Dayton's Old School

Duane's take

Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say — so settle in and let me take you back a ways. Now, Dayton didn't always stand on its own two feet. It began as part of the City of Liberty, and for a good long while, the children living out here had exactly three choices when it came to getting an education: learn at home, cross the river to the main part of Liberty, or go without.

And a whole lot of them went without. That last option has a way of sitting heavy on a community, and sure enough, in 1849, a board of trustees decided they'd had just about enough of it. They formed a committee with one purpose — establish a school for these children.

They bought a new site right off the Lowery estate for ninety dollars. Ninety dollars. Bounded by Main, Houston, and Cleveland streets.

You could almost picture them measuring it out, proud as punch. But here's the thing — that school didn't open its doors until the fall of 1900. Half a century of planning, or half a century of waiting, depending on how you look at it.

When it finally did open, it was a two-room schoolhouse with two teachers and thirty-five students, first grade all the way through seventh, crammed into a building forty feet by thirty-six feet, built of cypress wood on a pier and beam foundation, Prairie style, with a high-pitched roof gable and a cupola sitting right up top for circulation. That cupola wasn't just decoration — it was that old building drawing breath. And breathe it did, for ten years straight, fall of 1900 to the spring of 1910.

Then it was sold. W. T.

Jamison and Joe Entzminger bought it and moved the whole structure to its current location at 111 West Houston Street. And right there, since 1911, it has stood. Tornadoes came through — several of them, major ones.

Hurricanes rolled in off the Gulf. That old cypress building looked every last one of them dead in the eye and did not move an inch. In 1923, Walter and Ivy Jamison bought the building for their residence, and Ivy — well, Ivy Jamison became part of the story herself.

She served the Dayton ISD for twenty-nine years, right up until 1964. Twenty-nine years inside the orbit of a building she called home. When the family eventually sold the historic school to the Dayton Historical Society in 2001, the place was in danger of being condemned.

Condemned. A building that had survived everything nature threw at it nearly got done in by time and neglect. But the Dayton Historical Society wasn't having it.

They fundraised, they restored it to its historic appearance, and in April of 2007, they dedicated it as the Dayton Old School Museum. The marker that commemorates all of this was placed in 2014, and it says something that's worth repeating out loud: as it was one hundred years ago, it is still a dynamic place of learning for Dayton's citizens. Ninety dollars, two rooms, thirty-five kids, and more than a century later — still standing, still teaching.

Some buildings are just built to last. This one earned it.

What the marker says

Dayton began as part of the City of Liberty. The children who lived here were either educated at home, across the river in the main part of Liberty, or not at all. In 1849, a board of trustees formed a committee to establish a school for these children. A new school site was purchased from the Lowery estate for $90.00 and was bounded by Main, Houston, and Cleveland streets. The building was a two-room school with two teachers and 35 students ranging from 1st to 7th grades. It was open from the fall of 1900 to the spring of 1910. It was then sold to W. T. Jamison and Joe Entzminger who moved the building to its current location at 111 West Houston Street. In 1923, Walter and Ivy Jamison bought the building for their residence. Ivy served the Dayton ISD for 29 years until 1964. The family sold the historic school to the Dayton Historical Society in 2001. The Dayton Historical Society saved the building from being condemned. Through fundraising they were able to purchase the building and restore it to its historic appearance. It now houses the Dayton Old School Museum, which was dedicated in April 2007. The original building was 40 ft x 36 ft and was designed in the Prairie style, built of Cypress wood with a pier and beam foundation. The high pitched roof gable was topped with a cupola for circulation. Dayton's Old School has been a landmark in this community for more than a century, standing in the same location since 1911. It has stood the test of time, surviving several major tornadoes and hurricanes. As it was 100 years ago, it is still a dynamic place of learning for Dayton's citizens. Recorded Texas Historic Landmark - 2014