Konnarock Training School, also known as Konnarock Lutheran Girls School, is a historic

school A school is an educational institution designed to provide learning spaces and learning environments for the teaching of students under the direction of teachers. Most countries have systems of formal education, which is sometimes compuls ...

complex located at Konnarock,

Smyth County, Virginia Smyth County is a county located in the U.S. state of Virginia. As of the 2020 census, the population was 29,800. Its county seat is Marion. History Smyth County was formed on February 23, 1832, from Washington and Wythe counties. The county i ...

. The main building was built in 1925, and is a -story, 14 bay, hipped roof,

Rustic Rustic may refer to: *Rural area *Pastoral Architecture * Rustication (architecture), a masonry technique mainly employed in Renaissance architecture * Rustic architecture, an informal architectural style in the United States and Canada with sever ...

style wood-frame building. It is sheathed in bark shingles and has an attached rear chapel. Also on the property are an

American Craftsman American Craftsman is an American domestic architectural style, inspired by the Arts and Crafts movement, which included interior design, landscape design, applied arts, and decorative arts, beginning in the last years of the 19th century. Its ...

-style chestnut bark-shingled bungalow (1936) originally used as the school's Health Center, a collapsed two-car garage, an arbor and a farm complex. The property was original developed by the

Lutheran Lutheranism is one of the largest branches of Protestantism, identifying primarily with the theology of Martin Luther, the 16th-century German monk and reformer whose efforts to reform the theology and practice of the Catholic Church launched th ...

church as a mission to the southern Appalachians. The school closed in 1958, and was later acquired by the Forest Service. an
''Accompanying photo''
/ref> It was listed on the

National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...

in 1997. It was restored in 2022 and is now used by the Blue Ridge Discovery Center, a non-profit organization that specializes in educating about nature. https://blueridgediscoverycenter.org/master-plan-for-the-future-center

References

External links

A Brief History of the Konnarock Training School
School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Virginia School buildings completed in 1925 Schools in Smyth County, Virginia National Register of Historic Places in Smyth County, Virginia 1925 establishments in Virginia {{SmythCountyVA-NRHP-stub