Michigan One Room Schoolhouses: Abandoned One Room Schools

Wednesday, September 23, 2015

GRATIOT COUNTY

At one time, Gratiot County had over 130 schools - many of them were one-room schools.

I wish to thank Carol Douglas at the Gratiot County Genealogy Library in Ithaca. Michigan for all her help and information she provided on the Gratiot County one-room schools.

Rooks (Bethany #5) School

LOCATION: Northwest corner of Blair Road and Monroe Road (aka M-46) in Section 23, Bethany Township

Current Use: Garage/Storage Building

Brick (Bethany District No. 3) School (1895)

School Plaque

LOCATION: 3743 Monroe Road (aka M-46) in Section 27, Bethany Township

(on the south side of the road between Crapo Road and Bush Road)

Current Use: Attached to pole barn/storage building

Herron (Emerson District No. 9) School (1902)

Emerson School Exterior & School Plaque

LOCATION: 2571 E St. Charles Road, Ithaca in Section 28, Emerson Townshhip

(on the north side of the road about ¼ mile west of Baldwin Road - east of Ithaca)

Current Use: Storage

Green School

LOCATION: Approximate address is 6707 Lumberjack Road, Riverdale, in Section 31, Seville Township

(northwest corner of Lumberjack Road and NW Williams Road in the town of Riverdale - north end of town on the Fred Meijer Heartland Trail)

Current Use: Museum - moved from Isabella County to its present location in 1988

Ola Corners (District No. 7) School

LOCATION: 1969 East Garfield Road, Ashley in Section 5, Washington Township

(northwest corner of Garfield and Bagley Road – aka US-127)
This brick school replaced the older school which no longer exists.

Current Use: Business

Frost (Lafayette #5) School

LOCATION: Southwest corner of Barry Road (aka CR505) and St. Charles Road in Section 33, Lafayette Township

Current Use: Privately Owned

Mellinger (District #5) School (1882?)

I think the sign reads "Ithaca No. 78 Grange"

LOCATION: 2258 Fillmore Road in Section 9, North Star Township

(on the south side of the road between Baldwin Road and Bagley Road (aka old US-27). It is closer to Bagley Road.

Current Use: Abandoned

While driving around Gratiot County, we noted the status of the following one-room schools:
- Beebe School (Emerson Township) Tyler & Baldwin Road - GONE

Wednesday, June 10, 2015

ONTONAGON COUNTY

Thank you to Bruce Johanson (Ontonagon County Historical Museum) for helping us locate one-room schools in Ontonagon County. I can’t wait to return to the U.P. and add those schoolhouses to my blog!

Carp Lake Township School

LOCATION: Halfway River Road

Midway between Ontonagon and Silver City is the community of Green. West of Green (which is located near the intersection of Townline Road and M-64) is Halfway River Road – From M-64 turn south and go 4/10’s of a mile on Halfway River Road. School is on the left side of the road.

YEARS USED AS SCHOOL: I have two conflicting pieces of information. One says that this one-room schoolhouse was used from 1906-1922 at which time a larger school house was constructed. The second source indicates the school was built in 1913 and used until 1959.
Current Use: Unknown - the last use was the Carp Lake Township Hall.

Interior Township Elementary School (aka Little Old Schoolhouse)

LOCATION: 103 Old M-28, Trout Creek

(East of Bruce Crossing and west of Kenton is the town of Trout Creek. From M-28 turn right onto Division Road and drive a few blocks to down town Trout Creek.

Current Use: Interior Township Hall.

Gem School (1908-1925)

LOCATION: 13937 US-41, Bruce Crossing in Stannard Township

Current Use: Restaurant

Syrja School (1910-?)

LOCATION: 5362 M-28, Bruce Crossing in Stannard Township
Current Use: Church

Beck School

LOCATION: 16536 Firesteel Road in Ontonagon Township

(northwest corner of Firesteel Road and Beck Road)

Current Use: Private Residence

North Flintsteel (aka Red) School

LOCATION: 17937 Firesteel Road in Ontonagon Township

Current Use: Unknown

Woodspur School

LOCATION: Northwest corner of Mountain View Road and US-45 in Ontonagon Township

Current Use: Abandoned

Michigan One-Room Schoolhouses

I enjoy traveling and history and I document everything through another hobby – photography. Among my favorite subjects to photograph are one-room schoolhouses.

Okay, I am going to date myself but I attended a one-room school (Price School in Victor Township, Clinton County). The building was sold a long time ago and a field of corn now grows where the schoolhouse once stood. If anyone has a photo of Price School I would love to receive a copy!!

Those schoolhouses that have survived may now serve as museums through preservation efforts by local historical societies. Some have been converted into private residences, businesses, or are used by local government units. Unfortunately, most have been torn down or have been left in a state of decay. These disappearing structures represent a piece of history and looking for them is like going on a scavenger hunt.

Most schools were named after the land owner who provided the land for the school, a nearby town, or a local natural feature. Price School was named after its location (northeast corner of Price and Chandler Roads).

Everyday I walked about a mile to Price School – uphill, in the snowy winter, carrying my books … okay, during good weather I rode my bike. Since children walked to school back then, these one-room schools were built every few miles – depending on available funds and population of school-age children. Often the one-room schools were located in the township’s sixteenth section because that was the center of the township.

Like most one-room country schools, Price School had one front entry door but a few schools had separate doors – one for the boys and one for the girls.

Generally schoolhouses were painted white (cheaper) but there are some schools painted red. In Michigan, wood was plentiful and it was the most often used material for building the school. However, brick (and a few stone) schoolhouses were built too.

So, when we travel through each county in Michigan, I always keep watching and hoping to photograph these buildings before they disappear from the rural landscape that is part of our American history.

This blog site will be a work in progress. Each time I discover and photograph a historic schoolhouse, I will add that photo and whatever information I have on the school by editing the blog post that corresponds to the Michigan County the schoolhouse is located.

Please respect private property and view those former schoolhouses from the public right-of-way.

Some information (e.g. school names or dates) contained in this blog was obtained from Historical Societies, the Michigan One-Room Schoolhouse Association, or County Equalization Departments.