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HomeMy WebLinkAbout4. Estabrook School HSR Feb. 26, 2013Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Plan, Room Use and Changes Over Time 41 Room 8, the Lecture Hall Ethel Bears, Principal of the Franklin School envisioned the use of Room 8 thus: "The large room with furniture arranged as theater in the round accommodates large group lessons where dramatizations, demonstrations, audio - visual media and like are used to introduce concepts or make generalizations."' The lecture hall, fondly remembered by early students, was indeed the site of performances and audiovisual presentations as well as teaching large groups of children. There were tiered platforms on three sides of the room. These were originally fitted with long tables and chairs fixed in place. At some point, perhaps in the 1990s, the lecture hall was divided into a music room and an art room. Dick Barnes leading a class in the lecture hall, early 1960s. Photograph courtesy of Dick Barnes. 1 Ethel Bears, "Team Teaching at the Franklin School," June 1969, 8. Typescript in the Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Plan, Room Use and Changes Over Time 42 Rooms 5, 6, 20, 21 These rooms were 900 square feet in size. Each could be divided into three 300 - square -foot rooms by partitions. The partitions were later removed. Rooms 9, 11, 13, 15, 17, 19. As originally proposed, these six rooms, 400 square feet in size, were to be used by groups of 10 to 20 students. Later three partitions were removed, so that there are now three rooms of 800 square feet in size known as rooms 11, 13, and 17. A description of these rooms, intended for television broadcasting, was included in the 1961 publication, Schools for Team Teaching. Television broadcast demonstration. James Coffey, LTTP teacher, being filmed by Richard Woodward, Television Specialist, Lexington School Administration. Photograph courtesy of Dick Barnes. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Plan, Room Use and Changes Over Time 43 In addition to tables and chairs, each of these rooms will be equipped with instructional materials and devices that go with a particular subject — laboratory and demonstration equipment for science, maps and pictures for social studies, and so on. Each room with its special equipment can be used not only for small group work but also as a television studio for instruction in that particular subject. Programs will originate in the small group rooms and be broadcast over a closed- circuit television system to the large assembly hall or to any other room in the school. This eliminates the need to trundle demonstration and teaching equipment all over the building. It also means that the same program can be beamed to classes in different parts of the school at the same time. It is hoped that a complete television studio equipped with closed - circuit transmitter, video tape recording equipment, and studio space will eventually be housed in the basement beneath these small group rooms.2 Rooms 22, 231,241,25 Four conventionally sized classrooms, of 900 square feet in size. These rooms housed third and fourth graders of the Delta team originally. Rooms 31 and 39 " A second kind of large group space is provided by two large divisible classrooms designed to hold 80 to 100 children. Each of these rooms can be operated either as an independent 900 - foot - square classrooms, or, when a vinyl accordion partition is open, as a single room of 1,800 square feet. There will be sinks and storage space for art and science work. The furniture will consist of movable tables and chairs, and at lunchtime these rooms will become the cafeteria, which is why they flank the kitchen. ,3 These rooms housed the fifth and sixth graders of the Kappa team originally. Teachers' Workroom Having a workroom where teachers would have desks, instead of in classrooms, was part of the team teaching philosophy, because the room encouraged teacher collaboration. According to Bill Terris, the idea of a separate room for teachers developed after a group of educators went to Japan and saw that the teachers there had such a room. In addition, Ethel Bears explained: "Teacher aides work in a large room near the school office. Cumulative records, and curriculum files are kept here. The central storage area is between this room and the office. Work areas for each team of teachers and a conference room across the hall are also part of this administrative section of the building; a teacher's lunchroom large enough for the staff is across the corridor. This arrangement of spaces makes for efficient communication, both formal and informal, among staff members. A Room 34, Library The Estabrook School was the first elementary school in Lexington to have a library and one of the first in New England. Before that, books were delivered to Lexington elementary schools 2 Evans Clinch, Schools for Team Teaching (New York: Educational Facilities Laboratories, Inc., 1961), 41. 3 Ibid. 4 Ethel Bears, "Team Teaching at the Franklin School," June 1969, 8. Typescript in the Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Plan, Room Use and Changes Over Time 44 from Cary Memorial Library once a week and stored in bookcases in the hallways. The library was made larger eventually by the removal of the partition between the library and the study center. Room 36, Study Center "The individual study room is equipped with space for reading and booths for listening to tapes. "5 Within a short time, the study center became a large classroom that could be divided in half by a partition. Later, the wall between the study center and the library was removed to enlarge the library. Still later, the eastern portion of what had been the study center was partitioned off from the library. In 2012 it serves as a Tech Lab. Room 38, Playroom The playroom or gymnasium was the site of assemblies, plays and other occasions in addition to serving as a space for gym classes and indoor play. The room could