The one-room school that stands in the middle of the small community of Maysville on U.S. Highway 50 is one of the few old schoolhouses left in Chaffee County. Maysville was one of the largest communities when Chaffee County was formed in 1879. By 1881 it was the rail head for mines in the South Arkansas River drainage.
The first Maysville School was probably two stories. By1912 it had been reduced it to its present size, one story divided into classroom and living quarters for a teacher. Chaffee County at that time had 30 school districts, some with more than one school. The number of school districts began shrinking in 1927 and those left by 1958 were consolidated into two: Buena Vista and Salida.
Some of the old schools survive today in private ownership. Maysville School was converted to use as a school bus barn with a garage door in one end. In 1977, the district deeded the school to the Salida Museum Association “for the purpose of preserving and maintaining the school house of former school District 4 as an historical site.” Colorado Historical Society provided funding and guidance to return the school to its original configuration.
In 1999, the school was listed on the National Register of Historic Places as a significant example of rural school buildings in Colorado. The building retains much of its interior and exterior historic integrity, but lacks modern utilities that would make it livable. The community would like to use the school as a community center and the Salida Museum Association shares that vision.
In recent years, residents of Maysville have restored the masonry chimney and repainted the building to keep up with the ravages of time.
How/When can I visit the schoolhouse, go inside, and possibly talk to someone who knows more about the history of maysville, especially interested in historic graveyards as well.