Mark Twain Elementary School, St. Louis Missouri

Date added: December 02, 2023 Categories: Missouri School

The Mark Twain School (originally Harney Heights School) is located at 5316 Ruskin Avenue, St. Louis, Missouri. The school was designed in 1910, constructed in 1911 and opened in 1912. The neighborhood surrounding the school at the time was a rapidly developing streetcar commuter suburb on St. Louis' north side. The school was originally named for the neighborhood (Harney Heights). When the school's name was changed to Mark Twain, the neighborhood began to be known for the school and eventually was recognized as the Mark Twain Neighborhood.

The area surrounding Harney Heights School was primarily farmland until development commenced in earnest in the 1890s. In June of 1892, the St. Louis Post Dispatch announced the purchase of a large tract of land in the vicinity and stated "[t]his is practically new territory, just commencing to be developed by the completion and successful operation of the Bellefontaine electric [streetcar] line out to the cemeteries." The area developed rapidly after this point and with it came the need for school facilities to accommodate the children of the neighborhood.

St. Louis' population grew quickly around the turn of the century, with the population increasing by more than 75,000 residents between 1890 and 1900, and by more than 111,000 between 1900 and 1910. The growing population drove the creation of ever more streetcar commuter suburbs as the population spilled out to the north, west, and south of downtown. Harney Heights exemplified this pattern with real estate sales and development that seemed to happen overnight. In the first decades of the 20^th Century, it was common to see Post Dispatch articles with titles like "Hundred Houses Being Erected in Harney Heights" and "Harney Heights Sets New Record for Real Estate Deals". With new neighborhoods like this developing all over the city, School Board Architect William B. Ittner was kept busy planning and overseeing the construction of new buildings.

With a foresight characteristic of the St. Louis Public School Board, a parcel of land on which a school could be situated had been purchased in advance of the apex of the building boom in what was then known as the Harney Heights neighborhood. By 1905, Ittner completed plans for the first temporary school facilities to be situated on the site. However, it wasn't until the summer of 1909, that two "portable" frame schoolhouses were erected upon the site. Portable schools were one of Ittner's innovations born out of the need to react quickly to the needs of a burgeoning population. The buildings were designed to be erected quickly to suit student needs in advance of the construction of a more permanent building and many if not most of Ittner's schools were preceded on their sites by these portable facilities. When the permanent school was opened, the temporary buildings were taken down and moved to another location.

Despite the fact that William Ittner resigned as Commissioner of School Buildings in the early winter of 1910, his dealings with the St. Louis Public School System were far from over. For the next few months, he worked to complete the designs for schools such as Harney Heights that had already been commissioned. However, it appears that Hans Toensfeldt, the new Commissioner of School Buildings took over the quotidian duties of actually getting the schools built.

In the summer of 1910, another two portable buildings were added to the temporary complex at Harney Heights, indicating that the growth of the school-age population in the area was mirroring the growth of the surrounding residential district. Ittner's preliminary plans for the permanent school building were approved by the Board in October 1910.

Construction began on the school in 1911 and Harney Heights School opened for the first time on September 3, 1912. The school contained 24 rooms and was the only entirely new school to be added to the roster of public schools at the advent of the 1912 school year. The school, being brand new and designed at the height of development for Ittner's thinking regarding educational architecture, was state of the art. In 1915, Harney Heights was listed among only 10 out of 110 schools in the system to have an auditorium (a massive third-floor space with a stage and seating for 718), one of 24 that had a gymnasium (it actually had two), and one of only 16 that had showers and bath facilities. The school also had the luxury of restrooms in the basement as well as the first and second floors. In addition, it had a designated kindergarten with immense floor-to-ceiling windows and a library that was intended to serve both the students and the residents of the surrounding neighborhood as well. The school also boasted technological innovations such as a telephone system and a central vacuum system that could be accessed by janitors in each room.

The school thrived in its first few years, though it appears attendance was low with a graduating class of just 19 sixth-grade students in the summer of 1915. Things changed rapidly however, probably due to a large number of new subdivisions in the vicinity being completed, because by February 19 of the next year (1916), just over four years since Harney Heights Elementary opened its doors, the school was included on a list compiled by the Superintendent of Schools Blewett among those schools "in need of immediate relief" of overcrowding.

The area surrounding the school had quickly become a populous suburb; residents were primarily middle class and had largely been born in Missouri or at least the United States. Most were one or two generations removed from German or Irish immigrants and worked at skilled jobs such as bank clerk, leather cutter at a shoe factory, accountant, supervisor at a manufacturing plant, foreman at a boiler plant, and bookkeeper. These were people with means who were following the streetcar lines out to the new suburbs to escape the noise and smoke of the inner districts. In accordance with the upward mobility of the residents for whom the school was built, it is no wonder that Ittner designed a building that was both beautiful as well as functional. The school was to serve not just students, but the surrounding community as a center of social life; as such careful attention was paid to ensure that its physical form would enhance the appearance of the neighborhood.