be divided into two smaller spaces by means of a folding partition. It also served for a period as the lunchroom with folding tables that were stored in the adjacent storage area when not in use. For many years, Mr. James Banks, the physical education teacher, taught dance classes here as an alternative to recess at lunchtime. Teacher's room Now known as the Staff Lounge, this room was intended for informal gatherings of teachers and as their lunchroom. Principal's office The principal's office and associated conference rooms and pupil services are adjacent to the entry lobby. Kitchen A fully equipped kitchen exists between rooms 31 and 38. There is a wall of windows between the kitchen and the corridor. Lobby Originally conceived as a beautiful and spacious entry connected to the outdoors by large windows, the lobby was paved, like the patios on either side of it, with flagstones. The lobby acquired the additional function of lunchroom after a time. Coat Storage Coats were originally stored in wooden cubbies in some of the corridors. The cubbies were removed, and replaced in some places by small storage rooms. Coats were then kept in metal lockers in the hallways in conformance with fire department regulations. 5 Evans Clinch, Schools for Team Teaching (New York: Educational Facilities Laboratories, Inc., 1961), 41. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Plan, Room Use and Changes Over Time 45 Room 20 with partial partitions. From Lexington and SUPRAD, Paul E. Perry, ed., October 1963, page 17. Crawl Space The crawl space below the first floor includes the boiler room as well as Room 7, the storage room. In addition to these two rooms the space contains concrete posts supporting the structure above, overhead pipes, and a floor surfaced with large amounts of sand. The floor slopes down to the storage room, which is deeper than the rest of the cellar. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Plan, Room Use and Changes Over Time 46 Changes to the Estabrook School Over Time The library was expanded to include the study room north of it. The eastern portion of the space thus gained is now partitioned off and is known as the Tech Lab. Partitions were permanently removed from original rooms represented by room numbers 5 to 21. A set of four small rooms was added along the north exterior wall of the corridor north of the lecture hall where formerly there had been a wall of windows looking out on the west patio. The rooms are approximately twelve feet deep and the added structure runs from the doors at the west end of the above - mentioned corridor to just inside the windows in the lobby south of the mosaic mural. That these rooms were added is evidenced by the fact that they do not show on the original plan and the windows are different. The aluminum frames of the windows were similar to those in the rest of the building, but the windows were taller and there were no Transite panels above the windows. Below the windows are aluminum panels. After construction of the rooms, the window area south of the mosaic mural was much smaller than that shown on the original plan. Those windows were obviously cut back when the new rooms were added. In 2012 the added rooms are used for occupational therapy, a conference room, a math center, and a speech and language room. In 1987 two new classrooms were added to the east end of the cross bar of the T. The brick exterior and the windows are compatible with those features in the rest of the building. Three modular classrooms were added to the south of the school several years later. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Former Student's Perspective 47 5. Estabrook School From a Former Students Perspective By Susan Ward I attended Estabrook School from 1967 -1974, Kindergarten through Grade 6 (we were the school's first Kindergarten class). In my memory the school was an optimistic place; in retrospect, I think that the teachers' excitement about their freedom to try new things under the team teaching model was communicated to the students, and the school became in our minds a place where interesting and unusual things could happen. The school building, in its original configuration, likewise gave an impression of flexibility and openness; it was a very "porous" building, with many doors to the outside in use throughout the day, and the outdoors visible through the glass walls of the lobby, which all students would pass through on the way to the gym, to lunch, or to Room 8. (The corridor behind Room 8, now lined with small rooms, originally had a wall of glass opening onto the front terrace and mural.) The boundaries were also blurred between inside and outside in the lobby by the columns (originally all the same color) that continued onto the front terrace, and by the use of the same flagstone pavement through the building and out both sides. The division of the school (organizationally and physically) into two -grade teams, each with its own entrances and coat rooms, seemed very logical to me as a student — I remember being amazed when I found out that all schools were not organized like that. This logic was reinforced by the original plan, which had the grades progressing counter- clockwise around the building, and gave higher ceilings and a looser arrangement to the "big kids" in Grades 5 and 6. It also seems to me that students moved from room to room more in the higher grades; on Delta I remember going to particular rooms other than my "home" two classrooms for math, or other subjects (French ?). The rooms between Phi and Delta were used for a variety of small classes, and also were taken over for regular classrooms when the space was needed to accommodate higher enrollment (during the baby boom). One former student remembers those rooms being used for Special Education, French, and an advanced reading class in the first years the school was open, but several of us also recall both sixth grade and second grade homerooms being located there around 1970.6 In the Kappa