Stories about oldest schoolhouse:

"Built during the first Spanish period..." p.3 Was a school for Minorcan
children to teach them English. School run by Juan Genopoly with his
daughter Mary Darling as first teacher. p.5 (During British period)

During 2nd Spanish period was "only co-educational institution in St.
Augustine." p.7

Record of class graduating as late as 1864 (p.7)

Asserts it is the "House of Boards, property of Tomas Ramos," shown
on Puente "just across the alley to the north of its present location..."
(sentence omitted)

Twelve years later... Mariano de la Rocque... made his map of 1790, (sic)
showing the house in its present location and listed as "House of wood
in fair condition, owner Juan Jenoply...(p.ll)

The house "might have been 150 years old then. (i.e. in Rocque's time)

"The house was built after 1586 and some time before 1763." p. 13

Source: "Oldest Wooden School House in the United States,: no author,
no date. SAHS, Houses and Streets File, Oldest Wooden School House.










Stories about oldest schoolhouse:


"oldest building of wood in St. Augustine, erected during the Revolutionary
War."

"This oldest frame house in St. Augustine is authentic, being endorsed
by the City Fact-finding Committee and the Permanent Marker Committee
of the St. Augustine Historical Society and Institute of Science.

Source Brochure (prob. 1930's) "The Story of the Oldest Schoolhouse
in the United States." SAHS, Sch.H. file. contains letters addressed to
Mr. Harris.

"Constructed during the 1600's" (Flyer by Moore Pipe and Sprinkler Co.,
Jacksonville, Fla. 1948, advertising sprinkler protection for oldest
school.)

"...it is one of the oldest WOODEN buildings in America and the oldest
wooden school house.


Source: G. Tom Bailey, Jr. "Oldest Wooden School House, 199 years old,"
Florida Contractor and Builder, April, 1962, p. 33









Stories about oldest schoolhouse:

The Permanent Markers Committee of the SAHS researched the school house
in 1931 and 1932 and "refused to endorse it...for the reason that Mr.
Harris had no evidence that it was ever used as a schoolhouse in the
accepted sense of the word, but he did have several affidavits from
citizens then living that stated they attended school there when very
young, sometime after the end of the Civil War." One individual, when
later interviewed by PM Committee, declared he had attended kindergarten
there at age 5 and he "stated that he never knew the house to be considered
a schoolhouse, it was a private, preschool-age kindergarten."

Society did approve a marker that the house was the oldest wooden house
in St. Augustine.

Source: David R. Dunham, President, SAHS and Institute of Science,
to Hon. Walter B. Fraser, Dec. i3, 1950. SAHS, Schoolhouse file.









Stories about oldest schoolhouse:


Note clipping from N. Y. Times, Sunday, June 12, 1966, Section XX,
p. 45.

Bernard J. Mplahan, "Amnerica's Old School Ties." Maintains several 18th
century schoolhouses in Conn.

Clipping from Greensboro Daily News, Gr'eersboro, N. C., Feb. 17, ,i7,
p.8. Refers to wooden schoolhouse on Staten Island, N. W., known as
the Voorlezer's House, purportedly built in 1696.

SAHS Schoolhouse file









Stories about oldest schoolhouse:

Memo to Doris Wilers (sic), June 20, 1963 from Van Campen (signed
Vzn C. (sic))

Mentions that he was under the impression that a detailed study of
the schoolhouse was done at the time of the Saturday Evening Post suit.

Note article in Saturday Evening Post, March 5, 1949. Article by
Leigh White, "St. Augustine" in series called Cities of America, p.24.
Article was quite critical of Walter B. Fraser& his attractions. Did
he sue? Check