Pleasant Grove School
Why it's listed
Pleasant Grove School is a small one-room schoolhouse of native limestone, built in 1856 near Eden in Peoria County, Illinois. Joel Lobaugh, a farmer and stonemason from nearby Smithville, built it with stone quarried south of the neighboring cemetery. The walls are about two feet thick, laid in random ashlar, with larger corner stones that resemble quoins and dressed limestone lintels and sills as the only ornament. A wood-frame vestibule was added before 1900. Children attended until 1946, when local school districts consolidated and classes moved to Eden. A cemetery association made up largely of descendants of the area's settlers bought the building at auction in 1947 and still uses it for meetings. It was listed for its architecture. It is the last one-room school in Logan Township, and only two other stone one-room schools are known in the county, both altered into residences. The building keeps a high degree of integrity despite changes to some window sash and the loss of shutters.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues the school is an excellent example of a stone one-room schoolhouse, with stonework and craftsmanship as its most outstanding features. It shows early local use of native limestone and keeps a high degree of integrity. It is the last one-room school left in Logan Township, and one of only three known stone one-room schools in Peoria County.
Machine-generated summary. This summary was generated by a language model from the official nomination document and has not been reviewed line by line by an editor. It may contain errors. Check the source document before relying on any detail. Source: nomination document (PDF) · National Archives catalog entry. NRHP reference 94000435, listed May 19, 1994. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | .6 mi. W of Eden Rd., on Pleasant Grove Rd., Eden |
|---|---|
| County | Peoria County |
| Listed | May 19, 1994 |
| Reference number | 94000435 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1856 |
| Architect / builder | Lobaugh, Joel, Builder |
| Architectural style | Mid-19th Century; the form notes the building reflects no particular architectural style |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Owned by a local cemetery association, which maintains the building and uses it for meetings once or twice a year. It served as a school from 1856 until 1946. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.67826, -89.84546 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
For a publicly owned building or structure, listing mainly matters when federal funds, permits or licences are involved: projects then go through Section 106 review so effects on the property are considered. Listing also strengthens applications for preservation grants and, for leased income-producing uses, can enable the federal rehabilitation tax credit.
General information, not legal or tax advice. Rules change; confirm with your State Historic Preservation Office or a qualified adviser.
Sources and further reading
- National Park Service, National Register of Historic Places database (snapshot May 2026), reference 94000435.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q23073867
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.