Venersborg School

Venersborg School
U.S. National Register of Historic Places
Washington Heritage Register
The school's exterior, 2015
Venersborg School Location of the school in Washington Show map of Washington (state) Venersborg School Location in the United States Show map of the United States
Location	NE 209th St. at NE 242nd Ave. Battle Ground, Washington
Coordinates	45°46′23″N 122°25′25″W
Built	1912 (1912)
Built by	John Kullberg
Architectural style	Vernacular
MPS	Rural Public Schools of Washington State[1] (64500710)
NRHP reference No.	89000215
Significant dates
Added to NRHP	16 March 1989[2]
Designated WHR	1989

The Venersborg School is a historic one-room school located at NE 209th Street and NE 242nd Avenue in Battle Ground, Washington.

Description and history

The school is archetypical of the one room schoolhouse with its simple rectangular plan and gabled roof. The building has served the community which built it from construction to the present day.

Community schoolhouse

The small, red, one-and-one-half story gabled building with a cupola and bell was built in 1912 by John Kullberg. Kullberg, a Swedish immigrant, was a carpenter who also built a number of homes in the community and a church.[3] The building stopped functioning as a school in 1931 when the Battle Ground school district absorbed the student population.[4]

Community activity center

The next year it was purchased by the Venersborg Social and Athletic Club which had formed in 1915. The club was forced to discontinue its popular entertainment due to issues with crowd control.[5] It was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on March 16, 1989.[4][6] It is listed in the Washington Heritage Register as the state's oldest community center in operation.[5] The roof was replaced by the Venersborg Historic Preservation Society in 2018, the building continues to serve as a center for community activities and a venue for wedding banquets for the church next door. The facility is managed by the Venersborg Community Club.[5][7]

See also

• Historic preservation
• History of education in the United States
• National Register of Historic Places listings in Clark County, Washington

References

1. "National Register Information System – Rural Public Schools of Washington State (#64500710)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
2. "National Register Information System – Venersborg School (#89000215)". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. November 2, 2013.
3. "Venersborg School". Community Planning. Clark County, Washington. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
4. Dodds, Linda S.; Darby, Melissa Cole (March 16, 1989). "National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination: Venersborg School". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved February 9, 2020. With 9 photos from 1988.
5. "Our Village". The Venersborg Schoolhouse: A haven for friends. Venersborg Community Club. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
6. Garfield, Leonard; Griffith, Greg (July 19, 1987). "National Register of Historic Places Multiple Property Documentation Form: Rural Public Schools of Washington State". National Register of Historic Places. National Park Service. Retrieved February 9, 2020.
7. "Donation funds new Venersborg Schoolhouse roof". The Reflector. Battle Ground, WA. September 24, 2018. Retrieved February 9, 2020.

Further reading

• Person, Dorothy Wooldridge (1991). Personotes. D.W. Person. p. 124.

External links

• "Washington State Historical Society".