Venersborg School
Description and history
The school is archetypical of the one room schoolhouse with its simple rectangular plan and gabled roof. The building has served the community which built it from construction to the present day.
Community schoolhouse
The small, red, one-and-one-half story gabled building with a cupola and bell was built in 1912 by John Kullberg. Kullberg, a Swedish immigrant, was a carpenter who also built a number of homes in the community and a church. The building stopped functioning as a school in 1931 when the Battle Ground school district absorbed the student population.
Community activity center
The next year it was purchased by the Venersborg Social and Athletic Club which had formed in 1915. The club was forced to discontinue its popular entertainment due to issues with crowd control. It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 16, 1989. It is listed in the Washington Heritage Register as the state's oldest community center in operation. The roof was replaced by the Venersborg Historic Preservation Society in 2018, the building continues to serve as a center for community activities and a venue for wedding banquets for the church next door. The facility is managed by the Venersborg Community Club.
See also
- Historic preservation
- History of education in the United States
- National Register of Historic Places listings in Clark County, Washington
References
- ^ "National Register Information System – Rural Public Schools of Washington State (#64500710)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2 November 2013.
- ^ "National Register Information System – Venersborg School (#89000215)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. 2 November 2013.
- ^ "Venersborg School". Community Planning. Clark County, Washington. Retrieved 9 Feb 2020.
- ^ Dodds, Linda S.; Darby, Melissa Cole (16 Mar 1989). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Venersborg School". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved 9 Feb 2020. With 9 photos from 1988.
- ^ "Our Village". The Venersborg Schoolhouse: A haven for friends. Venersborg Community Club. Retrieved 9 Feb 2020.
- ^ Garfield, Leonard; Griffith, Greg (19 Jul 1987). "National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form: Rural Public Schools of Washington State". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved 9 Feb 2020.
- ^ "Donation funds new Venersborg Schoolhouse roof". The Reflector. Battle Ground, WA. 24 Sep 2018. Retrieved 9 Feb 2020.
Further reading
- Person, Dorothy Wooldridge (1991). Personotes. D.W. Person. p. 124.
External links
