America the Beautiful...St. Augustine, Florida

St. George Street, in Saint Augustine, will provide a traveler with fine restaurants, original store fronts and the oldest wooden schoolhouse in America. Although the exact date of the construction is unknown, it first appears on the tax records in 1716.

The British burned the city in 1702. While under Spanish rule, the schoolhouse was built some time between the fourteen years of 1702 to 1716. The structure walls are made of bald cypress & red cedar, and held together by wooden pins & iron spikes.

The schoolhouse was first built as a home for Juan Genoply; the first school teacher. He married and transformed the home into the first co-ed school in 1788. He added the second floor to provide living quarters for his family. The backyard of the schoolhouse has a well and outhouse. The kitchen can also be found in the backyard. It was kept separate from the schoolhouse due to fear of fire, and to keep the home cool in the summer months.

In 1937, the schoolhouse was secured with an anchor & chain; protection against hurricanes. The pecan tree on the premises is estimated to be 250 years old.

God Bless America