Mason District Number 5 Schoolhouse
Encyclopedia
Mason District Number 5 Schoolhouse is a former two room rural school
house in Mason Township, Cass County, Michigan
built in 1874; the school could hold up to 110 students. The school operated until 1959, when the area became part of the Constantine School District. The building was transformed in to the Mason Township Hall in 1964. In 1973 the building also became home to the Mason-Union Branch of the Cass District Library
.
The school house is listed on both the National Register of Historic Sites and the Michigan
registry of Historic Sites.
The current uses are still a split use government building, where the historic school house is used by the Cass District Library for the Mason-Union Branch and the new addition in the back, being used by the township.
The bell that was on top of the school house was built by the Gould Mrf. Co of Seneca Falls, New York
. The bell weights about 290 pounds and was shipped from New York to Mason.
The bell that sits outside the schoolhouse now has not always been with the school. After the bell was installed it stayed with the building until a reconstruction project took place on the building during the 1970s. The bell was dropped from the belfry and york was cracked or broke. The bell could not be reinstalled so it was left sitting on the ground until a local farmer bought the bell from the township, and then sold it to a family member who lived in Wichita, Kansas
. Several attempts were made to buy the bell back to restore it with the building. However the owner refused to sell the bell until 1996 when he contacted the township and stated that he was willing to sell the bell. Two local people went to buy the bell and had the yoke fixed before donating it to the township. After almost 25 years after the bell was sold it was returned to the schoolhouse.
The text that is listed about the schoolhouse on the Michigan Register of sites for the Statement of Significance reads:
The marker text that has been placed on the site reads as follows:
Sauk Trail
what is now US 12.
School
A school is an institution designed for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is commonly compulsory. In these systems, students progress through a series of schools...
house in Mason Township, Cass County, Michigan
Mason Township, Cass County, Michigan
Mason Township is a civil township of Cass County in the U.S. state of Michigan. The population was 2,514 at the 2000 census.-Geography:According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of , of which, of it is land and of it is water.-History:Cass County had been...
built in 1874; the school could hold up to 110 students. The school operated until 1959, when the area became part of the Constantine School District. The building was transformed in to the Mason Township Hall in 1964. In 1973 the building also became home to the Mason-Union Branch of the Cass District Library
Cass District Library
Cass District Library is the library system which services Calvin, Howard, Jefferson, LaGrange, Mason, Milton, Newberg, Ontwa, Penn, Pokagon, Porter and Volinia Townships in Cass County, Michigan, USA....
.
The school house is listed on both the National Register of Historic Sites and the Michigan
Michigan
Michigan is a U.S. state located in the Great Lakes Region of the United States of America. The name Michigan is the French form of the Ojibwa word mishigamaa, meaning "large water" or "large lake"....
registry of Historic Sites.
The current uses are still a split use government building, where the historic school house is used by the Cass District Library for the Mason-Union Branch and the new addition in the back, being used by the township.
History
The school house was built between 1874 and 1875 at the cost of about $3,000. It has been known as the Sailor School and the Kessington School house. In 1964 Mason Township board bought the building for use as the township hall. In 1973 the Cass County Library founded and established a branch library in the township hall to serve the members of the South-East corner of the county. In 1987, the building was restored.The bell that was on top of the school house was built by the Gould Mrf. Co of Seneca Falls, New York
Seneca Falls (village), New York
Seneca Falls is a village in Seneca County, New York, United States. The population was 6,861 at the 2000 census. The village is in the Town of Seneca Falls, east of Geneva, New York. On March 16, 2010, village residents voted to dissolve the village, a move that would take effect at the end of 2011...
. The bell weights about 290 pounds and was shipped from New York to Mason.
The bell that sits outside the schoolhouse now has not always been with the school. After the bell was installed it stayed with the building until a reconstruction project took place on the building during the 1970s. The bell was dropped from the belfry and york was cracked or broke. The bell could not be reinstalled so it was left sitting on the ground until a local farmer bought the bell from the township, and then sold it to a family member who lived in Wichita, Kansas
Wichita, Kansas
Wichita is the largest city in the U.S. state of Kansas.As of the 2010 census, the city population was 382,368. Located in south-central Kansas on the Arkansas River, Wichita is the county seat of Sedgwick County and the principal city of the Wichita metropolitan area...
. Several attempts were made to buy the bell back to restore it with the building. However the owner refused to sell the bell until 1996 when he contacted the township and stated that he was willing to sell the bell. Two local people went to buy the bell and had the yoke fixed before donating it to the township. After almost 25 years after the bell was sold it was returned to the schoolhouse.
Information from Michigan Registry
The narative description on file with the Michigan registry reads:The text that is listed about the schoolhouse on the Michigan Register of sites for the Statement of Significance reads:
The marker text that has been placed on the site reads as follows:
Film
The building and the bell are highlighted in a documentary called "From Moccasins to Main Street" which was produced by Equity Studios Inc. The documentary is a tour of the Native AmericanIndigenous peoples of the Americas
The indigenous peoples of the Americas are the pre-Columbian inhabitants of North and South America, their descendants and other ethnic groups who are identified with those peoples. Indigenous peoples are known in Canada as Aboriginal peoples, and in the United States as Native Americans...
Sauk Trail
Sauk Trail
Sauk Trail began as a Native American trail running through Illinois, Indiana and Michigan in the United States. From west to east, the trail ran from Rock Island on the Mississippi River to the Illinois River near modern Peru then along the north bank of that river to Joliet, and on to Valparaiso,...
what is now US 12.