team, there were three named sub -teams (e.g. "Kappa Gamma "), each consisting of a double classroom with an accordion - pleated partition (textured blue vinyl) through the center. (One of these classrooms, where I was in sixth grade, was in the space originally planned as the "individual study center," and now part of the Library.) Desks were pushed together in groups of about 6 for homeroom, and students sat in mixed -grade groups, then moved to one side or the other of the partition during the day for various subjects; as I recall, the partitions were open for at least part of every day. My clearest memories of Estabrook are of the common areas — in particular Room 8, the high - ceilinged coatroom spaces adjacent to it, and the central Kappa coatroom area outside of the gym. The original coatroom areas had U- shaped wooden alcove units, with a shelf at the bottom (for boots, or wet boots to go under), a shelf at the top, and pegs for coats under the top shelf. It was pleasant to come in from outside in the morning and hang up your coat in a high - ceilinged, open space full of wood, with natural light pouring in through clerestory windows (or light from 6 Susan Dalrymple Griffith and Jon Rowland, personal communication to Susan Ward, May 2012. Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Former Student's Perspective 48 the overhead lantern -like fixtures, on rainy days). With the alcoves now occupied by offices, and the corridors narrowed by metal lockers, much of the original character of these spaces has been lost, but the original spacious feel can still be appreciated from the stairways into Room 8. Room 8 was memorable in part for some of the special activities that took place there (regular movie hours, class plays and performances, Iowa tests, etc.), but also because it was a dramatic space. Probably the primary reason for this was the stadium - style, steeply stepped seating arrangement, but the swooping, angled ceiling and original canister down lighting also added drama, as did the entrances to the room (passages beside high wooden railing /walls at the front of the room, and staircases up to the top level at the rear). Students were given assigned "Room 8 seats" each year; I remember that one year mine was in one of the non - permanent chairs (with attached desks) in one of the top -level corners, so I had to leave the room first when there was a fire drill. The seating arrangement worked well for activities requiring group participation, since it was easy to see other students. One memorable example was a demonstration of how easily messages can become distorted in the telling, in the form of a giant game of "telephone. "' The "live" acoustic of the room could also cause problems; one student with spring allergies remembers watching a filmstrip in Room 8, and being afraid to sneeze and disrupt the class.8 The playgrounds for Phi and Delta were rectangular areas paved with asphalt, and painted with lines for various games including hopscotch, four - square, and kickball. Many of the red rubber playground balls used for these games ended up on the roof of the school, and would be lost until the custodian had time to go up on the roof and throw them off. The grassy area beyond was (I think) common to both teams, and had a swing set, two metal jungle gyms, and a metal slide; the equipment has changed numerous times over the years. The area between the asphalt and the school was best avoided, due to the sharp edges of the operable aluminum windows. The gymnasium, which has changed very little over the years, was where students ate lunch for most of the time I attended Estabrook, and was also used for assemblies, concerts, and plays. (The stage was not ideal for theater, since the backstage area could only be reached by going outside.) At the time I attended, the logistics of arrival and departure could be much less structured than they are today. The Estabrook district covered a smaller area (since Parker School was still open), and almost all of the students walked to school, rode bikes, or took the bus. On the back side of the school, many children (including me) walked on Robinson Rd., and many more took paths through the woods and Hennessey's Field, or came down Mountain Rd. Walkers assembled outside to wait for the doors to open each morning, usually outside the doors at the end of each wing. At the end of the day, students with after - school activities (classes at Hayden Recreation Center, Hebrew School, Catechism classes, etc.) could be picked up after school by parents waiting in the parking area at the end of Kappa — usually these were carpools, fitting as many children as possible into station wagons with extra seats in the back. Bus riders, meanwhile, self - organized (I think) by reporting to designated classrooms, while walkers simply left by whatever door was most convenient, and headed off in all directions. 7 Liam Nolan, personal communication to Susan Ward, May 2012 (I also remember this). 8 Naomi Pierce, personal communication to Susan Ward, June 2012. Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Site Description and History 49 6. Site Description and History By Susan Ward Site The thirteen -and one -third acre site, designed originally by landscape architects Moriece and Gary of Cambridge, is roughly L- shaped and abuts Town conservation land on two sides. The site slopes up from the entrance driveway off Grove Street to a relatively level open space surrounded by woods on three sides. The area around the building was originally divided into three play spaces for use by the three two -grade teams, adjacent to each team's classrooms. On the south side of the school, there are two rectangular areas paved with asphalt (originally for the Phi and Delta teams), along with a common grassy area with swings, slides, etc.; the original Phi playground is now partly built over with a temporary classroom structure. An amphitheater with tiered wooden benches and a small wooden stage was later added at the