One Room Schoolhouse in Colorado

Coal Creek School, Meeker Colorado

Date added: November 25, 2024

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Colorado
School

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The Coal Creek School was constructed in response to a need to accommodate the growing rural population. An earlier 1884 log cabin at a site half a mile to the east served as the first Coal Creek School until the demand for space for the increasing population of students necessitated a new building. When the present Coal Creek School was built in 1892 the nearest other rural school was over five miles away. Other rural schools weren't built within the school district until 1909 and 1916. Students for the Coal Creek School often traveled by horseback or walked over dirt roads, hills and meadows five miles each way to and from the school. Because of the long distances the students had to travel daily, some families living near Coal Creek School would board other children at their homes during the school terms.

Most of the students came from the surrounding ranches and farms and ranged from the first to eighth-grade level. After 1902 when a student graduated from eighth grade they could attend the Rio Blanco County High School in Meeker. Age wasn't always the criteria for what grade level a student was assigned; in 1896 a young man from Sweden attended the school in order to learn English.

The local school year grew from six months in the 1890s to nine months in the 1930s-40s. In the 1890s and early 1900s the school term often depended on available funds to hire a teacher as well as when children were needed to help on the ranches and farms for planting, working livestock, and harvesting. Enrollment at Coal Creek School ranged from a high of twenty-eight students in 1903 to six students in 1948. Enrollment often increased or decreased because of national or local events. Declines in local manpower during World War I and World War II resulted in some students having to attend school only when they weren't needed on the ranches or farms. Highly contagious diseases, illnesses, and the flu epidemic of 1917 and 1918 caused the school to close for short periods. The 1930s Great Depression caused many families to lose their farms and ranches and move away.

Many rural schools began to close in the late 1940s and early 1950s, encouraged by Colorado's School District Reorganization Act of 1949, which followed a national trend of consolidation. Many Rio Blanco County schools followed this same trend, closing in the short time span of 1948-50. When Coal Creek School closed in 1948 children were transported to the Meeker School over gravel roads by their family or neighbors. The children would ride in open pickup trucks, with other children collected along the way. Later a paid bus driver drove a panel truck which made the trip to school a lot warmer and drier. Today a full-size school bus picks up students only along paved roads. If a student lives on a gravel road, parents must bring them to meet the school bus.

From the time the school was constructed in 1892, annual Christmas and end-of-school-year programs were provided for the parents and community. School Board meetings were held at the school and the school often hosted entertainment, suppers, and dances to raise money for various school and community causes, such as an organ, War Bond drives, beautification of school grounds, and repairs for the school. Most events at rural schools included a meal since people would come from miles around to attend. Young children and babies would often sleep on or under the desks as their parents danced into the early hours of the morning.

When Coal Creek School closed in 1948 the Rio Blanco County School District No. 1 retained ownership until 1957, when the Coal Creek Community Association (CCCA) bought the property for $10. The CCCA continued to use the school for social gatherings until 1987, when it was deeded to the Board of County Commissioners of Rio Blanco County, on behalf of the Rio Blanco County Historical Society (RBCHS), for $10. Today it is used for storage by the RBCHS, but the goal is to restore the school to its original beauty and again use it as an educational center and meeting place for the community.

The Coal Creek School was a polling place from 1893 until the late 1960s, even when the school was not otherwise in use from 1948-57. Ballots were counted by kerosene or gas lamps until electricity finally arrived in the area in the early 1950s. There was never any electricity in the school while it was used for the education of students.

Coal Creek and Meeker Area History

Prefigured by the Ute and some early ranchers, the first established Euro-American settlers in the area of modern-day Meeker were United States military troops who moved in after the 1879 Meeker Massacre and Battle of Milk Creek, which occurred about ten miles northeast of the Coal Creek School's current location. The troops arrived to provide a military presence to stem the violence that had occurred earlier in the year. Troops, led by Colonel Wesley Merritt, ultimately established the Camp on the White River just four miles east of the White River Indian Agency, site of the Meeker Massacre. Nearly one thousand soldiers were housed at the Camp on the White River. Colonel Merritt departed Meeker in 1882, but the soldiers remained until 1883. By this time the area's Utes had largely been removed to the Uintah and Ouray reservation in Utah, and thus the tension between white settlers and native people had greatly reduced.

With the military moving on to other efforts they began a sale of the now-unused army buildings in August of 1883. White settlers in the area were eager to purchase the buildings to further establish businesses and grow the community. In 1885 Meeker became the only incorporated town in northwestern Colorado, a status it held for more than twenty years. It became the center for business, banking, and commerce for the area, including a profitable Native American trade business.

