Monday, January 17, 2011

Across the river, the third ward school building with its' 1869 addition was then the oldest in the city. In 1885 the school board approved a new school, selecting William Waters as architect and N. J. Ruby to be the contractor. More land was acquired and construction began. Mr. Waters designed another Queen Anne style building. A cream color brick with contrasting dark brick bands was employed. At the center of the front elevation was pavilion with a large arched entrance above which was a set of four widows. In the gable were three gothic arches and in the very peek a decorative circle. From the gable roof rose an understated bell tower. The other elevations echoed the pavilion of the front and the fenestration was regular overall. The roof climbed steeply but not a peek and it seemed to be flat at the top.
The slope of the roof was interrupted by dormers on either side of the gable. The school was symmetrical in design and can be seen as a larger prototype of the smaller schools the architect would plan in the future. (Please see the earlier post on Small Schools.) The school was renamed Jefferson School and enlarged in 1906 with plans drawn by Waters. After a long service a new structure was built in the 1980's.

Continued.

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