south end of the site. On the east side of the school, a flagstone terrace connects to a secondary driveway, bounded on the right by a stone wall, which slopes up to a gated connection with Robinson Rd. The greenhouse, built in 1999, is between the terrace and driveway. Adjacent to the driveway there is a large open field with a baseball diamond, and a small paved area with basketball hoops (part of the current parking lot), which together constituted the original Kappa play space. The field is bordered on the east by Mountain Rd. and Hennessy's Field conservation area, and on the north by a steep slope down to a marshy area (part of the Paint Mine conservation land). History Before it was acquired by the Town as a school site in 1957, the Estabrook site and surrounding area had a complex history of usage and ownership, owing to its varied terrain and geology, its remote location in the northwest corner of Lexington, and the variety of formal and informal roads and paths that have been used to access the area over time. For much of its known history, this area was part of a large farm belonging to the Simonds family; at various times the Simonds property stretched from Grove St. north to the Burlington line, and from the family's house on Grove St. (near present -day Tidd Circle) to beyond the present -day Paint Mine conservation land. Simonds Farm began with 200 acres deeded by Roger Shaw to William Simonds and Michael Bacon in 1655. Succeeding generations added to the farm, and sometimes re- acquired land that they or previous generations had sold, so the entire area eventually became known as "Simonds Farm. "9 In the late 18th century, the northern end of the Simonds property was divided into two smaller farms, established by two men who had married into the Simonds family. The first was Rufus Merriam, Lexington's first Postmaster, who acquired land in the northwest corner of the Simonds land through marriage to Martha Simonds in 1785, and built a house on Grove St. The second was Jacob Robinson, who in 1790 married Hannah Simonds; he acquired some land through this marriage, purchased a further seven acres in 1807, and built a house at the end of what is now Robinson Rd. The two farms, which probably met near the eastern edge of the 9 Much of this account of the early history of the site is drawn from Thomas P. Sileo, Historical Guide to Open Space in Lexington (Lexington, Massachusetts: Thomas P. Sileo, 1995). Chapters "Paint Mine, "pp. 7 -17 and "Turning Mill Pond," pp. 31 -38; and from a 1948 article on the Robinson families of Lexington written by Edwin B. Worthen. Typescript in "Robinson Family" folder (Worthenl8.57). Worthen Collection, Cary Memorial Library. Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Site Description and History 50 current Estabrook site, remained in the Robinson and Merriam families through the mid -19th century, and their farmhouses (along with the Simonds house) are shown on a map published in 1853.10 It is not clear exactly where the Robinson farmhouse or the original end of what became Robinson Rd. were located; most likely the house was located east of the Estabrook playing field, on what is now Mountain Rd. The farm was most noted historically as the birthplace of Jacob Robinson's grandson, George Dexter Robinson, who served as Governor of Massachusetts from 1884 -86. In the 1860s, following the discovery of a natural ochre "paint mine" on his property, George's father, Charles Robinson, sold much of his farm to the organizers of the Boston and Lexington Paint Company, and moved to a home in Lexington Center. (Part of his farm was sold back to the Simonds farm at this time, and more of the "paint mine" property was later re- acquired by the Simonds family.)11 By 1876, the Robinson house had apparently been abandoned; an account of a visit to the Simonds farm by members of the newly formed Lexington Field and Garden Club describes passing through "the clearing near the ruins of the old Robinson mansion. ,12 By the early 20th century, the land east of Robinson Rd. (and Mountain Rd.) was largely maintained as pasture land, as part of the 237 -acre "gentleman's farm" owned by Francis K. Simonds, and inherited in 1908 by his sons, Henry and Franklin. Rufus Merriam's farm was inherited in 1847 by his son John Parkhurst Merriam, who died unmarried in 1859.13 After John Parkhurst Merriam's death, at least one parcel of the Merriam land was repurchased by the Simonds family, but much of the land west of what is now Robinson Rd. (including at least part of the Estabrook site) seems to have remained in the Merriam family, or been sold by them to others. 14 A map published in 1875 shows the Merriam farmhouse (near what is now the Estabrook driveway) as being occupied by a "J. Burton," and an 1898 map gives the owner as John Wiese; Wiese was listed as one of the Town of Lexington's "Weighers of Hay and Grain" in 1910, and from 1913 to 1918 he was apparently employed as the foreman of the Simonds farm. 15 In the early 20th century some of the original Merriam farm was divided into deep lots, fronting on Grove St. and extending back to Robinson Rd. (which was still considered a private "way "); the Estabrook site incorporates parts of two of these lots. By 1912, one of these lots, including a small cottage on the west side of Robinson Rd. (and also some land on the east side), had been sold to Ruben (or Reuben) W. and Edith Mead, who in 1915 built the house at 47 Robinson Rd. By 1930, the Meads had added a garage near their 10 Map of the Town of Lexington, Middlesex County Mass, Surveyed by Order of the Town by H.F. Walling, 1853. (Available online at historicsurvey.lexingtonma.gov) 11 For more on the Paint Mine, see Sileo, 7 -11. A 1927 deed refers to a parcel sold by Charles Robinson to Henry L. Simonds in 1872. (Middlesex County South District Registry of Deeds, Deeds, Book 5092, page 100; copy on file in "Simonds Family" file, Worthen. 18.62, Cary Memorial Library.) 12 Sileo, p. 35. 