Six Years of Work Could Not Save Absarokee’s Sandstone School
Reported byMontana TalksBy Traci Taylor
AI-assisted summary
The Sandstone School in Absarokee, Montana, was torn down in mid-October. Demolition crews started on October 15 and wrapped up the next day. The Absarokee School Board approved a $75,000 bid for the work, and the article says the vote was unanimous. That decision came after attempts to find a party willing to relocate the structure drew no offers. According to the article, the cleared land is planned to become a bigger playground and extra space for current students.
The school dated to 1910, when it opened as a two-room building for students in first through eighth grades. The community added to it in 1915. Alongside the nearby Cobblestone School, it made up a complex serving the southern part of Stillwater County. The two buildings share a listing on the National Register of Historic Places, which credits them with helping shape public education locally and with using regional building materials. The nomination says the sandstone probably came from the Columbus area, though the exact source is unknown. The school stayed in use for over a century and closed in 2019.
A group called Save the Sandstone worked for six years to preserve the building and raised more than $360,000 for repairs, including the roof. It hoped to bring the building back as a community space, with ideas that included a preschool, daycare, educational programs and exhibits. The piece is a personal reflection by the writer, who expresses sadness over the loss.
Why it matters
The story shows the tradeoffs communities face when a closed historic school building is costly to keep and the district wants space for current students. It also shows how long volunteer preservation efforts can take and how a board's property decision can end them.
- Board vote
- District property sales
- School closures
- Building repairs
Written with AI from the publisher's article and may contain errors. The original reporting is the authoritative source.
Sign in to react.
- How should a school board weigh a historic building's community value against the needs of current students and the cost of upkeep?
- What steps could a community take earlier to explore reuse options for a closed school building before demolition is considered?
- How should boards communicate with preservation groups that have raised money for a building the district owns?
Suggested with AI.
Public discussion (0)
Share how this affects your community. Be respectful, stay on topic, and don't post personal information. Editors may hide comments that break these rules.