The Crow Valley School House
The Crow Valley School, which was originally call the Pleasant Valley School, was built in 1888 when Washington State was still a territory. It was placed on the National Register in 1987, and restored by Richard Schneider and Bud McBride in 1989 for the Washington State Centennial Celebration. Crow Valley was considered the 4th school district on Orcas Island and the 11th in San Juan County. Before the districts were consolidated there were 29 districts in San Juan County and 11 on Orcas alone.
Grades 1 through 8 were taught in the one room school house, with a capacity of 52 students. The School had its highest enrollment in 1893 with 47 students enrolled, though there was only an average of 27 in attendance. That year they had 63 days of school. The length of the school terms was dependent on funds and the availability of a teacher. This lack of teachers meant that schools were not always open at the same time. Often teachers moved from school (district) to school, students would get attached to a teacher and often follow them to the districts they were teaching in. Irene (Van Moorhem) Bellvue recalls following a teacher to three different schools in the county one of which was on another island.
Over time the number of districts began to dwindle, some schools closed and the students were taken in my other schools. Only 9 districts in the county had text books, funding wasn’t readily available for everyone, often schools had supplies because teachers paid for them out of pocket. Crow Valley was not lucky enough to have text books, though they did have a library that consisted of up to 72 books. In 1918 the Crow Valley School was closed, though the building continued to be used, as a meeting place, a church and Sunday school.
In 1929, the school house was purchased by a women’s club “The Willing Workers” and it then became the “Crow Valley Club.” Many of the clubs members were former students, who made very few changes that couldn’t be reversed. The main change was putting in a dividing wall to allow room for what they called a kitchenette. At one time, it boasted a kerosene cook stove that could be used when they hosted community dinners and entertainment.
Interesting Crow Valley School Facts:
- Electricity was installed in 1938.
- All of the lamps are replacements, because all of the originals were stolen.
- 75% of window glass is original.
- The interior colors have been painted to reflect the original colors.