13 Charles Hudson, History of the Town of Lexington, Middlesex County Massachusetts: Genealogies, 431. 14 The 1927 Simonds deed referred to above also lists a parcel purchased by Ebenezer Simonds from "Martha Merriam et al." in 1859; a 1953 deed of Harry C. Andrews refers to land south of current Estabrook site as "formerly of the heirs of J.P. Merriam." (Middlesex South, Deeds, Book 8149, page 210) 15 Map of Lexington MA, F.W. Beers & Co., 1875 (Worthen. 103 1) and Part of the Town of Lexington (North), Geo. W. Stadly & Co., 1898 (Worthen. 1044), Cary Memorial Library; Annual reports of the Town Officers of the Town of Lexington for the Year 1910, (George C. Rand, Printer, 1911); Lists of Persons and Lists of Poll Taxpayers, various years. Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Site Description and History 51 house, and also a henhouse across the street; the garage can be seen (apparently under construction) in a 1930 aerial view of the area 16 The aerial view also shows what appears to be an orchard planted at the top of the site, with a long grassy slope down to Grove St. By the late 1930s, the parcel on the east side of Robinson Rd. had been acquired by the Morris family, while the parcel between Robinson Rd. and Grove St. (including the cottage, now designated as 44 Robinson Rd.) was occupied by George Andrews, a retired sailor. 17 By 1949, the latter parcel was owned by Harry Andrews, who deeded it to George Andrews in 1953. A 1948 aerial view shows the land in mixed agricultural use, with some plowed areas, the remnants of the orchard, and the henhouse in the northeast corner of the lot. By an order of taking in January, 1957, the Town acquired the central portion of Andrews's lot, along with the small triangular parcel where the henhouse was located (currently the school's rear driveway). Andrews retained house lots on Grove St. and Robinson Rd., along with the right to use the henhouse until the school was built." The lot to the north of the Mead/Andrews land, meanwhile, was sold during the 1920s to the Hill family, and was still owned by Lillian (Hill) Smith in the 1950s. The 1930 and 1948 aerial views show Smith's lot as having been partially cleared previously, but now largely wooded. Also visible in the 1930 view is a path between the Smith and Mead/Andrews property, described in Harry Andrews' 1953 deed as "Pine Field Path. "19 By an order of taking in February, 1957, the Town acquired about ten - and - three- quarters acres of Smith's land, including a narrow parcel to accommodate the new school's driveway; Smith retained the house and lot at 121 Grove St., along with the right to access the house via the driveway parcel.20 The land adjoining the Hills' property to the north was acquired during the 1940s by George and Sadie Wilkins, who constructed a series of serpentine ponds intended to attract muskrats (valued at the time for their fur) .21 The adjoining land to the east of Robinson Rd. (and of the Mead/Morris house) remained part of the Simonds farm until Franklin Simonds's death in 1930, but was gradually sold off during the 1930s and 1940s by the executors of his estate.22 Ten acres of this land at the end of Robinson Rd. was sold in 1940 to William Hennessy, a horse - racing agent who lived on Cedar Street, and his wife Mary, who pastured horses there; the Hennessy stable, which still exists, can be seen in the 1948 aerial view, as can the "muskrat ponds" constructed by George Wilkins. (The Hennessy and Wilkins properties were both later acquired by the Town as conservation land.) The division of the remaining Simonds Farm land into house lots and new streets accelerated after the construction of Route 128, in 1950. 16 See Lexington Historical Commission, Individual Property Survey Form (Form B) for 47 Robinson Rd., 2000 (available online at http: //historicsurvey.lexin tg onma.gov). List of Persons, 1912, gives the Meads' address as "Grove St." ; the 1919 edition gives their address as "Robinson Rd." Robinson Rd. was not listed as a street (and street numbers were not listed for Grove St. addresses) until the early 1930s. 17 Lists of Persons, various years; according to Jacquelyn Ward, who moved to Robinson Rd. in 1950, George Andrews had been a harbor pilot in Boston Harbor. 18 Deed dated January 22, 1957, Middlesex South Registry of Deeds, book 8893, page 218. 19 Middlesex South, Deeds, Book 8149, page 210. 20 Deed dated February 25, 1957, Middlesex South Registry of Deeds, book 8908, page 541. 21 Sileo, p. 15; Jacquelyn Ward, personal communication to Susan Ward, 2012. 22 Extensive information and correspondence regarding the Simonds land during this period may be found in the Edwin B. Worthen Collection, "Simonds family" folder (Worthen. 18.62), Cary Memorial Library (Worthen was one of the executors of Franklin Simonds's estate). Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Site Description and History 52 • r/ �%..• '- •• ��'[�'Ty;'fif,'�.�•�+iS'��1L =�I ).t��f�f' .f �� � :,4 �'•. `r N R„v• t oA 3 ` S i .f3' . i\ VIRV i, .�.Y yM�C'" �f J - �. � � '�}.! ?�] �' •ia+. �.�� v) `r�S,I -}' U•�L.'[�i���..[1 � J��•�_ {:� •r� 7c. •`fjy y. {r�+�r',r�• � �1 rf rS� � ,�}r !� ) gflay�� SJ� {' i,' • ;�,,� {peg i' I . �+�w f G RnliriJr f� 4i:•,pPCT� Q risn� C 3 Cf�i �; v � ��` {;`guy F3'ti� • f� ���� +- ,�� � iii "� �SJ 3 f y 3 � b• ' G; iU i `�►V % ,j`��.j . ,�,,,,•,•.. ►.: J:i�� \ a.���+ij � y��; !Q �t ' ;mss[► ff'�� N0RI A STRICT L�3'sF� \\.W1ftr1Vhff1 94JV Map of the Town of Lexington, Middlesex County Mass, Surveyed by Order of the Town by H.F. Walling, 1853 (detail of North District; the Simonds farmhouse is shown just to the left of the D in "District," with the Merriam farm (on Grove St.) and Robinson Farm (at the end of the future Robinson Rd.) to the north.). Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Site Description and History 53 1930 aerial survey photograph showing Simonds Farm area, with current Estabrook site outlined in white. Grove St. is the winding road at center, and Robinson Rd. (with the Mead house at the end) is below. Note "Pine Field Path" through edge of woods, roughly in line with current Estabrook driveways. Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Site Description and History 54 JU ..R � -. �a'R+ • may, 3y+�ev n.� r � , Aerial survey photograph of the Estabrook site (rough outline indicated) and surrounding area, 1948. (Grove St. is on left, Robinson Rd. on right.) Note the muskrat ponds in the upper part of the view. Photograph courtesy Town of Lexington Department of Public Works, Engineering Division. (1948 Aerial Survey, tile 648035) Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report n m 6 0 E Lllllan LI. 9m11M1 Site Description and History 55 Y f O cf "F z •g i �tl P o . e , e � '7n ArsaA 13.30114c+sea e r z I _ P f� 3 ee � U } a 0 „.. r — e - . -new ee ss. n7 M4 L[XINOTON PLANNING Site Description and History 55 Y f O cf "F z •g i �tl P o . e , e � '7n ArsaA 13.30114c+sea e r z I _ P f� 3 ee � U } a 0 „.. r — e - . -new ee ss. n7 M4 Plan showing land acquired by the Town of Lexington for the Estabrook School site, April 4, 1957. (Middlesex South Registry of Deeds, plan 522, 1957) Susan Ward June 2012 � CLAN Pi LANG - - 9 T e E SH~NG %Lames nav 5CHODL src• T W �v Gr2OVE ST2EET o I.. I` LEXINGTON -MASS. Plan showing land acquired by the Town of Lexington for the Estabrook School site, April 4, 1957. (Middlesex South Registry of Deeds, plan 522, 1957) Susan Ward June 2012 Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report 7. Mosaic Mural at the Estabrook School Mosaic Mural 56 Jackie Davison, member of the Standing School Building Committee said of Frank Crimp, "the architect said the entry was going to have a large wall space and he suggested that instead of just using brick that we have a tile design so that it would be a more welcoming entry. We thought it was a terrific idea and [said] we would get children to design it.23 Bill Terris confirmed that Frank Crimp suggested the mural. He wanted the students to see something beautiful when they came to the school. He thought seeing this artwork would encourage the students to be creative. Crimp also designed the sunken patio and garden in front of the mural and had ideas of classes being held there.24 Donna Keane of Lexington was a member of the fifth grade class at the Munroe School that was given the task of designing the mural. She said that the art teacher at the school, Theodore Wolf, told her class that they would be designing a mural about transportation to be installed at the new Estabrook School. Each child was given a large sheet of construction paper and little squares of construction paper in different colors. Mrs. Keane believes that the squares were about the size of tiles in the actual mural. They were told to make a picture of a means of transportation out of the pieces of paper and glue the pieces onto their large sheet. "We had freedom to be very creative," she said .25 No one told the children what vehicle to make. Mrs. Keane made a picture of a train car. There are two rockets and space ship as well as more conventional vehicles. When the children finished their pictures, they very carefully took them up to a long table that had been set up on one side of the room, and where, presumably, they were put in their final arrangement. The children were told that their pictures would be sent to Japan and turned into a ceramic mural. In December of 1961, the children who had worked on the mural (then in sixth grade) were driven by bus to the school to have their picture taken in front of the mural. Their former fifth grade teacher, Miss Phair, accompanied them. In the photo a workman is shown putting up some of the last sections of mosaic at the right end of the mural. The photo with a caption about the children's visit appeared in the Lexington Minuteman on December 7, 1961. Bill Terris said, "The mural over fifty years has been a symbol of the school. When people think of Estabrook, they think of the mural. ,26 In 2012, plans to preserve the mural were being considered. 23 Jacqueline Davison, interview with Anne Grady, March 30, 2012. 24 Bill Terris, interview with Anne Grady, March 9, 2012. 25 Donna Keane, interview with Anne Grady, May 2, 2012. 26 Bill Terris, interview with Anne Grady, March 9, 2012. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Mosaic Mural 57 Mrs. Keane is fourth from the left in the front row. Mrs. Keane in May 2, 2012, standing in front of the train car she designed. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Architectural Significance 58 B. Architectural Significance of the Estabrook School The construction of the Estabrook School was no less a milestone for the Town of Lexington than the building of the Hancock School, the Town's first centralized grammar school, seventy years earlier. The School Building Committee's stated objectives in 1890 could apply to the Estabrook School: Our goal has been, first of all, for utility, healthfulness and convenience; at the same time we have not been unmindful of the fact that correct proportions and architectural taste ... have an educational influence on boys and girls.27 The Estabrook School is an example of the mid - century modern movement in architecture. It relates to the other examples of modern architecture in Lexington such as the houses in the nearby Turning Mill area, as well as the other school buildings in town built in the modern style. However, the importance of the school rests primarily in its plan, designed to accommodate and facilitate Lexington's well - established team teaching program. The plan is what gives the Estabrook School its wider architectural significance. The design and how it functioned to support the team teaching program was described and illustrated in publications on school design. Many educators and architects came to see it. The Wayland High School was designed a year earlier for a secondary school team teaching program by John Harkness and Herbert Gallagher of The Architects Collaborative. That school and