Key Number:	HS 25738
Site Name:	Shilo School
Other Names:
Site Type:	0314 - Educational: School

Location

ATS Legal Description:

			Twp	Rge	Mer
			36	5	5

Address:	7.5 km E of Caroline
Number:
Street:
Avenue:
Other:
Town:
Near Town:	Caroline

Media

Type	Number	Date	View	Source

Architectural

Style:
Plan Shape:
Storeys:	Storeys: 1
Foundation:
Superstructure:
Superstructure Cover:
Roof Structure:	Low Gable
Roof Cover:
Exterior Codes:
Exterior:	One storey wood frame structure.
Interior:	N/A
Environment:	The Shilo school is situated in a typical country school setting surrounded by trees.
Condition:	The exterior of the building is in poor to fair condition. Structurally the building appears to be sound with most of the problems evident being cosmetic and fabric condition. The wood shingles need replacing and the siding requires repair in several areas along with a coat of paint. The site could use a general clean up as it is quite cluttered. All problems with the school can be remedied quite easily. The exterior of the building is in good condition with a high degree of original material.
Alterations:	This small one room school has retained practically 100% of its original design and material. Some minor alterations have been made such as the addition of storage cupboards and shelving. The exterior of the building remains unchanged since construction.

Historical

Construction:	Construction Date:
Constructed	1910/01/01
Usage:	Usage Date:
School Community activities	1910/01/01 1953/01/01
Owner:	Owner Date:
Shilo Community Club	1961/01/26

Architect:	N/A
Builder:	N/A
Craftsman:	N/A
History:	Historical Significance: Shilo School is typical of a once widespread Alberta institution, the one room rural school. The first Alberta one room school was erected in Edmonton in 1881 and, in subsequent years, a great number of such schools were erected throughout the province. By 1914, for example, there were 1,925 one room schools in Alberta. By the outbreak of World War II, the urban one room schools had been replaced by larger, more imposing and complex structures, in rural areas, the one room school remained prominent. The Shilo School District was established on May 26, 1910, by order of D.S. McKenzie, then Deputy Minister of Education and in July, 1910, the School District borrowed $800.00 to build and furnish a school. It is not clear if the school opened that fall for in the spring of 1911 the school district borrowed a further $400.00 to furnish the school and to dig a well. Full operations of the school thus did not likely begin until the fall of 1911. R.F. Dial was the senior trustee in 1910 and the Treasurer in 1911. The school was built on land purchased for two dollars from a Scottish pioneer settler, Mr. Davidson. The Shilo School District initially took in sixteen sections of land and additional lands were added to the boundaries in the years after 1910. These lands were added over the years to expand the number of ratepayers in the School District and to therefore increase the tax base or to generally rationalize the area from which students were drawn. The school district fell within the Local Imporvement District 18-C-5 which was established in 1908 and which became Local Imporvement District 352 in 1912 and the Municipal District of Raven No. 342 in 1918. Shilo School District was constituted as part of the Rocky Mountain School Division and into Subdivision No. 2 in 1938 and the school was closed in 1952. Architectural Significance: Generally, one room schools were similar to one another because the provincial Department of Education regulated the design, layout and decoration of schools. This ensured uniformity and adherence to minimum standards. Typically, the one room schools were 'rectangular gabled-roof structures...without the traditional belfrey' of wood framing and cladding. The interiors were of a standard pattern. The walls and ceilings were usually constructed of lath and plaster. The windows, reaching almost from floor to ceiling, were on one side of the building and the students' desks were placed so that the windows were on their left as the students faced the front. At one side was a shelf for books although this shelf was sometimes located at the rear. On the side wall would be a map or two and, occasionally, some pictures. Above the blackboard hung the flag on either side of which were portraits of the reigning monarch and his consort. At the rear was a box stove which provided heat ocasionally, the stove pipe stretched the length of the room so as to provide extra heat but, as often as not, the pipe simply rose directly from the stove to the chimney. On a very cold day in winter when the outside temperature was -40øF., there was little heat to be had. The students hung their coats and left their lunches at the rear. The seating was according to grade and a single teacher often taught Grades I to IX. The Shilo School conformed to these requirements. The school building, for example, is of the standard size, 20 feet by 30 feet, and is finished on the exterior with drop siding painted white with green trim. The main windows are on the west side but there are two large windows as well, one on each side of the entrance on the south. The roof is of cedar shingles. * * * Draft Press Release Edmonton, Alberta The Honourable Dennis Anderson, Minister of Culture and Multiculturalism, announced today that the Shilo School near Caroline has been designated a Registered Historic Resource. Shilo School is typical of a widespread Alberta institution, the one room rural school. The Shilo School District was established on May 26, 1910 and in July, 1910 the District borrowed $800.00 to build and furnish the structure. The school was built on land purchased for two dollars from a Scottish pioneer settler, Mr. Davidson. It was in full operation by the fall of 1911, and continued to operate until 1952. Shilo School is a particularly well maintained example of a one room school house built according to Department of Education regulations. Typically, the one room schools were 'rectangular gabled-roof structures... without the traditional belfrey' of wood framing and cladding. The interiors were of a standard pattern. The walls and ceilings were usully constructed of lathe and plaster. The windows, reaching almost from floor to ceiling, were on one side of the building and the students faced the front. At one side was a shelf for books although this shelf was sometimes located at the rear. On the side wall would be a map or two and, occasionally, some pictures. Above the blackboard hung the flag on either side of which were portraits of the reigning monarch and his consort. At the rear was a box stove which provided heat. Occasionally the stove pipe stretched the length of the room so as to provide extra heat but, as often as not, the pipe simply rose directly from the stove to the chimney. On a very cold day in winter when the outside temperature was -40øF., there was little heat to be had. The students hung their coats and left their lunches at the rear. The seating was according to grade and a single teacher often taught Grades I to IX. Integrity Assessment Historic Place: Shilo School, Caroline Designation status: RHR File(s): Des 1334 Report date: 2010 September 13 Description The Shilo School was built around 1910. It is a small, rectangular, one-room schoolhouse with a wood shingle clad hip roof. A relatively large front entry porch with a doorway and transom and a wood shingle clad gable roof is located on the south (front) elevation. The building is clad mainly in wood siding. There are three windows on the west side and two additional windows flanking the front entry porch. The shingle clad gable end over the front entry and the decorative bands of wood shingles and scroll saw cut strip along the top of the exterior walls give the schoolhouse a vaguely Classical appearance. In the 1990s, the windows on the west side were restored to the original fenestration pattern. The school is situated in a rural area of Clearwater County on a partially cleared, 1.2 hectare (three acre) lot. It is located along Range Road 53, approximately six kilometers east of Caroline.

Internal

Designation Status:	Designation Date:
Provincial Historic Resource	2011/06/16

Register:

Links

Internet:
Alberta Register of Historic Places:	4665-0754