In 1918 a decision was made to change the name of the school from the banal "Harney Heights," which had been derived from an early subdivision name, to the more evocative "Mark Twain," after the great literary son of Missouri who had died eight years prior. No reason for the change was given however when the Post Dispatch reported the change on May 15, 1918. Today the surrounding area has come to be known as the Mark Twain Neighborhood because of the presence of the school.

Mark Twain School served the students of the City of St. Louis from 1912 until its closure following the 2009-2010 school year. Between 1990 and 1991, a one-story brick gymnasium was added to the rear of the southern portion of the building. This building is a single room constructed of concrete block and faced with variegated brick, laid in Flemish Garden Wall bond like the rest of the school. In addition, the building is encircled by a stone belt course which lines up with the stone water table of the original school. These stylistic considerations serve to camouflage the addition to the extent that an observer who was not familiar with the original floor plan and/or trained to parse the construction history of a building would likely think it original.

Building Description

Harney Heights School (renamed Mark Twain in 1918) is located at 5316 Ruskin Avenue in St. Louis, Missouri. Architect William B. Ittner designed the Jacobethan style school in 1910, construction began in 1911, and the school opened in September of 1912. The school occupies half of city block 5141 in St. Louis' Mark Twain neighborhood. The school is an excellent example of the "open" floor plan conceived and refined by Architect William Ittner during his tenure as architect for the St. Louis Board of Education and Commissioner of School Buildings. The school is an E "Open" Plan Elementary School property type having corridors with classrooms on one side only. Ittner developed this design feature to provide additional indirect light to classrooms and projecting wings, which enable many classrooms to receive light from three sides directly.

Mark Twain School is situated just north of Penrose Park and immediately southwest of both Bellefontaine and Calvary cemeteries in the north, central portion of St. Louis. The surrounding neighborhood was built primarily in the first decade of the 20^th Century as a desirable middle-class streetcar commuter suburb. In addition to Ittner's classic (and unaltered) open plan, the school is lavishly ornamented with abundant stone trim, variegated brick, copper cupolas, stone gargoyles, and colorful mosaic panels. It retains its original terraced front yard and surrounding wrought iron fence as well as sparse, but orderly landscaping in keeping with Ittner's specifications. The interior of the school retains much of its original maple flooring, built-in cabinetry and even some marble backsplashes surrounding water fountains.

The school building is constructed of variegated brick laid in Flemish Garden Wall bond with abundant stonework used to accent bays. This bond was frequently used by Ittner in schools of this period and was specified as a component of the overall aesthetic. Further ornament is provided by Arts and Crafts inspired tile murals and terra cotta shields designed by noted ceramicist Henry Chapman Mercer at the Moravian Tile and Pottery Works in Doylestown, Pennsylvania. The school's form is a variation on Ittner's "open" or "E" shaped plan, and represents the full realization of the architect's ideas regarding school design. Designed and constructed as Ittner made the transition from Commissioner of School Buildings/Architect of the St. Louis City Public Schools to his role as "Consulting Architect," Ittner's revolutionary ideas regarding school design were reaching their full maturity at the time of the construction of Mark Twain. As such, the school is a representative culmination of the architect's ideas and work, which earned him enduring acclaim in the field of educational architecture. Having served the students of the city for 97 years, Mark Twain School closed following the 2009-10 school year as the St. Louis City Public Schools enacted measures to deal with declining enrollment and reduced revenue projections.

Mark Twain School is an elaborate example of Jacobethan design, and a manifestation of Ittner's refined Open Plan. The Open Plan was developed and improved by Ittner during his career with the St. Louis City Public Schools, between 1897 and his retirement to the role of "Consulting Architect" in 1910. Undergoing near-constant revision due to the architect's unrelenting pursuit of improvement, the Open Plan finally reached maturity toward the end of the first decade of the 20^th Century.

Mark Twain has a long central block parallel to Ruskin Avenue, a projecting wing at each end, and two small entrances located in projecting "mini-wings" formed by engaged stair-towers flanking the center point of the central block. The school retains its physical integrity; it exhibits original materials, its original characteristically shaped plan, scale, roof shape, and fenestration. It is in its original location and retains orderly landscaping and the original dimensions of its schoolyard. The physical condition of the school is excellent with peeling paint on many window surrounds comprising the only apparent degradation of exterior features. Likewise, the interior is remarkably intact with original wood floors in classrooms, marble paneling around fixtures, iron ventilation grates, and built-in cabinetry. Interior alterations are generally minor and include non-original linoleum in corridors, drop- ceilings in some rooms, faux stone surface treatment of railings and walls in the rear stairways, and new HVAC systems. The most substantial alteration to the original fabric of the school is the fact that all windows on the rear facade (east-facing) have been replaced. The appearance of the rear elevation has also been impacted by the addition of a one-story gymnasium addition.

