Timber School
Back in the
1890's, Conejo Valley school children studied from McGuffey
Readers,
wrote on slates, shared a single tin cup for drinking and were
responsible for the chores at school. Boys carried in wood from the woodshed
and kept the fire stoked for warmth. On Friday afternoons, the students
took turns sweeping out the school room.
Today they are still doing some of the above, and more, in an authentic
reconstruction of Timber School, the first school in the western end of the
Conejo Valley.
Then...
The original Timber
School was built in 1889 by residents of Timberville,
an early portion of what is now Newbury Park. The site was located near
the near the SE corner of today's Newbury Park Road and Kelley Road.
A year earlier,
local citizens such as Cecil
Haigh, Mr. and Mrs. Orville Wadleigh, Richard
Hunt and Caspar Borchard were instrumental in forming the Timber School
District.
Until the schoolhouse was finished, classes were held in the Conejo Hotel,
now known as the Stagecoach Inn. Miss Mosher, the first teacher, received
a salary of $40.00 per month. Initially there was an enrollment of 22 pupils.
When the building was completed, the class size was increased by an additional
20 children.
Timber School had one large classroom and two tiny anterooms which were
used as cloakrooms. One was for the boys and one for the girls. Two entrance
doors opened into the school through these cloakrooms. This was the traditional
method of configuring a school in 1889. There were two outhouses behind the
building.
A bell, which hung in the prominent bell tower, called the children to
class and signaled recess and lunchtime. Ringing the heavy bell was a special
honor, usually reserved for one of the older, stronger boys.
Timber School was used for church services and many community activities.
May Day celebrations and school picnics were especially popular.
In 1925 a new two-room schoolhouse was constructed in front of the old
building which was later demolished. The new school was remodeled several
times and other buildings were added to the site. More recently, the school
has been used for offices and as the location of the Conejo Valley High
School.
In 1974, Timber School District merged with several other school districts
to form the Conejo Valley Unified School District.
Now...
Today's version of Timber School was constructed by students of Newbury
Park High School under the able direction of teacher, Randy Porter. A host
of volunteers contributed both energy and materials. Many community groups
and individuals donated needed funds for the project.
An effort has been made to portray a schoolroom of the 1890's in furnishings
and decor. The contents of the room and its dimensions were found in historical
records. Features included are: original wall slateboards from the 1892
Santa Paula High School, wainscoting from Dupar's Restaurant, an early landmark
in Thousand Oaks. Among the antiques displayed are: desks, organ, wood stove
and clock, and 1893 map of the United States and the original California
State Public School Register for Timber School from 1891 through 1893.
The school
bell in the tower was specially cast. It is a duplicate of the old
original bell which is now located in the grounds of Cypress Elementary
School in Newbury Park.
Located in one of the anterooms are pictures and memorabilia of the original
Timber School.
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