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taught in a one-room country school or in a series of larger schools geared toward
specific grades, everyone has vivid memories of their childhood education. How
do we preserve the buildings in which these memories took place? How do we know
which schools are truly worthy of preservation? The National Register of Historic
Places provides criteria for evaluating our historic schools, combining consideration
for architectural or historical significance with a measure of the building’s
integrity.
Significance
Typically, schools are considered eligible for listing on the National Register
for their association with public education in Iowa or for their architectural
importance. They may also be eligible for their association with a prominent educator
or if an important event occurred at the school. While we want to recognize schools
that fostered unique education experiences or illustrate the best designs, we
also want to preserve those buildings that represent the typical educational practices
and school designs of their era.
To determine whether your
school may be considered eligible for listing on the National Register, ask these
questions:
1. Is the school very old
(built before 1870)?
2. If it is a one-room
country school, does it have architectural embellishments such as round arch windows
or doors, a cupola, or other unusual features? Or, can it be linked to a known
plan book design?
3. Does the school have an unusual design (architectural form, plan, structure,
or decoration)?
4. Was the school designed by a nationally prominent architect, such as John L.
Hamilton or William Ittner? Or, was it designed by a locally or regionally prominent
architect such as Croft & Boerner; Grahn & Rathurst; Hallett & Rawson;
Keffer & Jones; W.R. Parsons & Son; Proudfoot, Bird & Rawson; Smith
& Childs; or Tinsley, McBroom and Higgins, among others?
5. Is the school one of the early consolidated schools (pre-1913)?
6. Was the school built specifically for special educational purposes or practices
(a normal school, platoon school, or an opportunity school)?
7. Was the school the location of a significant historic event?
8. Did any of the teachers or administrators in the school have a significant
impact on the local, state, or national educational system?
9. Was the school or an addition to the school built using New Deal-era funding
or labor (WPA or PWA)?
Integrity
One of the greatest difficulties in evaluating whether schools are eligible for
listing on the National Register is determining whether there is sufficient “integrity”
to convey their historical or architectural significance. Integrity is made up
of seven aspects: location, design, setting, materials, workmanship, feeling,
and association. An eligible historic property will always possess several, if
not most, of these aspects.
In general, to be eligible
for listing on the National Register, the school should retain its original massing,
form, pattern of door and window openings, and architectural detailing. It should
be recognizable as a school from the period of its significance. However, older
schools are often adapted to meet the needs of new educational trends and technology.
These alterations and additions are often an important part of the building’s
history. For example, libraries, gymnasiums, and spaces for the performing arts
and building trades were often added to existing schools in the middle 20th century.
Any alterations that date to more than 50 years ago may have significance in their
own right.
It is important to keep
in mind that many of the more recent alterations are so widespread that they will
not necessarily prevent a school from being nominated to the National Register.
For example, during the energy crisis of the 1970s, it was very common to replace
or cover up the large window openings in historic schools. Fortunately, this change
often involved only the removal of the window sash, not enlargement of window
openings, and will not disqualify a school from nomination to the National Register.
Assistance
The State Historical Society of Iowa has produced a series of booklets to help
those who want to learn more about historic schools and nominate them to the National
Register of Historic Places.
Country
Schools for Iowa
Town
Schools for Iowa
City
Schools for Iowa
The Statewide Public School
Historic Context “Public Schools for Iowa: Growth and Change, 1848-1955”
provides additional in-depth information on the significance of public schools
and the requirements for nominating them to the National Register. It will be
available on this Web site in the near future.
Example National
Register nominations:
Country
School: Dahlonega School #1, Wapello County
Accompanying
photos
Town
School: Decorah East Side Elementary and Middle School, Winneshiek County
Accompanying
photos
City
School: Roosevelt Elementary School, Waterloo, Black Hawk County
Accompanying
Photos
For additional information
regarding listing on the National Register, please contact:
Beth Foster Hill, National Register Coordinator
Beth.Foster@iowa.gov
515.281.4137
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