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Free Traveling Guides » States » California » Gold Country
Columbia Schoolhouse
Located in the rich history of Columbia, California, and part of Columbia State Historic Park, the Columbia Schoolhouse is an authentic two story red brick schoolhouse presented just as it was when it was an operational school in the late 1800s. It was built in 1860, and was California’s first two story schoolhouse. It opened to 368 students, to be led by two teachers and a principal. California earthquake requirements forced the school’s closing in 1937, but it was restored in 1960 with $60,000, much of which was donated by California school children.
Today, the school is open for visitation and tourists yearning for the flavor of the old west. Each classroom is available for viewing, and are preserved and restored to appear as they did at the time of the school’s full operation. The classrooms are fitted with old wooden desks, just as they were when children gathered at the school for instruction from 1860 to 1937. Slate blackboards, flash cards, and books are present in the classrooms, as well as the infamous dunce cap, which children would be made to wear if they performed badly or misbehaved in class. Two woodburning stoves were also built into the classrooms, ensuring the class would not freeze during the harsh winter months. The boys of the school would be charged with keeping wood in the stove, and the children would find themselves hoping for a spot near the stoves to keep the chill away.
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