Mark Twain School is situated in a very intact early 20^th Century neighborhood dominated by one-and two-story brick residences. The school is surrounded on three sides by asphalt yards which were used as both playgrounds and later as parking lots for teachers. The school's primary facade faces Ruskin Avenue and is fronted by a landscaped and terraced yard dominated by mowed grass and evergreen bushes. The planted "lawn" with the remainder of the surrounding property being paved is typical of Ittner elementary schools in St. Louis. While outside activities certainly were a component of the educational model practiced by the schools during Ittner's tenure, it seems that most structured physical education took place in the basement gymnasia rather than on outside playgrounds. The school grounds are surrounded by an original cast iron fence and approached by stairs on both the south and west sides where the lot is substantially above grade. There is no playground equipment associated with the school, nor is there any evidence that playground equipment was part of the original facility.

The school itself is a two-story (plus raised basement and attic) Jacobethan-style building constructed in 1911. The building is composed of a dominant three-story central block flanked by two-story wings, each wing terminating in two-story blocks that are pulled out beyond the plane of the central block. Two entrances frame the central block and form engaged stair towers. Limestone quoining frames the two entrances. A shallow portico consisting of Doric limestone columns and simple entablature cover the two main entrances. The top of the entablature forms a shallow balcony at the second floor. A limestone balustrade with heavy pedestals outlines the balcony. Brick quoining edges the outside corners of the building. A limestone water table encircles the school at grade.

There are four large round-headed openings with semi-circular carved limestone surrounds that illuminate the kindergarten room. Windows in these openings are multi-paned tripartite wooden casements with fixed lights in the transom. Operable six-over-twelve, single-hung wooden sash in tripartite configuration are found on the second floor of the central block's main facade.

There is a limestone sill at the second floor running the length of the central block. Fenestration on the third floor of the central block consists of operable nine-over-fifteen single-hung wooden sash in tripartite configuration with wrought iron Juliet balconies. The stair towers contain multi-paned tripartite wooden casements with limestone mullions that open onto a shallow balcony. A bank of multi-paned tripartite fixed lights illuminates the stairway from the second to third floors. All fenestration in the stair towers are framed by limestone quoining and have limestone headers, sills, and transom bars. The two-story blocks contain operable six-over-twelve single-hung wooden sash in groups of five. All headers are brick soldier course except in the stair towers on the main facade. All other fenestration are variations of wooden single-hung or casement windows.

At roof level, curvilinear Dutch gables capped in limestone terminate the two-story blocks on three sides. The stair towers terminate in octagonal cupolas in brick and contain multi-paned fixed light sash. The parapet wall of the central block continues around the cupolas and contains a limestone balcony. The parapet wall is brick in a herringbone pattern with a limestone cap.

The roofs of the cupolas are sheathed in copper. The roofing material is gray slate. There are two large brick chimneys framing the central block at the ridge. There is another large brick chimney at the rear of the central block.

Ornamentation consists of a gargoyle at the porticos on the main facade. Colorful mosaics found on the exterior of the school were manufactured and designed at the Moravian Pottery and Tile Works in Doylestown, PA. Rectangular terra cotta panels adorn the walls of the two-story blocks and round, multicolored mosaic tile shields depicting the arms of Spain, France, the United States, and Missouri are placed between the first and second floors of the central block and ornamental shields are placed on the end gables of the projecting side entrances.

Original interior appointments in this building appear to be largely intact. Interior casework and trim is in oak and remains largely unpainted. Some of the doors are of quarter-sawn oak. Door transoms are intact. The blackboards and coatrooms remain unchanged. There is original tongue and groove oak flooring in some of the classrooms. In addition, the interior hallway fenestration in the kindergarten room is still intact. There is an original marble backsplash by one of the drinking fountains in the hallway. The exposed truss-work in the auditorium has been painted but remains intact.

Alterations include standing seam metal roofing replacing slate on the small entry wings. The original main entrance opening sidelights and transoms have been filled in and doors replaced with commercial metal units. Brick has been re-pointed with a different color mortar on the Dutch gables. The original plaster ceilings have been replaced with dropped acoustic ceiling tile in classrooms and hallways. The most substantial alteration to the original fabric of the school is the fact that all windows on the rear facade (east-facing) have been replaced.