recreation facility, now called the Community Activity Center.  The Illinois Soldiers’ and Sailors’ Children’s School building, the oldest edifice on the grounds, was demolished in 2017; a monument commemorates its site.

Old Hopetown Schoolhouse, Chillicothe, OH

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Old Hopetown Schoolhouse

Ross County

Chillicothe OH 45601

Hopetown is an unincorporated community located in Springfield Township, Ross County, in the state of Ohio.  It was originally called Hope, and under the latter name was laid out in 1819. The community took its name from the Hope Mill, a gristmill near the original town site. A post office called Hopetown was established in 1900 and was discontinued that same year.  Wesley Chapel in Hopetown is listed on the National Register of Historic Places.  There is an old preserved one-room schoolhouse, in Hopetown. It’s in the Zane Trace School District and was probably closed when a new school was built. The outside looks as good as when it was new.