Northeast School
Also known as: District #1 School
Why it's listed
Northeast School, also called District #1 School, is a one-story, one-room schoolhouse on Summit Road in Richmond, Massachusetts. Built in a simplified Federal style with a pedimented south gable, clapboard siding and post-and-beam framing of hand-hewn timbers, it has a later wing housing a woodshed and 1932 chemical toilets. It served the Stevens Corners settlement, once the town's business center with a tavern, store and post office. Town records show steady maintenance, including major repairs by contractor J. B. Stiles in 1888. The school closed in 1937 when a consolidated school opened, then sat empty and was used for storage and as a pig barn. In 1993 the Richmond Historical Society moved it across the road onto a new foundation and restored it as a museum. It is listed as the earliest known of Richmond's six schoolhouses and the only one not converted to a home, and as a surviving example of a rural district school in western Massachusetts.
Significance in brief: The nomination argues it is the earliest of six known schoolhouses built in Richmond and the only one not converted to residential use. It is significant under Criterion A for reflecting the town's response to population growth and the need for public education, and under Criterion C as an intact surviving district school. It meets Criteria Consideration B because it was moved.
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 02000902, listed August 30, 2002. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | 981 Summit Rd., Richmond |
|---|---|
| County | Berkshire County |
| Listed | August 30, 2002 |
| Reference number | 02000902 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | ca. 1791-1937 |
| Architect / builder | Stiles, J.B. (1888 repairs) |
| Architectural style | Federal |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Restored by the Richmond Historical Society after the 1993 move and now used as a museum; the school closed in 1937 and stood empty and was later used for storage and as a pig barn before 1993. |
| Acreage | 3.2 |
| Coordinates | 42.40015, -73.33127 (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 02000902.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7057974
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.