Courtesy NYS Board for Historic Preservation
The state Board for Historic Preservation has recommended adding 18 varied properties to the state and national Registers of Historic Places, including a former one-room schoolhouse in Greenwich, Washington County.
State and National Registers listing can assist owners in revitalizing properties, making them eligible for various public preservation programs and services, such as matching state grants and state and federal historic rehabilitation tax credits.
Greenwich School District School No. 11, Center Falls, opened in the 1850s. The one-room schoolhouse served one of the mill hamlets that developed along the Battenkill River during the 19th century. The school closed in 1944 and is currently vacant.
It is located at the intersection of Ryan Road and Route 29 in the Center Falls area of Washington County.
The nominated building is an amalgam of 1850 and 1927 spatial and finish features with little in the way of subsequent alteration from that point forward, according to the application filed with the state. It retains a large majority of its historic finishes within and without, excepting the loss of fiber board wall and ceiling surfaces, which were installed in 1927, and the removal of a chimney which once serviced a stove within.
It has undergone a certified rehabilitation to allow for its re-use, and it remains a good representation of a mid-19th century one-room schoolhouse with subsequent 1920s modifications meant to keep it in active educational service.
It consists of two sections erected during separate building campaigns; the main block was constructed in 1850 and a rear wing was added in 1927. The 1850 section was of the characteristic rural one-room school type and was erected with load-bearing brick walls, interior sawn and hewn framing, and plaster and wood finish, according to the application filed with thew state.
It was modified with the addition of the rear frame wing in 1927, which accommodated new restrooms, and at which time alterations were also made to the original construct to bring the building up to current educational standards.
The school functioned continuously as an educational facility for those Greenwich town children who resided near the mill hamlet of Center Falls, alongside the Battenkill River, and it remained in service until school consolidation and centralization occurred in the town in the mid-1940s, the application states.
“The nominations highlight the broad diversity of our state, its people, and their stories. This recognition helps support ongoing efforts made by many people over the years to protect and appreciate New York’s fascinating history,” said Commissioner of the Office of Parks, Recreation and Historic Preservation Erik Kulleseid.
Deputy Commissioner for Historic Preservation at State Parks Daniel Mackay said the Division for Historic Preservation is committed to designating and supporting historic places that represent the histories of the state’s diverse population.
The State and National Registers are the official lists of buildings, structures, districts, landscapes, objects, and sites significant in the history, architecture, archaeology and culture of New York state and the nation. There are more than 120,000 historic properties throughout the state listed on the National Register of Historic Places, individually or as components of historic districts. Property owners, municipalities and organizations from communities throughout the state sponsored the nominations.
Once the recommendations are approved by the commissioner, who serves as the state historic preservation officer, the properties are listed on the state Register of Historic Places and then nominated to the National Register of Historic Places, where they are reviewed and, once approved, entered on the National Register.