Estabrook School shared the same educational consultant, Dr. Donald Mitchell; he worked extensively with both school systems to develop the programs for the schools. In both cases he had critical input in the final plan. Features of the design, as opposed to the plan, may also have been influenced by the Wayland School. Harkness stressed the importance of making schools appealing by including vistas of fields and woods, large areas of glass, patios and attractive plantings. The Estabrook School is one of the most creatively designed schools in Lexington. The 13.3 -acre site, designed by landscape architects Moriece and Gary with open fields surrounded by woods provides an appropriately expansive setting for the school building and its innovative plan. 27 "Report of the Committee Appointed to Consider the Subject of Building a New School House for the Hancock School," School Report in the Lexington Town Report (1890). Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report V. References References 59 American Architect's Directory. Washington: American Institute of Architects, 1956. Anderson, Edward and John C. Harkness. "Planned Variability." The Nation's Schools 65 No. 4 (April 1960): 83 -91. Anderson, Robert H. "Three Samples of Team Teaching in Action." The Nation's Schools 65 No. 5 (May 1960): 62 -65; 102 -110. , and Ellis A. Hagstrom and Wade M. Robinson. "Team Teaching in an Elementary School." The School Review LXVIII (Spring 1960): 71 -84. About the Franklin School team teaching program. , and Donald P. Mitchell. "Team Teaching, New Learning Concepts Demand Changes in School Plant Design." The Nation's Schools 65, No. 6 (Spring 1960): 75 -82. Bair, Medill, and Richard G. Woodward. Team Teaching in Action. Boston: Houghton Mifflin, 1964. This book by Mr. Bair, who was superintendent of the Lexington Schools from 1959 to 1963 and Richard G. Woodward, Coordinator of Instructional Materials and Services for the Lexington Schools, discuss the rationale for team teaching, give an explanation of the concept, and space requirements, etc. before presenting a "how -to" manual for planning and implementing a team teaching program based on the experience at the Franklin and Estabrook Schools. Bears, Ethel. "Team Teaching at the Franklin School." June 1969. Manuscript in the Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. Beggs, David W., ed. Team Teaching: Bold New Venture. Bloomington Indiana: Indiana University Press, 1964. Clinchy, Evans. Profiles of Significant Schools: Wayland Senior High School, Wayland Massachusetts. New York: Educational Facilities Laboratories, Inc., January 1960. . Schools for Team Teaching: Portraits of Significant Schools. New York: Educational Facilities Laboratories, Inc., 1961. Clinch, Crimp, Brown and Fisher, Architects. Contract Drawings for the Grove Street School, February 12, 1960. Public Facilities Department, Town of Lexington. "Collection of Articles, Brochures, Reports, Handbooks, etc. Recording the History of the Lexington Schools." Binder L• To 1960; Binder IL 1961 -1969. Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report References C0 Elkin, Derek. "Lexington's Academic Newcomers." Investigating Lexington's History, 1999. Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. "Joseph Estabrook Name of Grove St. School." Lexington Minuteman, March 2, 1961. Joseph Estabrook School Dedication Program, Oct. 8, 1961. "Collection of Articles, Brochures, Reports, Handbooks, etc. Recording the History of the Lexington Schools." Binder IL 1961 -1969. Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. "Grove Street School Wins State `Go- Ahead. "'Lexington Minuteman, October 29, 1959. Lexington Public School District. Application to the Massachusetts School Building Authority for replacement of the Estabrook School. November 5, 2010. Lexington School Committee Reports, 1957 -1962. Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. LexMedia. Videotape of the celebration of the history of the Estabrook School, March 3, 2012. MacKinnon, A. R. "School and University: a White Paper." April 22, 1964. Special Collections, Gutman Library, Harvard University Graduate School of Education. Addresses problems in the school /university relationship. New Schools for New Education. New York: Educational Facilities Laboratories, Inc., 1961. Based on an architectural workshop at the University of Michigan, Oct. 19 -10, 1959 to consider the architectural implications of Images of the Future, by J. Lloyd Trump. Papadonis, Katie. " Estabrook School: A School Designed for Team Teaching." Investigating Lexington's History, 2000. Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. "Parents Lash at Advanced Placement Program in Local Schools." Lexington Minuteman, July 25, 1963. The article also discusses dissatisfaction with team teaching. Perry, Paul A. ed. SUPRAD: an interim report on the School and University Program for Research and Development. Cambridge, Massachusetts: SUPRAD, 1962. . Lexington and SUPRAD. Published by the School and University Program for Research and Development. October 1963. Worthen Collection, Cary Memorial Library, Folder 21 -20. "Questionnaire for Architects' Roster and/or Register of Architects Qualified for Federal Public Works." 1946; 1953. American Institute of Architects Archives. Rice, Arthur H. "Here are Some Factors that Affect Schoolhouse Planning." The Nation's Schools 65, No. 4 (April 1960): 74 -77. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report References 61 Riley, Arthur. "School Ideas Given a New Life: Lexington Leads the Way in Team Teaching." Boston Globe. December 10, 1961. Shaplin, Judson T., and Henry F. Olds, eds. Team Teaching. New York: Harper & Row, 1964. Sileo, Thomas P. Historical Guide to Open Space in Lexington. Lexington, Mass.: Thomas P. Sileo, 1995. ( "Paint Mine" (pp. 7 -17) and "Turning Mill Pond" (pp. 31 -38) chapters), "Sixth Grade pupils of the Munroe School last week observed workmen putting finishing touches on the mural at the Estabrook School." Lexington Minuteman, December 7, 1961. "Teachers Taught to Work in Teams: Lexington Program." The Christian Science Monitor, August 6, 1962. The Standing School Building Committee, Lexington Massachusetts. The Proposed New Elementary School on Grove Street. March, 1960. "Collection of Articles, Brochures, Reports, Handbooks, etc. Recording the History of the Lexington Schools." Binder IL 1961 -1969. Special Collections, Cary Memorial Library. Trump, J. Lloyd. Images of the Future. Publication authorized by the National Association of Secondary School Principals Commission on the Experimental Study and Utilization of Staff in the Secondary School, 1959. Worthen, Edwin B. Collection. Robinson Family Folder (18.57); Simonds Family Folder (18.62). Cary Memorial Library. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report References C2 Recorded Oral History Interviews Richard Barnes. Telephone interview with Anne Grady, March 16, 2012. Jacqueline Davison. Telephone interview with Anne Grady. March 30, 2012. Joseph Grannis. Telephone interview with Anne Grady, June 16, 2012. David Horton. Interview with Anne Grady. Lexington, Massachusetts. March 29, 2012. Donna Keane. Interview with Anne Grady. Lexington, Massachusetts. May 2, 2012. Frank Lyman. Telephone interview with Anne Grady. June 14, 2012. James Maclnnes. Telephone interview with Anne Grady, March 30, 2012 William Terris. Interview with Anne Grady. Bedford Massachusetts. March 9, 2012. Brief interviews, not recorded Charles Butts Betty Clark Dan Fenn, Jr. Catherine Garner Arthur Katz Joe McFaline Joe McLaughlin Walter Pierce Florence Poor Joseph Robbat Stephen Russian Sandra Trach Susan Ward Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Research Methodology 63 VL Research Methodology The wealth of information available on the design and functioning the Estabrook School and the team teaching program it housed would be the envy of writers of other historic structure reports. Of primary importance in researching the school was Team Teaching in Action (1964), a book length guide to the teaching method as implemented at the Estabrook School that was co- written by Medill Bair, who was Superintendent of the Lexington Public Schools from 1959 to 1963 and Richard C. Woodward, Coordinator of Instructional Materials in Lexington. Other books and articles written by faculty members at the Harvard University Graduate School of Education, who were intimately involved in setting up and running the Lexington Team Teaching Program at the Franklin and then the Estabrook Schools as part of the School and University Program for Research and Development (SUPRAD), were a valuable resource .28 These and other books and articles reflecting the widespread push for innovative solutions to the crisis in education after World War II were examined at the Harvard University School of Education's Gutman Library. Closer to home in the Cary Memorial Library Special Collections, two excellent papers by high school students in Richard Kollen's Investigating Lexington's History class, were a valuable starting point for research on the Estabrook School. Available published resources included the Standing School Building Committee's 12 -page "Proposal for the New Elementary School on Grove Street," and the booklet Lexington and SUPRAD that was a collaborative effort between the members of the Harvard School of Education faculty, who oversaw the Lexington Team Teaching program, and the Lexington School Community, which was published in October of 1963. A copy of this important booklet is in the Worthen Collection at the Cary Memorial Library. Housed in the Genealogy Room at the Cary Library are two binders of useful information about the Lexington Schools, entitled "A Collection of Articles, Brochures, Reports, Handbooks, etc. regarding the History of the Lexington Public Schools," Volume 1: To 1960; Volume IL 1961 -1969. School Committee Reports in the Lexington Town Reports provided some information, as did school committee minutes of the period housed in the office of the School Superintendent at the School Administration Building. Donna Hooper, Town Clerk, has been unable to locate the minutes of the Standing School Building Committee's meetings on the planning of the Grove Street School, which, according to committee member Jacqueline Davison, met weekly for many months. Little has been written about the architects, Clinch, Crimp, Brown and Fisher, although Internet searches identified some records at the American Institute of Architects. A full set of contract drawings for the Estabrook School is available in electronic form in the Lexington Public Facilities Department and in hard copy in the Public Safety Collection at the State Archives. A number of copies are also stored in the attic of the current Estabrook School building. Specifications for the construction of the Estabrook School have not been located, though some specifications are written on the contract drawings. A page in the Grove Street School Proposal entitled "Description of the Building," provides an overview of building materials used. I am grateful to Walter S. Pierce, architect, for his perspective on school building design in the post war period. 28 Examination of the extensive repository of records of the School and University Program for Research and Development (SUPRAD) at the Harvard Archives was beyond the scope of this report, but would provide a future scholar with an in depth look at the program. A number of dissertations on the SUPRAD program are also available. Joseph Estabrook School: Historic Structure Report Research Methodology 64 Perhaps the greatest and most unique resource for this project were the memories of people involved in the planning of the Estabrook School and those who taught in the school in the 1960s. Eight recorded oral histories and a number of brief conversations have added an important personal perspective on the Estabrook School as well as information not now available elsewhere.