Oldest Wooden Schoolhouse
Built sometime between the St Augustine Siege of 1702 and 1716 (when the home was first listed on the tax rolls), the Oldest Wooden Schoolhouse has survived nearly 300 years. Originally the home of Juan Genoply, when found the home too small for his growing family it became a one-room school. On the ground floor the students would learn during the day and, on the second floor, the teacher and his family would live. The home boasted a separate kitchen, privy, and garden.
As with many towns in early America the school had to be sponsored by donations. Public education was not a familiar concept; at the time, states and countries did not sponsor education. Rather, towns decided to pay for any public schooling their children received. The schoolhouse in St. Augustine followed the same pattern as other young forms of public education with one teacher who taught all grade levels. In 1788, the school became co-ed, teaching girls and boys simultaneously.
Though it no longer operates as a school, visitors can enter into the schoolhouse museum, view the gardens, and kitchen. However, some changes have been made since the building stood as a school including the chain link that surrounds the schoolhouse. In 1937, a hurricane threatened the city of St. Augustine. In order for the schoolhouse to withstand the hurricane force winds the chains were added as reinforcement. Quite remarkably, the schoolhouse has survived the years as a testament to early education in America. (Kayleigh Gades, Flagler College)
