{"nrhp_refnum":"12000026","name":"North Grove School","other_names":["Lindahl School","Brickville School"],"category":"building","location":{"address":"26475 Brickville Rd.","address_restricted":false,"city":"Sycamore","county":"DeKalb County","state":"IL","lat":42.02205465700007,"lon":-88.70480565899999,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"2012-02-15","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A one-room frame schoolhouse built in 1878 by Swedish immigrants about four miles northwest of Sycamore, DeKalb County, Illinois, with a garage, pump, flagpole, swing set and privies on a 1/3-acre yard.","why_significant":"The school is argued to be significant for its role in local education. It began as a Swedish Lutheran parochial and Sunday school, was bought by the county in 1880 and served as a public one-room, eight-grade school until 1952. It is described as the only one-room school in DeKalb County that remains on its original site with its structure unchanged since use as a school.","narrative":"Built in 1878 by Swedish immigrants, North Grove School is a white, wood-frame, one-room schoolhouse on Brickville Road, about four miles northwest of Sycamore, Illinois. It sits in a small schoolyard beside a corn field, with a 1920s garage, a 1912 pump, and reconstructed privies. Changes include a 1920s entry and rear storage addition and two extra south windows added in 1919 for more light. Inside are original wall and ceiling boards, a rebuilt teacher's platform, and blackboards. The Swedish Lutheran congregation first used it as a parochial and Sunday school, with some classes taught in Swedish. DeKalb County bought it in 1880, and it served as an eight-grade public school until consolidation closed it in 1952. Illinois later named it a Standard School. It remains on its original site and is described as the county's only surviving one-room school unchanged in structure since its school days. The Sycamore School District now uses it for education.","period_of_significance":"1878-1952","architect_builder":"UNKNOWN/Olson, Anton","architectural_style":"OTHER/one room schoolhouse","criteria":["A"],"status_note":"Owned by the Sycamore School District and used by the district and community as a learning tool; roofing described as in good repair.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:55:37.203777-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/24/8927/28892724/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_IL/12000026.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/12000026/5d085a85e7-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/12000026/5d085a85e7-1600.webp","licence":"CC BY-SA 3.0","author":"lester1950","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:North_Grove_School_2012-09-06_13-03-32.jpg\" rel=\"noopener\">lester1950</a>, <a href=\"https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/3.0\" rel=\"license noopener\">CC BY-SA 3.0</a>, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:North_Grove_School_2012-09-06_13-03-32.jpg"},"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/28892724","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/North_Grove_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q29640455"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/illinois/dekalb-county/north-grove-school-12000026/"}