Adobe Schoolhouse
circa 1904 after the addition of two more rooms
circa 1917
circa 1904 after the addition of two more rooms
The original Lehi Schoolhouse was a one-room adobe schoolhouse built in 1880. The first school washed away in a flood and a second one was built. Two more rooms were added later and the outside was veneered in brick. By the early 1910's, this schoolhouse was no longer functional for the growing community and was replaced by the Old Lehi School.
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Built in 1913, the Old Lehi School became the new grade school in Lehi and the building still stands today, only now it’s home to the Mesa Historical Museum!
The Little Adobe Schoolhouse was an authentic reproduction of Mesa’s original adobe schoolhouse. Local high school students helped to build the replica in celebration of the centennial. Descendants of the original pioneer families donated items to add to the authenticity of the replica schoolhouse. The Little Adobe Schoolhouse attracted interest in Mesa heritage which resulted in the creation of the Mesa Southwest Museum. When the Mesa Southwest Museum expanded in 1998 into the Arizona Museum of Natural History, the Little Adobe Schoolhouse was demolished.
In 2001, the Mesa Historical Museum built a new replica of the schoolhouse next to the museum, and it is now on the same land that housed the original schoolhouse it is modeled after.
Francelle Robson was the first teacher of the original schoolhouse. This recording was done by Francelle’s grandson, Charles Ennis Robson, and was played upon entering the replica schoolhouse (it has since been removed.) In this recording, Charles Robson discusses the original schoolhouse and what school was like for the pioneer children who attended it.
Vice Mayor of Mesa, Jim Davidson (left) and President of Museum’s Board of Directors, Howard Godfrey December 14, 2000
Dec. 2000
Vice Mayor of Mesa, Jim Davidson (left) and President of Museum’s Board of Directors, Howard Godfrey December 14, 2000
Scroll through to see the process of building the Adobe Schoolhouse Replica!