school

Old Chicopee High School // 1917

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The Old Chicopee High School building is located at 650 Front Street, between the two major population hubs of Chicopee Center and Chicopee Falls and is one of the finest examples of Collegiate Gothic/Neo-Gothic Revival architecture in Massachusetts. The school building was constructed in 1917 from plans by architect, George E. Haynes as a central high school, a single building where pupils from all over the city could be educated. The population growth of Chicopee in the early decades of the 20th century necessitated additions and reworking of the spaces of the building, eventually outgrowing the building after WWII. In 1961, plans for a contemporary high school were completed and this building became a middle school for the City of Chicopee. Architecturally, the building stands out for its siting and high-quality design. The main facade features a central clock tower which contains the main entrance. The use of brick with cast stone trim and the castellated parapet add much dimension to the large building. The City of Chicopee have done a commendable job maintaining this important landmark.

Holy Name Science High School // 1925

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The third and final extant building on the former Church of the Holy Name of Jesus complex in Chicopee, Massachusetts, is this former school building, a stunning example of Colonial Revival architecture. Located behind the former church and rectory buildings, this three-story building was built in 1925 as a “Science” building to accompany an existing girl’s high school. Inside, the building had a “Commercial” department, where young girls could learn important skills like banking, stenography, and typing; with the second floor containing traditional science classrooms and labs along with the school library. Springfield-based architect, John W. Donohue, who specialized in ecclesiastical buildings in Western Massachusetts, designed the building in the Colonial Revival style with brick and stone construction, an elaborate entrance and Palladian window on the second floor facade. The school building closed in the late 20th century, and has seemingly sat vacant ever-since. I sincerely hope this important building could be incorporated as much-needed housing for Chicopee residents!

Administration Building – Elms College // 1932

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Elms College in Chicopee, Massachusetts began as the Academy of Our Lady of the Elms, a Catholic boarding school for girls established in Pittsfield by the Sisters of Saint Joseph in 1897. The academy was relocated to Springfield Street in Chicopee through the efforts of Bishop Thomas D. Beaven in 1899. The Academy provided elementary and secondary education with a Normal School component that prepared young women for careers in teaching. In 1924, Bishop O’Leary announced the intention to expand the school into higher education, creating a women’s college. The college charter was approved in 1928 and the Academy became the College of Our Lady of the Elms. Planning and construction of the Administration Building (later renamed Berchmans Hall in 1983) began immediately after the incorporation of the College in 1928. Designed by John W. Donohue, the official architect of the Diocese of Springfield at the time, Berchmans Hall is a landmark example of the Collegiate Gothic/Neo-Gothic style that proliferated higher education and ecclesiastical buildings in the early decades of the 20th century. Completed in 1932, the new building included offices, modern classrooms and laboratories. The back section contained a gymnasium in the basement and an auditorium on the main floor. The building remains the main building on the Elms College campus and serves as an important visual anchor to the school.

Alvord School // 1894

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When the old Broadway school in Chicopee Falls became neighbors with the Overman Wheel Company, an early bicycle manufacturing company, there was so much noise and distraction that the Chicopee School Committee voted to sell the school and build a new school building down the street. A triangular lot on Broadway was purchased and Springfield architect, Francis R. Richmond, was chosen to design the new building in 1894. The school was dedicated to Dr. Samuel Alvord, a Chicopee Falls resident who was first principal of the local high school and local doctor that died in 1892. The Alvord School is a great example of a Richardsonian Romanesque school building of brick and brownstone, with recessed entry within a Syrian arch and decorative terracotta tiles. The school would close in the second half of the 20th century, and today is known as the Helen A. O’Connell Administration Building, a municipal office building.

Adelphic Institute Building // 1847

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Located across from the North Cornwall Congregational Church in Cornwall, Connecticut, this vernacular, Greek Revival building was constructed by 1847 as the Adelphic Institute, a private school. The Adelphic Institute was founded by Ambrose Rogers, son of Deacon Noah Rogers of the Congregational Church in the village, on land and adjacent to the house he had inherited from his father. The school would eventually relocate to New Milford, Connecticut, in 1860 and this building was converted to a parsonage and meeting room for the church and village. It is now privately owned on the property of the old Rogers house.

Old Goshen Academy Building // 1824

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The former Goshen Academy building is located in the central village of the rural town of Goshen, Connecticut, and it is an important vestige of early education in the small town. The Goshen Academy building was built in 1824 from funds by shareholders of the institution. The academy featured a lecture room on the second floor with smaller classrooms downstairs. The academy would eventually close, and it has been occupied by the Goshen Historical Society.

Xavier Hall // 1911

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Xavier Hall was built between 1910-11 on the campus of St. John’s Prep School in Danvers, Massachusetts. The building was constructed by the Xaverian Brothers as classrooms as the first purpose-built structure in what would become a large campus. The Neo-Gothic Revival style building was sited adjacent to Porphyry Hall, an 1880 estate house that the new school purchased in 1891, which was later expanded by the addition of a rear chapel. Edward T. P. Graham, an architect best known for his design of Roman Catholic churches and associated buildings, was hired to design the stately structure built of brick and limestone.

Georgetown Brick Schoolhouse No. 4 // 1854

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Constructed in 1854 for intermediate and high school classes at a time when one-room schoolhouses were still the rule in Georgetown, this well-preserved brick building is a reminder as to how far education and schooling has come. As nearby one-room schools consolidated and after the new Central School Building (now Georgetown Town Hall) was built in 1905, this Greek Revival school building was converted to town offices. The town was still fairly small, so the offices only occupied the ground floor, and the town rented the upper floor to the All Saints Episcopal Church, who purchased the building in 1917 and occupied it for nearly 50 years. They likely added the Craftsman style entry porch. The church was deconsecrated in 1966, and the building sold in 1970 to the Noack Organ Manufacturing Company, who added an assembly room at the rear.

