The Village School (District 6):

“Old Yeller” High School

District 6 Schoolhouse “Old Yeller” c.1880

THE VILLAGE School

The Village School - District 6:

“Old Yeller” High School

Built in 1861, this Greek Revival school house was built in classic cuniform, on land donated by William Henry Harrison Bingham (W.H.H.Bingham) by District 6. The core was two stories with gable roof topped by a cupola that contained a bell to call students to school. The wings were one story. The three rooms on the first floor housed the first through eighth grades. In the single room on the second floor was a tuition high school managed by the District prudential committee until 1893. At the mandate of Vermont legislation, the nineteen school districts were merged into one district in 1893. Between then and 1896 a second flat roofed story, was built on the east wing. By 1901, when the first class of six students graduated from the public high school, the second story over the west wing was added. No longer meeting the educational standards of the time, it closed in 1973 upon completion of the new Middle and High School on Barrows Road. Further renovations ensued and today the Village School is home to the Helen Day Art Center and Stowe Library.

In 1901 the second story west was added and gable roofs were installed on both sides. From 1861 to 1897 a subscription high school was housed on the second floor. 1897 was the beginning of the public high school. As the school population grew the building became overcrowded. In 1909 the Wade Pasture School, which had been closed for approximately eight years was moved to the east side of the Village school to house the first through third grades. Both schools closed in 1973 when the “New” High School was build off Barrows Road, which was once part of District 2. In 2020 the Village School houses the Stowe Free Library and the Helen Day Art Center and the Wade Pasture Schoolhouse is the Bloody Brook One Room Schoolhouse Museum. Also on the Cultural Campus is the West Branch School home of the Stowe Historical Society’s research space and museum.

"Old Yeller" is the nickname given District School #6, built in 1861. The school has seen many changes over the years. Originally housing a private academy in the upstairs rooms, the children living in the village attended classes in the downstairs rooms. etc. etc. etc. It closed in the 1973-74 school year when the new high school on the Barrows Road was completed.. In 1980, the restored Helen Day Memorial Library and Art Center building opened as the home of Stowe Free Library, and Helen Day Art Center{ which in 2021 became The Current].