Friends Boarding School and Ohio Yearly Meetinghouse Historic District
Also known as: Olney Friends School; Stillwater Monthly Meetinghouse; Taber Farm; Plummer Farm
Why it's listed
Just east of Barnesville in Belmont County, Ohio, this district of roughly 316 acres brings together a Quaker boarding school campus, the Ohio Yearly Meetinghouse of 1878 with its Stillwater Cemetery, and two farmsteads. The school's centerpiece is the Main, a 2½-story red brick building first built in 1876 and reconstructed in 1911 after a fire destroyed its residential third floor. Its symmetrical form, slate hipped roofs, dormers, bell cupola and plain wooden porches reflect Quaker simplicity with modest Georgian Revival touches. Later additions include a 1938 gymnasium built partly from salvaged materials and a 1957 classroom wing. The district is significant for illustrating Quaker views on education, including a guarded, co-educational schooling kept within the Society of Friends, and for its link to the Conservative branch of Ohio Quakers. Of 25 resources, 15 contribute to the district's character, and the school, meetinghouse and farms remain in use.
Significance in brief: The district is presented as reflecting Quaker educational doctrine and the Conservative (Wilburite) Quaker tradition in Ohio. The boarding school, founded as a co-educational institution, and the adjacent meetinghouse show the link between Quaker religion and education. The Main building embodies plain Quaker institutional design with modest Georgian Revival features.
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 09000168, listed March 25, 2009. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence medium).
Key facts
| Address | 61830 Sandy Ridge Rd., Barnesville |
|---|---|
| County | Belmont County |
| Listed | March 25, 2009 |
| Reference number | 09000168 |
| Resource type | District |
| Architectural style | 20th Century Revival / Georgian Revival; Other: Quaker boarding school and Quaker meetinghouse |
| Areas of significance | Education, Religion, Architecture, Agriculture |
| Level of significance | State |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | School, meetinghouse, cemetery, farmhouses and agricultural outbuildings remain in use; the Main houses classrooms and offices. |
| Acreage | 316.1 |
| Coordinates | 39.99479, -81.14181 (NPS GIS) |
What listing means for this property
This is a historic district. Buildings within its boundary are either contributing (they add to the district's significance) or non-contributing. Owners of contributing income-producing buildings can claim the 20% federal rehabilitation tax credit; homeowners should look at state credits. National Register districts impose no design review by themselves; a local historic district ordinance, if one exists, does (the difference explained).
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 09000168.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.