Description of Historic Place

Timberland School is a Municipal Heritage Property located within the Rural Municipality of Spiritwood No. 496 about 12 kilometres northeast of the Village of Leoville. The property features a wood-frame, one-room school constructed in 1936 on an 8000 square metre field.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of the Timberland School lies in its status as a community centre. Constructed in 1936, the school was built by local residents and, as one of the few public buildings in the area, quickly became the main gathering place for people of the district. After the school closed in 1957, the local community purchased the property to continue its use as a community centre.

The heritage value of the property also lies in its architecture. The school was designed to facilitate the teaching of children who lived within a few kilometres. As a consequence, children of all grades were taught by one teacher in one large room. For this reason, the Timberland School was constructed in a utilitarian fashion, featuring a wood-frame structure, a rectangular form and open floor plan. Also adhering to school design of the period, the property features an east-facing window wall, which allowed the maximum amount of natural light to enter the school.

Source:

Rural Municipality of Spiritwood No. 496 Bylaw No. 1/95.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of Timberland School resides in the following character-defining elements:
-those elements that reflect the property’s status as a community gathering place, including its location on its original site, the open interior space, and the large open field surrounding the school;
-those elements that reflect the property’s status as a one-room school, including its wood-frame construction, wood siding, flagpole, hip roof, east window wall, rectangular form, open layout of the interior, the “Timberland School No. 5080” above the main entrance and chalk boards.