Ourant's School
Also known as: Ourant School; Has-302-10
Why it's listed
Ourant's School is a one-room schoolhouse built in 1873 in rural Nottingham Township, Harrison County, Ohio. It is a vernacular frame building with shiplap siding, a dressed stone foundation, 6/6 wood windows, a front-gable metal roof, and an original bell and wooden belfry. Inside, the wood floor, wainscoting, raised teacher's platform, blackboard, desks, Boomer stove and pressed metal ceiling remain. A coal shed and two privies also survive. The school served Hattonia, a hamlet that grew around a store and post office established in 1882 and faded after a planned railroad was never built. The post office closed in 1903, and the school is the only remaining building from the community. Classes ended in 1941. Of the seven one-room schools in the township, the others were demolished, burned, moved or altered, leaving Ourant's as the only intact example in the township and the county. It was listed for its role in local education and community life and as a well-preserved example of its building type.
Significance in brief: The school is tied to Hattonia, a vanished community of which it is the only remaining building. It is also the only intact survivor of Nottingham Township's seven one-room schools and the most distinctive example of the type in Harrison County. It retains a high level of exterior and interior integrity.
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 94000241, listed March 17, 1994. Summary generated October 2026 (model claude-sonnet-5-5, prompt v1.0-2026-10-29, confidence high).
Key facts
| Address | Ourant Rd., W of Cadiz, Cadiz |
|---|---|
| County | Harrison County |
| Listed | March 17, 1994 |
| Reference number | 94000241 |
| Resource type | Building |
| Period of significance | 1873-1941 |
| Architectural style | Other: One-room Schoolhouse (vernacular) |
| Criteria |
|
| Areas of significance | Education, Architecture |
| Level of significance | Local |
| Status (as stated in the nomination) | Listed function is vacant/not in use; the school closed in 1941 and the interior is essentially unchanged from its school days. |
| Acreage | 0.9 |
| Coordinates | 40.28734, -81.12653 (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.
Noted as vacant in the nomination. Nomination documents can be decades old; current status may differ. If you are considering buying an empty listed property, read the due-diligence checklist.
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 94000241.
- Nomination form (PDF, National Archives) — catalog entry
- Wikipedia article (used for cross-checking only; text not reproduced here)
- Wikidata Q7111248
- This listing as JSON
Last updated October 2026. Found an error? See the editorial policy for how to report it.