Description of Historic Place

The Old Morse School is a Municipal Heritage Property located at the corner of McKenzie Street and Prairie Avenue in the Town of Morse. The property features a brick school building built in 1912, with a matching wing 1928, addition.

Heritage Value

The heritage value of Old Morse School lies in its historical association with the provision of education in the area. Built in 1912 to accommodate a growing population, the original building featured four classrooms and a full basement and taught grades one through twelve. Two extra classrooms were added in 1928 in harmony with the original structure. Though the school closed its doors in 1961, the building continues to serve an educational purpose in its new role as a museum and cultural centre.

Old Morse School is also valued for its historical integrity. Designed by the architectural firm of Reilly, Dawson, Hancock and Reilly, the property features a Georgian Classical architectural style. This design is best observed in the school’s largely symmetrical composition, featuring three gable end wings, central hip roof and bell cupola with spire. Other exterior elements are fanned light windows above the main entrances with keystones in the brickwork, stone window sills, round windows in each gable and brick corbelling below the eaves. The interior of the school, which retains the original layout of the classrooms, also retains many of its elements, including wood trim and doors, slate blackboards, shiplap panelling along the lower walls and a glass interior window over the entranceway. Since the completion of the addition, the school has remained largely structurally unaltered. As a result of this historical integrity, and the age of the building that it has become a major landmark in the community.

Source:

Town of Morse Bylaw No. 2, 1981.

Character-Defining Elements

The heritage value of Old Morse School resides in the following character-defining elements:
-those features that reflect the building’s association with education, including the original four classrooms built in 1912 and the matching south wing added in 1928 which still contain original slate blackboards, cloak rooms, shiplap panelling along the lower walls and a glass interior window over the entranceway;
-the unique Georgian Classical architecture with three gable end wings, central hip roof and bell cupola with spire, fanned light windows with keystones above the main entrances, stone window sills, round windows in each gable and brick corbelling below the eaves;
-the location of the building on its original site in downtown Morse.