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Groveport School listed on National Register
(by Rick Palsgrove, Southeast Editor - August 05, 2009)
On July 24, the National Park Service listed Groveport School (now Groveport Elementary) on the National Register of Historic Places.
The school, located at 715 Main St., was built in 1923 to originally house all 12 grades. The National Register designation also includes neighboring Groveport Madison Junior High School, which was built as a high school in stages in the 1950s. The two schools were submitted for consideration as one building as they are connected by an overhead walkway.
The effort to place the historic schools on the National Register was led by the Groveport Heritage and Preservation Society in conjunction with the Groveport Madison Local School District. The entities worked with history consultant Kathy Mast Kane and her staff to prepare the information that garnered the designation.
About Groveport School
Groveport School was recommended for nomination to the National Register for its association with the history of education in the community and its representation of how the village school system developed from the 1920s through the 1950s.
The original three story building, completed in 1923-24, is the work of Columbus architects David Riebel & Sons, who designed many central Ohio schools from the 1880s to the 1920s. Reflecting the popularity of historical styles at the time it was built, it is an example of the Jacobethan style inspired by English architecture of the 1500s and 1600s.
The school next door, built between 1952 and 1956, reflects the impact of the post-World War II baby boom, as well as the popularity of the modern International style favored for school buildings at that time.
Groveport School was built on land that was once pasture land owned by the Rarey family and where the famous horse Cruiser, and now the school mascot, used to romp. It cost $225,000 to build and housed all 12 grades until the mid-1950s.
Groveport Madison Junior High served as Groveport Madison High School until 1970 and was built for $550,000 in phases throughout the 1950s on the site of the former Rarey mansion, later known as the Elmont Hotel. When it was built, the school was said to have the largest high school gym in Franklin County.
The two buildings feature a striking contrast of architectural eras. Groveport Elementary looks almost church like in appearance while the junior high sports the sleek look of the post World War II era when modernity was fully embraced.
The schools have served generations of Groveport Madison students and are a linear link for families as children of today study and play on grounds where their grandparents also experienced their school days. The structures have been focal points for community activities ranging from academics, to concerts, to athletics, to theatrical plays, to lectures and more.
About the National Register
The National Register lists places that should be preserved because of their significance in American history, architecture, archaeology, engineering, and culture. It includes buildings, sites, structures, objects, and historic districts of national, state, and local importance.
National Register listing often raises community awareness of a property. However, listing does not obligate owners to repair or improve their properties and does not prevent them from remodeling, altering, selling, or even demolishing them if they choose to do so.
Owners or long-term tenants who rehabilitate income-producing properties listed on the National Register can qualify for a 20 percent federal income tax credit if the work they do follows the Secretary of the Interior's Standards for Rehabilitation, guidelines used nationwide for repairs and alterations to historic buildings.
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