Georgetown Town Hall // 1905

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Welcome to Georgetown! The Georgetown Central School, now known as the Memorial Town Hall, stands near the historic commercial center of Georgetown, Massachusetts, a rural community in Essex County located about 28 miles north of Boston. The two story wood-frame building was built in 1905 to a design by the Boston architectural firm of Cooper and Bailey, and located at the site of an earlier one-room schoolhouse built in the 18th century. It was Georgetown’s first multi-room school building, and was built after the town’s first high school/town hall burned down in 1898. The Colonial Revival style school building was eventually outgrown and was no longer needed as an educational facility. It was converted to municipal offices in 1974, a use that has remained ever since. The town has taken pride in this building, restoring much of the exterior details and slate roof.

Pennell Institute Building – Gray Town Hall // 1886

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The Pennell Institute was built in 1886 as a privately funded, public school for the town of Gray, Maine. By 1870, Gray High School was located in the former Town Hall, and due to increased enrollment and ever-cramped quarters, demand for a standalone school was of grave importance. As a result, local resident Henry Pennell decided he would help his hometown. Henry Pennell (1803-1884) as a young man, worked as a butcher and traveled to Portland to sell his cuts of meat, later buying and selling livestock. After the Civil War, he dealt in real estate and mortgages, was sheriff of Cumberland County (1857-1858) and served in the State Senate (1872-1873), and became the richest man in the town of Gray. Mr. Pennell, who himself, never had received much formal education, saw the value in it for the youth of the town. Construction started on the school in 1876, where the foundation was laid, but it would take ten years until after the death and bequeathing of his estate in his will, that the building would be completed in 1886. Henry Pennell left the town the school building, the lot it stood on, a trust fund of $25,000 for the school’s general expenses, and a special fund of $5,000 for the library and for laboratory equipment and supplies. The school closed with students educated at a larger, modern building. After disputes between the Town of Gray and the local school district, the building has now been home to the Gray Town Hall, with the town clearly showing pride in their Italianate style building.

Former Appleton Academy Building // 1942

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Appleton Academy (aka the New Ipswich Academy) was established in New Ipswich, New Hampshire, in 1789, being the second oldest private academy in the state. The school was named after benefactor Samuel Appleton, the largest early donor, who grew up in town at his father, Isaac Appleton’s homestead. This is the fourth Academy building in New Ipswich. The original 1789 frame building was outgrown and in 1816, it was decided that the academy would be shared with the new town hall building, occupying the second floor. Sharing a prestigious academy building with the town functions was deemed insufficient, and a new prominent site near Appleton Common was acquired, with a new brick academy building constructed there in 1853. The Italianate style structure was funded by the Appleton Family, and was designed by Boston architect, William Washburn. In January 1941, the main Academy building was destroyed by fire. The next year it was rebuilt, closely following the design of the earlier brick structure. The school closed in 1974 and was used by a non-profit and schools until it sold in 2018 and appears to be a residence now.

Lyman School – Ashby Town Hall // 1903

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Originally built in 1903 as the central school for the town of Ashby, Massachusetts, the significant Colonial Revival style Lyman Building is one of the most significant and well-preserved buildings in the village. The building was designed by architect Henry M. Francis of Fitchburg and educated pupils in town from grades 1-12. The two-story, hip-roofed building displays a symmetrical facade with a central section displaying five arched upper story windows, flanked by two pediment-topped pavilions atop projecting, flat-roofed arched entrance vestibules with quoined corners. The symmetry of the original design was preserved when the identical side wings constructed in 1922. Ashby public schools merged with Pepperell and Townsend and this building was later converted to the town hall. I love when towns value their historic buildings and retrofit them for new uses!

S Road Schoolhouse // 1860

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The S Road Schoolhouse is the last-remaining one-room schoolhouse in the charming coastal town of South Bristol, Maine. The structure was built in 1860 as the District Five School for the Town of Bristol (South Bristol set off and incorporated as a separate town in 1915). This building replaced an earlier schoolhouse on the site that was on the 1857 Map of Lincoln County. By 1895, enrollment was about 16 but rose to the mid-twenties after other schools closed in the early 1900’s. The school is said to have closed in 1943 following the death of the teacher here, it never reopened. The South Bristol Historical Society recently restored the building following a successful capital campaign, gathering funds from members and town citizens, preserving this lasting remnant of days past.

Ashford Academy // 1825

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Built in 1825, the Ashford Academy school building is the last remnant of what was Ashford, Connecticut’s once thriving town center. The taverns, church and businesses which were once located here have almost entirely been razed, leaving just this school building as the remaining structure. Ashford Academy was founded about 1825 when a group of citizens raised funds toward adding a second story to a schoolhouse then under construction in the town center. Only one teacher was hired per term, and some years there were no academy classes at all. The last academy session was held in 1875, though the building continued in use as a district school until 1949. The building is significant, not only for its siting and connections with the town’s early days, but also architecturally as a high-style school building for a more rural setting.

Alna Center School // 1795

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Built in 1795, the Alna School is one of the oldest extant purpose-built school buildings in New England. The small frame structure sits a short distance from the Old Alna Meetinghouse and is one of the finest 18th century buildings in town. The Federal period one-room school building features a square footprint with graceful cupola housing a bell projecting from the roof, which was added a few years after the building was completed. The school was one of two early school buildings for the newly incorporated town of Alna, soon after its separation from Pownalborough and incorporation in 1794 (originally as New Milford, and later at Alna in 1811). The school remained in operation through the 20th century and is no longer used.