{"nrhp_refnum":"87001363","name":"Middlefield District No. 1 School","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"CR 35","address_restricted":false,"city":"Cooperstown","county":"Otsego County","state":"NY","lat":42.68989198300005,"lon":-74.82893984299994,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1987-08-13","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture"],"significance_levels":["local"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"A two-story, clapboard frame rural schoolhouse built in 1875 on a fieldstone foundation in the hamlet of Middlefield, Otsego County, New York. A rear ell, originally a woodshed, was remodelled in 1930.","why_significant":"The nomination argues the school is an intact, rare surviving two-story frame rural schoolhouse in the vernacular Federal and Greek Revival tradition, with modest Picturesque details of the 1870s. It is also tied to Middlefield's prosperity as an agricultural community. It continues to serve the town as a local museum and community center.","narrative":"Built in 1875 near Cherry Valley Creek on the edge of the hamlet of Middlefield, this two-story frame schoolhouse replaced earlier school quarters for District No. 1. It has a five-bay front, a projecting entrance bay topped by a cupola holding the original bell, and a rear ell remodelled from the woodshed in 1930. Inside, two first-floor classrooms are divided by a sliding partition, and the second floor was never finished for classes. The design follows the form promoted by nineteenth-century school reformers, with a vestibule, two classrooms and a belfry, and it reflects the work of a probable local builder using familiar farmhouse forms. The school closed in 1954 after the district joined Cherry Valley Central School, and the town leased it in 1966 to a local historical association. One classroom has been restored with original desks and equipment, and the upstairs serves as a museum gallery with chalk names left on the walls.","period_of_significance":"1800-1899","architect_builder":null,"architectural_style":"Vernacular Federal and Greek Revival with modest Picturesque (1870s) details; Italianate-style brackets","criteria":[],"status_note":"Occupied and in use as a local historical museum and community activity center, leased by the town to a historical association since 1966; first-floor classroom restored to its original configuration.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:50:45.063949-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/lz/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_NY/87001363.pdf"},"photo":null,"district":null,"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/75320958","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Middlefield_District_No._1_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q6841787"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/new-york/otsego-county/middlefield-district-no-1-school-87001363/"}