Abandoned Schools in Washington State

Abandoned Schools

Public domain photo

The Govan Schoolhouse
In addition to preserving countless homesteads, barns, and grain silos, the dry Eastern Washington climate has allowed numerous one-room schoolhouses to be preserved to this day. The population of the Washington Territory grew rapidly following the Civil War. With an increasing population came the need for more schoolhouses.

In 1869, there were twenty-two, and by 1889, there were over a thousand, mostly built from logs. They were gradually replaced with wood-framed schoolhouses as seen in the small town of Govan and elsewhere. The Govan Schoolhouse was built in 1905 for children in eight grades. This photo from 1916 shows Mr. and Mrs. Thomas with their students at the end of the school year. The schoolhouse used to be red. It was abandoned in 1942. As of 2019 there were only three people living in the little town of Govan, so it is on its way to becoming a ghost town. A fire destroyed most of the town in 1927 and the new State Highway 2, built in 1933, unfortunately bypassed the town, which contributed to its decline.

Unless otherwise noted, all present-day photographs under Abandoned Schools are by the author.

Abandoned schoolhouse in Govan, Washington

Photo credit: Chance Hill

The Highland Schoolhouse
Schoolhouses like these were the pride of small farming communities and were used for civic, religious, and political events. If they could afford it, the townspeople would add a belfry to house the school bell.

A one-room schoolhouse was often the only local institution supported by public monies. Due to its remote location, the teacher of the Highland schoolhouse lived here in a “teacherage” room next to the classroom.

In 1934, a teacher by the name of Marguerite Thompson ran the school. One night, while she was alone in the teacherage, somebody broke into the school. She was so scared that she locked herself in her room and resigned the next day, never to return.

Public domain photo

The Highland Schoolhouse in Douglas County

Historical photograph of the Highland Schoolhouse

Public domain photo

Inside the abandoned Highland Schoolhouse

Photo credit: Michael Hoerler

The Harder/McCall Schoolhouse
Mullan Road was built by the U.S. Army in the 1860s to connect Fort Benton in Montana with Fort Walla Walla. Estimates are that the wagon road was used by 20,000 people in the first year after its completion.

The schoolhouse is located in the middle of nowhere in Adams County. It was originally built as a wayside stop on Mullan Road, which was the first wagon road to cross the Rocky Mountains from Montana into the Washington Territory.

The Washtucna School Bus
This is the famous graffiti-covered Washtucna School Bus, famous because it has its own Instagram hashtag, #thatNWbus. It was originally used by the Toppenish School District but is now owned by the Washtucna Historical Museum.

Passersby on State Highway 26 can often find cans of spray paint on the steps inside, left there for anyone who wants to try their hand at graffiti, as Jazzmin demonstrates here.