District 28 School / Ramsey Town Hall

Originally built in 1892, the Ramsey School House served Anoka County’s School District #28 until the mid-twentieth century, when the schools in the county were consolidated. The building was then repurposed as the Ramsey Town Hall.

The one-story buff brick building was built in 1892 on land once owned by A. E. Pitman in School District #28. It replaced a structure adjacent to the Peter McArdele property, located along Highway 47. Using bricks manufactured at Kelsey Brickyard (in operation 1880–1897), builders created a footprint measuring thirty by twenty-five feet with details that evoked the sturdy craftsmanship of the end of the nineteenth century.

Concrete eventually replaced the brick staircase and created a “belt” around the foundation to preserve the brick from further deterioration caused by dampness. The single-door entrance faces the highway (originally it consisted of double doors) and has a pair of double windows on either side. These received a cap of decorative segmented brick, creating an arch. The three windows on the remaining sides of the building feature a smaller arch built of the same material.

During the spring and summer months, teachers and students in the schoolhouse used half window screens to cool the interior. Architects and preservationists inspecting the structure could not determine whether a circular window atop the entrance served as an ornamental addition, or a more the practical purpose of ventilating a crawl space. The current asphalt shingles protect the roof where cedar wood shakes once did.

The schoolhouse’s footprint consisted of an entryway, two cloakrooms—one for boys, the other girls—and a classroom. Pressed metal decorated the ceiling while simple plaster walls lined with a wainscot made of beaded wood kept the interior from looking uncluttered. Wall-bracketed kerosene lamps with reflectors once illuminated the interior, reflecting off the hardwood floor. During the winter months, a wood-fired stove in the center of classroom provided heat.

Modernization of the schoolhouse occurred in stages, beginning with the wood stove that was replaced at the end of World War I by a gravity furnace and floor registers that circulated warm air. This adjustment required workers to dig a basement and to install electricity. Kerosene lamps with reflectors gave way to opalescent glass lighting, which later evolved into fluorescent lighting. One of the cloakrooms was converted into a kitchen. A water heater and plumbing were installed, the hardwood flooring took on an epoxy veneer, and some of the windows at the rear of the structure were bricked over.

In the mid-twentieth century, population growth in Anoka County prompted the consolidation of students in large facilities rather than one-room schoolhouses, and the District 28 building was no longer used as a school. Instead, it was repurposed as Ramsey’s town hall. A lot with sixteen spaces was paved to accommodate visitor parking.

An inspection carried out on April 19, 1978, cited weaknesses in the building’s foundation and recommended that it be rehabilitated and restored to its original form. This would have required removing all modern features, including the kitchen, furnace, and electricity, as well as all cosmetic improvements to the interior and exterior. It would have also called for reverting to the cedar shingles originally used. Inspectors recommended conducting oral history interviews with former students as well as a a campaign to gather period photographs of both the exterior and interior.

Ramsey Schoolhouse / Ramsey Town Hall was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on December 27, 1979. Analysis conducted by preservationists in 1980 reiterated the problems associated with its proximity to Highway 47, the parking lot, and the water table, which threatened the structure’s foundation. One suggested solution involved using private funding to rehabilitate the structure. Another called for moving the building to a new location, such as a city park, where it could be restored and used as a public meeting place. The review committee, however, recognized that such a move might result in the loss of the building’s designation as a historic site. As a result, the only changes made were roof repairs, carried out in 1983.

As of 2019, Ramsey Town Hall remains at its original location. It is one of the few remaining structures built with bricks from the former Kelsey Brickyard.

Editor’s note: This articles incorporates content taken from a National Register of Historic Places nomination file—a public-domain text.