Dawson School, School building in Tulsa, United States
Dawson School is a two-room sandstone building in Tulsa featuring a hipped roof and tall windows with protective mesh covers. The solid construction reflects the quality craftsmanship typical of early Oklahoma schoolhouses.
The building opened in 1908 shortly after Oklahoma became a state and initially served about 60 students. It remained in use until 1930 when a newer elementary school took over its educational role.
Dawson was named for its first postmaster, W. A. Dawson. The 1908 school was the town's only public building until a firehouse went up in 1942, and after Tulsa absorbed the district in 1927 it served as a community activity centre. A Tulsa Democrat item recorded 60 pupils at the start, with the Cherokee Nation and the U.S. Government paying the teacher's salary and expenses.
The building stands at the corner of East Ute Place and North Kingston Place in Tulsa, set back from the street so the arched porch and flanking semicircular windows are best seen from the sidewalk. It is a one-story structure with no public interior access; the asphalt-covered hipped roof and mesh-covered windows are visible from outside. The bell tower above the porch was removed at an unknown date, so look for the porch roofline where it once stood.
The school is one of the few remaining structures from the former town of Dawson, which was annexed by Tulsa in 1948. This modest sandstone building stands as a rare reminder of the community that existed before the merger.
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