The North School is an historic former school at 248 Congress Street in Portland, Maine. Built in 1867, it was the first primary school in the state to separate students by grade, and was the largest primary school in the state when built. 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 1982. It was converted into subsidized housing for seniors by the City of Portland.

Description and history

The North School is located in Portland's

East Bayside East Bayside is a neighborhood in Portland, Maine. It is bordered by Franklin Street on the west, Washington Avenue on the east, to the north by Marginal Way, and the south by Congress Street. It is bordered by the neighborhoods of Bayside, the O ...

, India Street neighborhood, on the southeast side of Congress Street, just west of the

Eastern Cemetery Eastern Cemetery is a historic cemetery at the intersection of Washington Avenue and Congress Street in the East Bayside neighborhood of Portland, Maine. Established in 1668, it is the city's oldest historic site, and has more than 4,000 marked ...

. It is a three-story brick building with Italianate styling. A four-story tower projects from its southwest-facing front facade, capped by a square turret with clock. Windows in the tower are predominantly tall round-arch windows, while windows elsewhere are in part similar, with some replaced by bands of rectangular sash. When built, the building also had a mansard roof; this was removed in 1920-22, when the windows were also altered. The school was built in 1867 to a design by Levi Newcomb, in the wake of Portland great 1866 fire, and was the city's largest municipal project of the period. It was the first school in the state to implement the principles of education reformer Henry Barnard, which included the separation of students by grade. In 1894 its attic was fitted with woodworking apparatus for vocational education, and its 1920-22 alterations were designed by

John Calvin Stevens John Calvin Stevens (October 8, 1855 – January 25, 1940) was an American architect who worked in the Shingle Style, in which he was a major innovator, and the Colonial Revival style. He designed more than 1,000 buildings in the state of Maine ...

. The school remained in use as a primary school until the mid-1970s. It has since been converted into subsidized senior housing.

References

{{reflist Defunct schools in Portland, Maine School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Maine Educational institutions established in 1867 1867 establishments in Maine National Register of Historic Places in Portland, Maine

Description and history

See also

References