After the departure of the military, early residents of Meeker and the surrounding areas were, for the most part, either directly or indirectly engaged in ranching. Ranchers managed herds on the rich lands surrounding Meeker, including Coal Creek, but the town operated as their supply headquarters. In many cases the ranchers faced a day of travel to get to Meeker for supplies, so they did not make the trip often. Businesses in town thrived on activity from the ranchers, and ranchers depended on supplies available in town. Meeker continued to serve as a supply center for ranchers well into the twentieth century, but never gained the traction of the other nearby supply centers of Rifle, Glenwood Springs, and Grand Junction. Despite never experiencing business and population growth like their neighbors to the south, Meeker and its surrounding area have remained stable with an agricultural economy and as a strong tourist destination for hunters and sportsmen.

Rural Education

The town of Meeker built its first school in 1883. Education for the surrounding rural communities would begin a year later, when the first Coal Creek School was opened in a log cabin about six miles northeast from the town of Meeker. At the time the first Coal Creek School was established in 1884, Meeker and the Coal Creek area was still part of Garfield County. Coal Creek School was District No. 3 in Garfield County. In 1889 Rio Blanco County was formed and Coal Creek School became District No. 2 in the Rio Blanco County School District. Little Beaver School, Upper Coal Creek School and Thornburgh School became part of District No. 2 between 1909 and 1916. In 1922 Coal Creek School and Little Beaver School formed District No. 14. This district continued until August 26^th, 1955 when the electors of School District No. 14 voted to dissolve the district and annexed it to School District No. 1.

As the population in the Coal Creek area grew in the late 1880s and early 1890s, the local community realized it needed a bigger school. The present school was built in 1892 at a new site on one acre of land deeded for $1 by Andrew P. Warlick to the Rio Blanco County School District. Today some of the ranches and farms in the Coal Creek area are run by third- and fourth-generation families or alumni of the Coal Creek School. Students of Coal Creek School became teachers at various schools in and around Meeker, school board members, county commissioners, water board commissioners, and worked in various county and town positions.

Building Description

The 1892 Coal Creek School is located about five and one-half miles east of the town of Meeker, Colorado on approximately one acre of land. The rectangular-plan school is constructed of locally quarried stone and wood. It sits on a slight knoll surrounded by agricultural land, with the closest house about 300 yards to the northeast of the school property. The school grounds are covered with predominately native plants and enclosed with a wire fence. The school is near the middle of the property, with privies to the direct north and a horse shed to the northeast of the school. A concrete cistern near the school's front door has not been in use for over 60 years. Coal Creek School has windows on all sides and the south front gable is covered with wooden shingles in a decorative pattern.

Coal Creek School sits on a small knoll overlooking Agency Park in the White River valley. Views to the south and west are of open range, hay meadows, small sandstone geological formations, the river and small tributaries. Approximately two miles to the northwest rises the Meeker Dome, an anticlinal uplift geological feature, which is the site of several abandoned oil and gas exploratory wells dating from the 1920s and later. South of the property, Coal Creek flows to the west before it joins the White River. North and east of the school property are a single residential property, more agricultural lands and the southern reaches of the Danforth Hills, an area long associated with coal mining.

The school property is covered with native grasses and sagebrush. A curved gravel drive from the county road to the direct south of the school building provides access to the property and an informal parking area. A wire fence with metal and wood posts runs along the top of this drive and outlines the property northward." A metal gate in the fence directly in front of the school building opens to a concrete walk leading up to the school. A concrete pad, approximately 23' wide, sits in front of the school entrances. Another, larger wood gate at the southeast corner provides access to the property for horses. An overhead electrical line extends from the county road at the south to a wood pole at the northeast corner of the school building, and extends beyond to another pole at the northeast corner of the horse shed.

A concrete cistern is located near the southwest corner of the school building at the concrete pad. At one time there was a flagpole in front of the school but no evidence of it remains today. There is no knowledge of Coal Creek School ever having any swings or other playground equipment. Local interviews reveal that the children would hunt rocks or arrowheads, jump rope, make snow angels, play marbles, tag and other group games at recess.

Coal Creek School is a single-story rectangular building, 23' x 39', built on a stone foundation. For over 120 years it has retained its original size. It is built of locally quarried sandstone, but in the 1910s or 1920s, a stucco finish was added to the outside. Currently the stucco is sloughing off the south side in patches, revealing the original stone walls. The school has a steep gable roof with modern standing-seam metal. All four sides of the building feature window openings of 3' width x 5.5' height. Today most of the windows are covered by plywood. A large concrete area with a cistern and sidewalk were installed in front of the school, possibly at the same time the stucco finish was applied, based on historic photos.

