DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Old Rock Schoolhouse out in Atascosa County. Now settle in, because this old building has lived more lives than a barn cat. It was 1874 when the citizens of Pleasanton put their money where their future was — pledging funds to quarry red sandstone right out of the local earth and raise up a schoolhouse.
Not borrowed stone, not shipped-in brick. Local rock, cut and stacked by local hands. Once the building was finished, it was deeded over to the county for free public school purposes.
Just like that. Here it is, county — it's yours. Now do something with it.
And they did. Children attended classes six months of the year at no charge. The remaining three months of the term, though, you paid tuition.
So it wasn't entirely free, but for half the year at least, knowledge came at no cost beyond showing up. And showing up, in those days, took some nerve. That storm cellar out in the school yard wasn't just a curiosity.
On many occasions it served as a sanctuary against Comanche Indian raids. Think about that the next time you complain about a long commute. Those children weren't just learning their letters — they were ducking into the earth to stay alive.
The schoolhouse wasn't only about the three R's, either. Starting in 1875 and running all the way through 1883, the First Baptist Church held worship services right there inside those sandstone walls. So on any given week, that building might be a classroom, a church, and a storm shelter.
And come summer, the Pleasanton Normal School set up inside — a full training institute for teachers, sharpening the people who would sharpen the minds of the next generation. Then, about 1913, the city built a new public school over on Main Street, and just like that, the Old Rock Schoolhouse was closed. But a building that stubborn doesn't stay idle for long.
It came back as a store. Then a private residence. Then an apartment building.
It wore each identity the way an old ranch hand wears a borrowed hat — not quite a perfect fit, but it made do. Here's a detail that tickles me just a little. For many years, locals called it the Red Rock Schoolhouse, on account of that distinctive red sandstone.
But somewhere along the way, somebody plastered right over the original exterior and painted on top of that. The very thing that gave the building its name — that red sandstone face — got buried under a coat of plaster and paint. Hidden in plain sight.
Then in 1986, the First Baptist Church purchased the building — the same congregation that had worshipped there more than a hundred years before — and later had it renovated to serve once again as an educational facility. The stone was always there underneath, waiting. Turns out, you can cover up a rock schoolhouse, but you cannot quite put it to rest.
What the marker says
Constructed of locally quarried red sandstone, the Old Rock Schoolhouse was built in 1874 with funds pledged by citizens of Pleasanton. Once completed, the building was deeded to the county for free public school purposes. In addition to its educational function, the schoolhouse also served as a place of worship for the First Baptist Church from 1875 to 1883. A storm cellar in the school yard served as a sanctuary against Comanche Indian raids on many occasions. Children attended classes six months of the year at no charge, but paid tuition for the remaining three months of the term. The Pleasanton Normal School, a training institute for teachers, operated in the schoolhouse during the summer months. After the city built a new public school on Main Street about 1913, the Old Rock Schoolhouse was closed. It later served as a store, a private residence, and an apartment building. Purchased by the First Baptist Church in 1986, it later was renovated to serve once again as an educational facility. Known for many years to local residents as the "Red Rock Schoolhouse," its original sandstone exterior was concealed under a coat of plaster and paint. (1991)