Little Red Schoolhouse (Amherst, Massachusetts)

Description

The Little Red Schoolhouse, also known as Amherst Day School, is a historic schoolhouse on the campus of Amherst College in Amherst, Massachusetts. Designed by the noted academic architect James Kellum Smith of the firm McKim, Mead and White, the building was completed in 1937. The Georgian Revival-style schoolhouse is of brick, steel and concrete construction, and was built from the ground up to serve preschool children. Features include built-in wood cubbies in the hallway for storing coats and belongings, toddler-sized bench seats around the periphery of the main meeting room, and windows placed at a low height so that children can look out. Referring to the schoolhouse in a 1951 publication, former Amherst College President Stanley King wrote, "No building on the Amherst campus is better built."Little Red Schoolhouse developed into a children's education resource serving both college faculty and parents from the greater Amherst community.In 2011, Amherst College announced plans to close Little Red Schoolhouse in order to make way for a major campus construction project. The preschool program was terminated in May 2013.HistoryIn July 1936, Dr. Stanley King, President of Amherst College, was presented a petition advocating for a permanent campus building to serve as a preschool. Originally proposed as a resource for college faculty families, the Little Red School House was eventually built to serve children of both the Amherst College faculty and the community at large. It is believed to be the oldest preschool in Amherst.The Little Red School House building was designed by the esteemed American architectural firm McKim, Mead and White. James Kellum Smith, last partner to McKim, Mead and White and Amherst College graduate, class of 1915, designed the schoolhouse. Smith also designed the National Museum of American History in Washington, DC, the Mead Art Building, and the Amherst College War Memorial overlooking Memorial Field. Other buildings designed by McKim, Mead and White include Penn Station, the Boston Public Library and the Rhode Island Statehouse.