WASHINGTON COUNTY HISTORICAL SOCIETY (Washington County, Utah)
FIRST WARD SCHOOL
St. George, Utah
LOCATION
67 East 200 SouthSt. George, Utah
On the north side of Second South between First East and Main Street.
Plat A, Block 12, West half of Lot 1 on the old pioneer map of St. George.
HISTORY
Very soon after the erection of the Willow School House in the first quarter of 1862, work was started on a permanent building close by. This building measured 20 X 36 feet in dimension. Its foundation was laid up with red sandstone, and the walls of adobe, made from the clay of their old camp ground. The foundation material used is is evidence that it was one of the earliest buildings, for the people soon learned that the alkali present in the ground, ate into the soft sandstone causing it to crumble rapidly. This building was completed about 1863 or 1864 and was used thereafter as the First Ward school house and church building.St. George was divided into four school districts. Each district had a group of three trustees and a similar building. The First Ward building was the first one built, followed by the Third Ward, Second Ward, and Fourth Ward buildings.
The First Ward school was in operation until September of 1901 when the students and teachers were moved over to the new Woodward School.
The building was then used for a house with very few physical changes.
George Jarvis family lived there for a while.
Andrew Gregersen lived there next for a long time.
Sometime after the 1970s, the house was torn down.
PHOTOS
TBDREFERENCES
Starting of education in Southern UtahWashington County D.U.P., " Under Dixie Sun - A History of Washington County"
p. 299
Eleanor C. W. Jarvis, "Data on school teachers and schools attended by Eleanor C. W. Jarvis"