Originally the roof of the school was of wood shingles but today it is covered with modern metal standing-seam roofing. A prominent belfry was originally located at the south end of the ridge above the front facade of the building, but it was removed when the school closed. There is one brick chimney at the peak of the roof on the north end of the building.

The south side features the main and only entrance into Coal Creek School. This side has two doors with transom windows above. An arched window opening between the two doors extends slightly into the gable end and at one time had a one-over-one double-hung window outlined with small square lights of colored glass (see Historic Photo 1), which is now missing. A decorative wood ledge with brackets at either end sits over the arch of the window. A metal, shelf of unknown function has been attached to the top of the decorative ledge, with supports extending downward. The south gabled end features decorative, unpainted wood shingles in an alternating scallop and diamond pattern. All other wood trim on the outside is painted white.

The school's east and west sides are identical, with three double-hung windows evenly spaced along each wall. Although currently covered with boards to protect from vandals, the windows feature a two-over-two light pattern and are known to have been originally fitted with Caldwell sash balances. The stucco is still on the sides of the building covering the original stone. Two large cracks emanating from the window opening at the northwest corner suggest that this area of the building may have settled slightly.

At the north side of the building, there are two two-over-two double-hung windows, which are currently covered with plywood. The gable end is covered in clapboard siding and lacks the decorative wood shingles of the front facade. Stucco covers the original stone wall.

The two exterior doors into the school originally opened into cloakrooms. Interior doors led from the cloakrooms into the main classroom, with transoms allowing light in. Today only one cloakroom remains at the southeast entrance. When the other cloakroom was removed is unknown. Examples of interior trim include the door casings with "running millwork" to square corner blocks with bull's-eye molding. The interior walls are lath and plaster with wainscoting at the lower half. Chalkboards cover much of the north, west, and east walls. The school originally featured a 12'-high ceiling, which was subsequently lowered to about 8' in the 1950s at the time electricity was installed. The current sheetrock ceiling now covers some of the decorative woodwork and upper portions of the chalkboards.

To the north of the school building stands the privies/coal storage building. This 10' x 12' one-story frame building with side-gable roof housed a boy's privy on the west side and girl's privy on the east side, with a coal storage room between them. The building is clad in unpainted clapboard, much of which is now missing, exposing the framing and interior wood walls within. Door openings to the privies are at the east and west gable ends, at the extreme south end of each side. Each privy had the capacity to house two students at once; names carved or written in pencil on the interior walls suggest which side housed which gender. The center coal storage room has a door opening at the south side (with the door itself missing) and another opening at the north side. This north opening still has an awning type door with metal strap hinges along the top; the lower half appears to be missing. Remnants of coal and wood are still in the coal storage room. Original wood shingles can be seen on the north slope of the roof, with the rest remaining unprotected. The building is severely deteriorated and may be in danger of collapse unless it is restored and protected in the near future.

Veins of coal are visible on nearby hillsides and coal mines existed in the vicinity, leading to the speculation that coal was the primary source of heat for the school most of the time. Within a few miles of the school as the elevation rises there are pine forests, and at times wood may have been used to heat the school or as kindling to start the coal fire in the mornings.

The horse shed stands northeast of the school. The 10' x 40' shed-roof frame building has three sides and is open to the east. Rough vertical log siding covers most of the west side, while finished lumber covers the north and south ends. The roof is a corrugated metal. Original, unfinished cedar posts remain visible structural features within the shed. This building protected the horses and tack many children used to travel to school out of the westerly wind and hot afternoon sun. A gate into the school yard for horses remains today. Oral interviews with former students indicate that the horse shed was extended beyond its original length to the south, ca. 1920s-30s.

Most of the few alterations to the school building appear to have occurred when the school closed. Prior to that at an unknown date, but likely during the 1910s-20s based on historic photographs, the school district covered the stone masonry with stucco. The original belfry at the south end of the roof was removed sometime after the school closed in 1948. The belfry consisted of a delicate structure comprised of four tall corner posts supporting a peaked roof with a concave curved slope on each of its four faces. At the intersection of each post there was a filigree bracket brace. The original bell was moved and donated to the White River Museum in Meeker. In some historic photographs a metal chimney at the peak of the roof can be seen, but no information regarding its function has been found. This roof opening is believed to have been covered over when the current metal roof was installed at an unknown date sometime after 1948. In the 1950s the ceiling was lowered to accommodate electrical wiring. The horse shed is believed to have been extended at an unknown date. The doors and many of the windows have been removed and the openings are now covered.