Abandoned school in Ohio
Central School, Martins Ferry Ohio
The Central School stands on ground that was given by Ebeneezer Martin in 1837 for educational use. The first school on this site was erected in 1853 but was demolished in 1894 to make room for the Central School. Since 1897, its date of completion, the Central School has served as a landmark. Its high clock tower is a prominent object that has been used by rivermen as a guide to their location on the Ohio River which flows past Martins Ferry. The school tower has also served as a focal point for the community due to its central downtown and elevated location. It has operated as a high school, grade school and junior high school thereby playing an important part in the education of Martins Ferry's population.
Charles Henry Owsley was an important architect active in the eastern Ohio and western Pennsylvania area from 1878 until his death in 1935. His offices were in Youngstown where he practiced with his son and Louis Boucherle. Among the buildings he designed is the Mahoning County Courthouse. Owsley designed an impressive example of the Richardsonian Romanesque for the Martin's Ferry school. Especially noteworthy are the use of contrasting stone and brick and the massive four-story tower.
The building was demolished by a private developer in June 1979.
Building Description
The Central School is a massive, nearly square, red brick and stone, two-story structure. It stands alone in a brick-paved yard and is surrounded by trees. Its major feature is a lighted clock that stands five stories above the street corner. The foundation and basement is of cut stone which can be seen rising on the exterior to about four feet above the bricked yard. From this height spring four brick arched doorways, one on each side of the structure. The arches contain fan lights of 14 stained glass panes and three colored sidelights. Some of these have been damaged and replaced with modern glass. The windows have different designs as a result of two fires and their replacement at different times. Most are double-hung single-pane windows and others are double-hung, three over three, horizontal pane windows. The clock tower windows are twelve over twelve pane windows.
All windows have stone sills and lintels. The lintels above the second-story windows are connected to form a continuous horizontal band. This gives the mass of the structure a horizontal character that offsets the tower's verticality.
Above this stone band begins brick corbeling that ends on the eave table. Breaking the smooth face of the brick exterior are brick pilasters with carved stone bases. These pilasters rise to dormers and to the clock tower. Their design unites the high building elements to the lower central structure.
The slate roof is a mixture of pips, gables and dormers that make a total of nine projections. There are seven chimneys that also penetrate the roof surface. The brick chimneys have blind arch detailing on their faces that are repetitions of the detailing on the structure's major feature.
The central feature of this structure is the five-story clock tower. The blind arch detail spans the fourth and fifth story levels and contain pairs of twelve over twelve pane windows. Above this is the newer addition that was built after the original spire was removed because of deterioration. The original clock and works remain but its brick enclosure is of a more recent design. The clock was manufactured in Boston, Mass. by E. Howard and Co.
The Central School's interior is divided into numerous classrooms connected by a very wide central hall. Access to the second floor is gained by way of a series of impressively large stairs that begin in a single width and then return in a double width on either side of the lower stairs. The oak railing, spindels, and newel posts are handsome in detail. Nearly all the interior is original except where the fire caused renovation in several rooms.
The school has been abandoned since 1971 and some damage has occurred. Roof leaks have caused a small amount of ceiling plaster to fall. Leaking gutters have caused some damage to the eaves and some glass has been broken. In general, the school is in good condition for its age and length of vacancy. This is due to its quality building material and its visible location that deters vandalism.
