Site 5SM117, The Placerville Schoolhouse
Site 5SM117, The Placerville Schoolhouse, on county land owned by the Telluride R-1 School District, is less than 0.25 mile east of the San Miguel River on the east side of State Highway 145 (511145) and less than a half mile south of the intersection of SH 145 and State Highway 62 (SH 62).
The site boundary is defined by the extent of the structures and the ground immediately surrounding them. The overall setting of the site is within the area of a small San Miguel County roadside recreational park, between SH 145 and Front Street, which is about 200 feet east of the highway. A dirt access road runs east between SH 145 and Front Street, 25 feet southeast and parallel to the schoolhouse. There are two small parking areas incorporated with the access road, one adjacent to the basketball court and the other to the playground. A chain-link fence along SH 145 blocks entrance to the access road with a gate. A 40-by-70.foot playground is 100 feet southeast of the schoolhouse, a 40-foot-square concrete basketball court is 40 feet to the northwest, and the remainder of the park is farther northwest, beyond the ball court. The site’s historic setting has likely undergone moderate to heavy disturbances over the years primarily as a result of road improvements to SH 145 and establishment of the public park. If other structures and features within the park area were historically associated with the schoolhouse, they are no longer present.
Structure 1: Placerville Schoolhouse building. The Placerville Schoolhouse exhibits few modifications to the original structure and a moderate amount of maintenance and upkeep. The building is currently used as a public meeting place for gatherings, food help program distribution; and for community attended classes. It currently sees light use. The 1½-story, 24-by-40-foot schoolhouse is oriented generally north to south. An additional 10 feet is added by a vestibule attached at the north (front) end for a total length of 50 feet. About 1 foot of its red cut sandstone foundation is visible on the south side (rear). Two exterior 3-by-4-foot, wood-covered basement accesses are situated at about the center of the east and west sides. It is unknown if the building has a full or partial basement. A medium gable, steel channel roof with boxed fascia and short overhanging closed eaves, runs the length of the building. The original single-stack brick chimney rises from its peak near the south end. The portion of the chimney on the interior of the schoolhouse has been removed, however. The building is sided with 4-inch-wide wooden clapboard and windows and entrances are trimmed with 1-by-4-inch or 1-by-5-inch boards. A 10-by-12-foot vestibule with its own steel channel gable roof is centrally attached to the north side (front) of the schoolhouse. The vestibule’s roof peak rises to about three-quarters the height of the schoolhouse and is pitched identically to the schoolhouse roof. A 6-by-8-foot entranceway includes a 1-foot-tall, two-light transom window and double, four-panel, full wooden doors. The entrance is reached by a small step up from the ground level. A simple, square bell platform of 2-by-4-inch boards without decking is attached to the peak of the vestibule’s roof against the north wall of the schoolhouse. The bell platform is covered by an approximately 4-foot-square extension of the schoolhouse’s roof peak. The bottom side of the extension is covered and it is supported by two 2-by-4-inch boards rising vertically from the vestibule’s roof below. This arrangement appears as an open bell cupola and houses a medium-sized, centrally-pivoting bell fixed to cast iron stanchions attached to the wooden platform. A 6 by-12-foot addition was made to the east side of the vestibule, occupying space left by the original design. The addition was made for two identical bathrooms with internal plumbing and running water that are accessed from inside the vestibule. A shed roof covers the addition as an extension of the vestibule’s roofline. Two 2-by-S-foot, six-light, sliding wood sash windows are situated at either end and flush with the addition’s eave on its east side. One window corresponds to each bathroom. The addition is finished with clapboard and materials that closely match the original structure. A 3½-foot-wide, two-panel door with a 1-foot-tall transom is situated 1 foot from the west edge of the schoolhouse’s south (rear) side. Three windows are regularly spaced between the entrance and the east edge on this side. They consist of a central set of two, one-over-one, double-hung, wood-sash windows flanked by single windows of the same description. A 6-by-7 ½ -foot poured concrete platform at the western edge of the south side, centered on the entrance, rises about 2 feet from the ground. A small step up from the platform reaches the doorway. Three poured concrete stairs lead down to the ground level on the south side of the platform where they meet a 24-foot-long concrete walkway leading east toward the dirt access road. The platform and stairs have a continuous iron pipe railing along their perimeter.
