We love old architecture also. When we drive through old towns, we often will leave the highway just to drive up and down the streets to look at the buildings and houses.
This Spring, Forest Grove School Preservation (a 501c3 non-profit corporation)has been able to replace the east siding and is preparing to replace the south siding as well. The sign is being rehabilitated. Window jams are all rehabbed, with only two new jams on the south. We are awaiting construction of the new door jam and threshold, as well as the new replica door. We are looking for 10 and 11 lb window weights to install the replica windows that are completed (including historic glass), primed, and painted. We are seeking a mason to build a non-functioning chimney accord to the architect's specifications. Thank you for inluding Forest Grove School No. 5 in this blog. We are grateful for your support.
Work on the interior of the schoolhouse has begun. Reclaimed flooring from another schoolhouse near Princeton, IA, was donated to replace the original flooring in Forest Grove School, and we are eager to have that installed. Currently, work is being done to rehab and replace the 'bones' of the cove ceiling and to replace interior structural features that were removed in 1949 to add a basement and stairway. Please follow us on Facebook at Forest Grove School Preservation, or follow our pictorial timeline on the website at www.forestgroveschool.org.
My paternal grandmother, Meta Schaefer Speth (1891-1985), grew up in Pleasant Valley Township on an 80-acre farm owned by her parents, Otto and Freda Schaefer, located north-west of the present intersection of Tanglefoot Lane (then called Rural Route 1) and Devils Glen Road. She attended school at a one-room schoolhouse located near the present site of the Pleasant Valley High School. I imagine that the schoolhouse somewhat resembled the one pictured in this article. Does anyone know where I might find a photo of the schoolhouse she attended school at?
If you have Facebook, I can recommend you join this group: Iowa's Rural Schools. https://www.facebook.com/groups/261309104576243/ A lot of people provide the sort of information you are looking for.
Thanks, Glenn! I also found that the name of the school my grandmother attended was "Belmont School", as shown on the 1905 plat-map of Pleasant Valley.
At the junction of Forest Grove Road and Criswell Street, on the north side of the road just east of Criswell. Built in 1873 and closed in 1957, this school is in very sad shape. Many cement blocks have been removed from the site, which leaves the sides with no foundation. The interior has been intentionally destroyed and trashed. But the architecture is still interesting, especially in the school sign above the door. Both swing sets are still there, although minus the swings.
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Photographs taken on 5/26/11
Update, 8/30/12. The Cedar Rapids Gazette, 8/26/12, reported that efforts are underway to stabilize the foundation of this school before winter, as the beginning of a restoration project.
Update, 4/1/14. Photos taken today to show progress being made in restoration. A new foundation was built after lifting the school, and then the school was set back down on it. Restoration efforts ceased for the winter.
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UPDATE 12/1/15: Here's an article discussing the restoration, and letting us know that the school is "buttoned up" for the winter.
UPDATE 1/16/16: The following photographs were taken today.
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UPDATE 10/16/16: The following photos were taken on 10/15/16 during a tour with a 1-room school conference group. The interior has a long way to go.
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UPDATE 10/13/20: Today we took the following photographs. Restoration appears to be complete. We looked in the windows and the inside is completely outfitted with desks, etc. An architect drew the new bell tower using the original bell tower in a 1923 photo. The original bell was donated back to the school by the school’s former owner.[Image][Image]
[Image][Image][Image][Image]2/14/22. We were in the area so we took some photos. These are winter shots so they show the shutters closed. Also notice replica outhouses (although modernized) have been built and a pump (non-working) has been placed next to the front sidewalk. Both swing sets have been restored. We also photographed the information which is posted at the new parking lot. One photo (reflecting the cameraman) shows the edge of the old outbuilding on the left side of the photo, which has been removed during restoration.[Image][Image][Image][Image][Image][Image]
posted by Glenn E. Chatfield at 12:51 PM on May 27, 2011
11 Comments
Close this window Jump to comment formThis is awesome! I love vintage houses, schools, barns, and other buildings.
June 6, 2011 at 8:10 AM
We love old architecture also. When we drive through old towns, we often will leave the highway just to drive up and down the streets to look at the buildings and houses.
June 6, 2011 at 12:20 PM
This Spring, Forest Grove School Preservation (a 501c3 non-profit corporation)has been able to replace the east siding and is preparing to replace the south siding as well. The sign is being rehabilitated. Window jams are all rehabbed, with only two new jams on the south. We are awaiting construction of the new door jam and threshold, as well as the new replica door. We are looking for 10 and 11 lb window weights to install the replica windows that are completed (including historic glass), primed, and painted. We are seeking a mason to build a non-functioning chimney accord to the architect's specifications. Thank you for inluding Forest Grove School No. 5 in this blog. We are grateful for your support.
June 11, 2015 at 5:03 PM
Hi Forest Grove Restoration,
I've been following you on Facebook ever since I read you had one. We are glad to see the great job you are doing to preserve the school.
June 11, 2015 at 6:50 PM
My mother in law Mrs.Jane Westbrook Butcher, was a teacher at this school.We are all so anxious for it's completion.
Sarah Butcher
October 22, 2017 at 6:23 PM
Work on the interior of the schoolhouse has begun. Reclaimed flooring from another schoolhouse near Princeton, IA, was donated to replace the original flooring in Forest Grove School, and we are eager to have that installed. Currently, work is being done to rehab and replace the 'bones' of the cove ceiling and to replace interior structural features that were removed in 1949 to add a basement and stairway. Please follow us on Facebook at Forest Grove School Preservation, or follow our pictorial timeline on the website at www.forestgroveschool.org.
November 18, 2017 at 2:29 PM
Hi Sharon,
Thank you for that update!
November 18, 2017 at 2:38 PM
My paternal grandmother, Meta Schaefer Speth (1891-1985), grew up in Pleasant Valley Township on an 80-acre farm owned by her parents, Otto and Freda Schaefer, located north-west of the present intersection of Tanglefoot Lane (then called Rural Route 1) and Devils Glen Road. She attended school at a one-room schoolhouse located near the present site of the Pleasant Valley High School. I imagine that the schoolhouse somewhat resembled the one pictured in this article. Does anyone know where I might find a photo of the schoolhouse she attended school at?
January 22, 2020 at 10:29 PM
Hi Ken,
If you have Facebook, I can recommend you join this group: Iowa's Rural Schools.
https://www.facebook.com/groups/261309104576243/
A lot of people provide the sort of information you are looking for.
January 23, 2020 at 9:31 AM
Thanks, Glenn!
I also found that the name of the school my grandmother attended was "Belmont School", as shown on the 1905 plat-map of Pleasant Valley.
February 6, 2020 at 12:08 AM
Ken,
That's great!
February 6, 2020 at 8:48 AM