Rich history preserved and displayed at restored Miami-Dade's first school house
MIAMI - The little schoolhouse was the pride of the Coconut Grove community.
Local pioneers banded together and opened the first school in what would become Mami-Dade County in 1897. Ten kids were in the first class. We know a lot about what it was like for those students because the original one-room schoolhouse is still standing, well-preserved, and restored on the grounds of Coconut Grove's Plymouth Congregational Church.
Pastor Al Bunis said the students were taught the basics, "oh certainly, well look, reading, writing, arithmetic, the three R's."
A chalkboard, an American flag from the era, original school books, and slates for the kids to practice their cursive writing skills are all on display inside the wooden building.
Built-in 1887 by Coconut Grove pioneer Charles Peacock from wood that came from shipwrecks, the building originally served as a community gathering place, with Sunday School as its main purpose. Regular school classes began in 1889.
"We have a plaque on the wall that plaque was from 1955. It says, 'oldest school house in Dade County,'" said Pastor Bunis. "Not a lot of Miami folks know that the little schoolhouse is still around."
Originally located on Coconut Grove's Grand Avenue, the little schoolhouse was restored by the owners of Miami-based Ryder Systems who were members of the Plymouth Congregational Church.
There is a rich history here, artifacts from the long-ago school days.
There are pictures of Flora McFarlane, the school's first teacher, and a class picture from around the turn of the century. There are also historic textbooks.
"This is an example of a book she would have used, a lot of it in those days has religious teaching as well," said Pastor Bunis referring to one of the books.
The school was made possible by the dedication of early Coconut Grove pioneers like the Peacocks, the Frows, the Monroes, and McFarlane, names that still adorn many streets and parks in the Grove.
"These names are deep in the DNA of Miami," said Pastor Bunis.
A number of Miami institutions got their start within the wooden walls of the schoolhouse. For example, the Woman's Club of Coconut Grove was founded in the building.
Flora McFarlane, the original teacher, and Coconut Grove pioneers Isabella Peacock, Euphemia Frow, Mary Munroe, and Louisa Newbold began their work of organizing numerous social, civic, and educational projects. These women brought a sense of community to the Grove a tradition that continues to this day.
On January 21, 1975, Miami's first school building was added to the U.S. National Register of Historic Places.