Fenestration on the east and west sides of the schoolhouse Is identical and consists of two regularly spaced windows, each situated 10 feet inward from the north and south edges. Each window consists of a set of two-over-two, vertical-paned, double-hung, wood sash windows with 1-foot-tall transom windows over each. There are no entrances on either side.
Several modern improvements to the schoolhouse are apparent. An electrical meter is fixed along the west edge of the vestibule’s north side; a propane tank is situated about 10 feet east of the vestibule’s bathroom addition, probably for heating; and 6-inch-diameter exhaust pipes rise against the building from both of the basement accesses on the east and west sides.
Structure 2. Structure 2 is a 10-by-14-foot wood-frame shed, oriented generally east to west, situated about 18 feet southwest and perpendicular to the schoolhouse’s southwest corner. A 6-by-14-foot coal and wood storage area is attached to the shed’s north side. The 2-by-6-inch floor joists rest on cornerstones that raise the shed’s 2-by-b-inch wooden floor boards from the ground level. The gable roof is covered with corrugated sheet metal and has open overhanging eaves: The east and west gable ends have fascia boards. The shed’s walls are a curiosity in that they are finished with horizontal 1-by-ic-inch boards on the interior, leaving the 2-by-4-inch studs exposed on the exterior. In other words, the shed has no exterior siding other than 1-by-ic-inch boards laid horizontally in both gable ends between the roofline and the eaves. Two 3-by-6-foot entrances are centered on either gable end (east and west sides). The doors are made of vertical 1-by-ic-inch boards held by 4-inch-long strap hinges on the outside. The doors have no latching mechanisms. A full partition wall of 1-by-b-inch boards is on the interior, 5 feet inward of the western entrance.
Today Structure 2 is used for schoolhouse-related storage, which was also likely its historic purpose. The storage shed’s architectural style is similar to historic outbuildings found on local farms that are used for feed or grain storage. These sheds were built for heavy bulk materials that otherwise would push the exterior siding off the wall studs. Therefore, a possible explanation for the shed’s lack of exterior siding is that it was moved to its present location from a farm where it was originally constructed and used for bulk storage.
A 6-by-14-foot coal and wood shed was added to the north side of the storage shed as evidenced by the nailed connection points from the addition to the shed at its east and west ends. The roof collapsed inward some time ago, and roofing debris occupies its interior. The rotting remains of floor boards are apparent as is evidence of coal and wood storage. The addition’s wall construction is similar to the storage shed with 2-by-4-inch studs and 1-by-10-inch boards on the interior. The addition is accessed through a doorway on its east end; the door is no longer present.
Feature 1. Feature 1 is a water well situated about 25 feet northeast of the schoolhouse. It consists of a 3-foot-diameter culvert-type steel pipe that rises 3 feet vertically above the ground. The upper end is covered and locked. A 3/4-inch-diameter pipe is welded to the culvert pipe in such a way that it forms an arch over the center of the opening. A piece of hardware hangs at the peak of the arch centered over the opening, presumably for mounting a pulley and bucket for drawing water. It is likely that these are recent safety modifications made to a historic well.
Historical Background: No county records were found relating to the land that the school sits on. The original connecting sheets for the railroad survey in 1890 do not show the schoolhouse. The architectural detail, particularly the window design, suggests a construction time about 1900 and perhaps slightly earlier. The previous Office of Archaeology and Historic Preservation inventory form filed for site 5M117 mentioned a construction date of 1896 and cited "A History of the Telluride Public Schools," written by Paul S. Frick in 1962, as a source for this date. This document was not found. Historic photographs, though undated, show the schoolhouse in the same location that it is today (Collman 1990:283 and 289). A drawing reproduced from a Sanborn fire map shows the schoolhouse in its location about 1920.
National
Register of Historic Places Recommendations:
The
Placerville Schoolhouse (5SM117)
is recommended as eligible for
inclusion on the National Register under criteria c. The schoolhouse
stands in its original location and, though suffering from slight
neglect, it maintains integrity of design, feeling, and setting. Its
large windows and gabled roof provide an excellent example early
twentieth century vernacular schoolhouse architecture.
Management Recommendations: Listing on a local register of historic places should be considered for the Placerville Schoolhouse. A historic district designation should also be considered for the Town of Placerville. The schoolhouse would be a contributing structure to such a district.