This one-room schoolhouse is still standing in southern Missouri and is serving as a church

Photo byJimmy Emerson, DVM via Flickr/Sylvan School.

A historic school named Sylvan School constructed in 1926 still stands in Naylor, Missouri (Ripley County). Specifically, it's located on County Road H4, about two miles southwest of the junction of MO142 and West Naylor.

This prior school is a one-story rectangular frame building. Classes were held in this school building until 1956. On October 10, 2002, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places.

This building was also locally known as Pig Ankle School and other names such as the Sylvan Community Building, Sylvan Sunday School, and Church of the Firstborn.

For 30 years, children in grades one through eight attended this school if they lived in Naylor School District No. 68. The building has also been used for other functions associated with the community or church purposes. Some referred to the educational building as Pig Ankle School because hogs used to sleep under the school building.

By the time Sylvan School opened, over 50 students were attending which was a lot for one teacher to handle. It was dedicated on August 8, 1926, with a celebration and a picnic dinner.

A folding partition in the one-story building divided the space into two school rooms. It was a large building that was well-lit. There was also a modern heating system.

The classroom to the east was used for grades one through four and the one to the west was for grades five through eight. Electricity came to the area in 1949. Before then, kerosene lamps were hung for lighting. Heat was provided by a pot-bellied stove.

School days began with students reciting the pledge of allegiance. They had the traditional school desks that were lined up in rows. Desktops had the grooves for pencils and a hole for an ink well. Subjects included reading, writing, spelling, arithmetic, and geography.

Students would bring lunch from home, but in 1947, a lunch program began that included hot chocolate, and pork and beans. This was prepared by the teacher on the coal-burning stove.

During the Depression, the school building was used for activities in the community including church services. With the scarcity of funds for gas, church services were held at the school building and Sunday school classes. During the summer, a baseball team was put together.

Interestingly, 1973 was the last year for one-room schoolhouses in Missouri. The last 25 of those schoolhouses were closed at that time. In 1946, there were around 6,000 one-room school buildings.

The General Assembly of Missouri authorized consolidated school districts to be developed as early as 1901. Some thought that students who were attending these one-room schools weren't receiving the best education when compared to those attending consolidated school districts. That was because each grade level had its dedicated classroom.

A lot of the rural schools that were consolidated had fewer students than Sylvan School which had more than 50 students. The last year of classes at Sylvan School was 1955-56. After consolidation with the Naylor R-II school district, steps were taken by the Sylvan Board of Education to ensure that the schoolhouse could still serve the community.

Funds were collected from the community to purchase the schoolhouse from the school district. In 1956, a general warranty deed transferred the property to the Sylvan Sunday School which would make it available for any religious purpose or meetings in the community. The stipulation was that if it weren't used for the intended purpose, then the deed would revert to the school district.

In January 2000, an affidavit was filed with the Ripley County recorder indicating that the Sylvan Sunday School had changed its name to the Church of the Firstborn in 1972. It was also at that time that it was reaffirmed that the school building was being used for church and community purposes fulfilling the original stipulation.

The Church of the Firstborn, a nondenominational church, has maintained the building and has been financially responsible for the upkeep of the building.

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