Big Bend Rural School: Missouri historic building in Steelville will be 130 years old this year

East side entrance of the school building.Photo byN. Soren (1978)/NRHP Nomination Form.

The historic Big Bend Rural School is a one-room school building in the vicinity of Steelville, Missouri (Crawford County) off Missouri Highway 19. It was constructed in 1893 and listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 12, 1978.

The school is a rectangular building and was sitting on native sandstone. The exterior walls have pine clapboards that were originally painted white. The school had six windows with three on the east side and three on the west side. At one time, five of them were boarded up. This building has no attic or basement.

The school building is located on a hill about three miles north of Steelville and west of Missouri Highway 19. At the time the school was nominated for the National Register, there were two other associated buildings nearby in a state of disrepair. One was a woodshed for the school and the other was an outhouse.

There used to be a blackboard inside the building along the west wall, student benches, and a wood-burning stove that disappeared and it's unknown when.

With the growing concern about the quality of education received in rural schools during the 1850s and 1860s, as well as the conditions of these small school buildings, laws were passed to provide more funding and more qualified teachers for schools.

Low enrollments and poor attendance were a concern in Crawford County. During the 1870s, of the third in the county enrolled, few regularly attended. With more interest in education, Big Bend Rural School became a part of available education in the late 1800s.

The school sits on one acre that was part of an 80-acre tract in a patent land grant to Mrs. Levisa Wood by the U.S. Government on September 2, 1882. On August 3, 1893, one acre of the land was sold to School District #6 in Crawford County for the building of a school. Pine lumber was supplied for building the school from a sawmill in Washington County. Interestingly, the school was built by John Salzer of Enterprise Planing Mill for only $100.

The south and west sides of the school.Photo byN. Soren (1978)/NRHP Nomination Form.

Big Bend Rural School classes started in September 1893. When classes started, they were for eight grade levels and attendance was only four to five months per year. The attendance time frame was based on children needed at home for farming.

Also, in the early days of the school, there wasn't any running water or outhouse. There was a wood-burning stove in the center of the classroom. Students were usually not attending because, in the beginning, the level of importance took a back seat to farming. This only meant that a student was kept at a certain level until they could make it to the next.

Early on, once students completed their eight grade levels, there was no continuing to high school for many because it wasn't a requirement then.

Initially, female teachers were only earning $25 each month, and, interestingly, male teachers were earning $1 to $2 more. Importantly, back then, if someone wanted to become a teacher, there wasn't a requirement to be more educated or to have a certification. The Missouri Department of Education provided teachers with a form outlining the basic course of instruction.

The restored Big Bend School building is now located at Hoppe Spring Park in Steelville, Missouri.Photo byFacebook/Steelville Welcome Center.

With schools in Missouri being reorganized and consolidated, Big Bend School closed in 1949. Students attending Big Bend School were sent to the R-3 School District in Steelville.

After Big Bend School closed in 1949, the building and land were sold at auction in February 1950 to Mr. and Mrs. Elmer Clinton. On October 3, 1973, they sold what they acquired to the Crawford County Historical Society for $1.

There used to be a greater need for rural schools when there was a consideration of walking distance for a child to get to school. Imagine having to walk two to three miles to school every day. The progress of transportation changed that because there was less of a need for so many rural schools.

When students could be transported to a larger school, it saved money compared to having to build more rural school buildings to accommodate those who had to walk to school.

The Big Bend Rural School serves as a reminder of how slow life used to be in rural America. The school was in operation for 56 years, and 150 children an education.

On November 3, 1999, the Big Bend School was relocated to Hoppe Spring Park in Steelville. Aid came to help restore the historic school building. In August 2019, the community of Steelville celebrated the school's 125th year and visitors were allowed to tour the school. This year, the historic school turns 130.

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