Greene County

  NEW - Video Tour of the Rural Schools in Greene County

New - One-Room School Students from the Past (Video)

Book David Burton as a speaker on this topic for $25 per hour plus travel expenses. Book now before the calendar fills up.

The Rural Schools Project is a community development project in Greene County that  works with individuals and groups to research the 140 rural schools that once operated in this county and then works to educate the public about the historic and community importance of these buildings. Once that importance is understood, the vision is to work with other individuals and groups to preserve and maintain the existing one-room schools in this county and put them to work serving the community. That of course takes money, so working with groups to create a fund raising strategy is the third and final aspect of the Rural Schools Project.

Click to see rural school class photos.

Information and links related to the book, "A History of Rural Schools in Greene County, Mo." written by David Burton, civic communication specialist with MU Extension.

To date, the Rural Schools Project has been featured or mentioned in over 100 newspaper, television and radio stories. The director of this project has also helped start similar research and preservation efforts in six other counties and has helped numerous individuals and groups working to preserve individual schools in Missouri.

• Online map of driving tour for the rural schools of Greene County, Mo.

• Brochure and order form for the book, "A History of Rural Schools in Greene County, Mo." All proceeds go to the Greene County Extension Council.

• Download actual driving tour of the rural schools of Greene County, Mo. (pdf)

• St. Elmo School - Historic Sites Designation awarded, work continues to gain funds for upkeep and repair. Read more on this webpage.

• Download the publication, "A History of Me" by David Burton. This publication provides the questions and information you need to write an autobiography that should become family heirloom for future generations.

• The "geocities" website that used to contain free information and photos about various one-room schools in Greene County has been shut down. All of the same information is available in the book, "A History of Rural Schools in Greene County, Mo" which can be purchased from the Greene County Extension Council.

MEDIA RELEASES RELATED TO PROJECT

1. School Lunches and Concrete Outhouses, Students at One-Room Willey School Got More Than an Education - WORD      PDF

2. One-Room Schools Once Beckoned Area Students in the Fall - WORD      PDF

3. Driving Tour of One-Room Schools in Greene County Available from MU Extension in Greene County - WORD      PDF

RELATED LINKS

COUNTRY SCHOOL ASSOCIATION OF AMERICA

 

One Room Schoolhouse Resources

The One-Room Schoolhouse Center website was created in 1998 as a way to provide an online resource for those interested in learning more about early education in the United States. The history and reminiscences from those who taught and attended one-room schoolhouses are prevalent throughout the site.

 

One Room School Resource Center

This is a compilation of historical one-room school resources throughout North America available on the internet.  

Rural schools of Jasper County, Missouri

 

http://www.kansasheritage.org/orsh/

 

http://www.jaspercountyschools.org/

 

POSSIBLE FUNDING LINKS

I frequently get asked about funding for restoring old schools. The only success stories that I am aware of (for restoring old school houses) have been community non-profit efforts. There are some awards and grants available from http://www.countryschoolassociation.org. However, the amounts are small. Some state tax credits can be developed to leverage fundraising but you would need to get the school on the state historical register first.

Locust Prairie School, Greene County, between

Strafford and Fair Grove (photo 2005)

Black and white photo download here.

Information on state tax credits can be found by calling the Missouri Department of Natural Resources at 1-800-361-4827 or 573-751-7858 of by visiting the State Historic Preservation Office online at  http://www.dnr.mo.gov/shpo/TaxCrdts.htm.