| Additional Information: | Rising three stories, this modest Collegiate Gothic Revival-style school is sheathed with brick and comprised of three primary periods of construction. Oriented to the east, the original 1927 block rises two stories from a raised basement level that is set off by a stone water table. The entrance (east) elevation is delineated into seven bay divisions by patterned brickwork set to appear as pilasters and topped with a stone ornament, the central bay of which rises only slightly higher than the rest of the building. A set of stairs fronts the double-door entry that is set within a stone surround and beneath a round-arched window; a single window is located to either side of the entry and the round-arched window above. The (replacement) words “RIVER FALLS ACADEMY” are located along the stone lintel above the door. A tripartite window arrangement separated by brick piers is located at the center along the uppermost story which is flanked by single sash. Each of the remaining bay divisions along the east contains a pair of large window openings with replacement panes. Both the north and south ends of the building feature brickwork pilaster trim to either side of the stone-trimmed entrance on the ground level which rises to frame a round-arched, balcony-like space above. Extending from the north end of the building and to the west is a three-story wing added in 1950, while a two-story, 1990-91 classroom and gymnasium addition extends to the west from the south end of the building. Aside from the aforementioned additions and removal of the original, multiple-light windows, the building has changed little in its exterior appearance. An interior inspection of the building was also completed and the room arrangement of the 1927 block remains largely intact, as do the stairwells, terrazzo flooring, tiled window sills, auditorium (and stage, including the proscenium arch) and gymnasium.
River Falls High School was built in 1927 on the same site as the previous school building, which was destroyed in a fire on 28 April 1926. The architectural firm selected was Ellerbe & Co. of St. Paul, Minnesota, while the contractor chosen was J.B. Nelson of Mankato, Minnesota. Progress on the school, reported at the end of June 1927, indicated that the masonry work was completed, plastering on the first and third floors was finished, windows were being installed and that between thirty and forty men were on the job. As of early August, it is noted that many rooms are practically finished and laying of the gymnasium floor was underway. Although not entirely completed, the school opened in September 1927. It housed all grades from Kindergarten through 12th, with the elementary grades located on the first floor. The school included an agriculture department, which offered high school classes on animal husbandry, crops and soils, farm mechanics and agricultural economy. In October of that same year, evening agriculture classes were taught by Mr. Campbell (also the daytime agriculture teacher) and offered at no charge for “farm boys” aged fourteen to twenty. In 1950, a three-story addition was added at the northeast corner of the 1927 building. Following the completion of Greenwood Elementary School in 1955, a portion of those elementary students moved to the new location; however, the Fremont Street school building continued to house one class of each grade until the 1965 addition to Greenwood was completed. In 1961, a new high school was built at 230 N. 9th Street (south of Greenwood Elementary and which now functions as Meyer Middle School) and the 1927 building largely functioned as the River Falls Junior High School. A new high school was completed in 2001 on Cemetery Road and grades 6 through 8 shifted to the former high school building on N. 9th Street.
Since that time, the 1927 high school building has been used by a variety of programs, including the YMCA, Heartstrings, River Falls Community Theatre and Harbor, among others. The Renaissance Charter Academy (alternative high school), currently operates out the building, as does the Montessori Charter Academy, both of which are operated by the River Falls Area School District. Discussions continue to-date about the building’s future. |
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| Bibliographic References: | "High School Bids Range From $135,946 to $168,900," River Falls Journal, 30 September 1926, page 1.
"School Building Work Was Started This Week," RFJ, 14 October 1926, page 1.
"New High School Building Rapidly Nearing Completion," RFJ, 8 September 1927, page 1, col. 3.
“School For Farm Boys to be Started Here,” RFJ, 6 October 1927, 1/4.
“Evening School Started at High School Tuesday,” RFJ, 13 October 1927, 1/6.
"Dedication Exercises at High School Tomorrow," RFJ, 5 January 1928, page 1, col. 6.
"More Than 500 Attend High School Dedication," RFJ, 12 January 1928, page 1, col. 3.
A citation in The Daily Reporter (Milwaukee), 26 October 1926, cites the contractor as JB Nelson Construction and the architect as Ellerbe & Co. of St. Paul, MN. |
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