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RAMSEY TOWN HALL, Ramsey, Minnesota
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<br />Today, the building sits between a bank on its
<br />north side, a day care center on its south side,
<br />and paved roads on the east and west sides.
<br />Originally, the schoolhouse sat on a large lot
<br />with a swamp and open land in the back, and
<br />an ample front yard with two large oak trees.
<br />The students used to play with the toads at
<br />the swamp, swing from a swing on the oak
<br />trees, and get water from the water pump in
<br />front of the building.
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<br />Figure 3 — Anoka Co Schools, No. 28 in Blue
<br />Between 1943 and 1944, a local school father,
<br />Mr. Pearson, oversaw what is believed to be
<br />the first renovations. At this time, the original
<br />plaster above the wainscoting was removed
<br />from the walls and replaced with a form of
<br />paper board that had vertical strips of wood
<br />over the seams.
<br />In 1946, the school closed and was converted
<br />into a town hall. Until this time, it was
<br />common that schools were used as meeting
<br />places for the town board. Additionally, as
<br />enrollment decreased, many one room school
<br />houses in the area were closing and larger
<br />schools were being built. In fact, when District
<br />No. 28 School closed, it had an enrollment of
<br />roughly nine students.'
<br />The conversion to a town hall brought many
<br />changes to the building. On the exterior, the
<br />front door was replaced, the east, north, and
<br />south wall windows were replaced with
<br />rectangular windows, the west wall windows
<br />were bricked in with asphalt brick, asphalt
<br />shingles replaced the wood shingles on the
<br />roof, and a concrete belt course was added
<br />around the building. On the interior, the girl's
<br />coat room was turned into a small kitchen,
<br />the small teacher's closet was removed, the
<br />chalk boards were painted yellow, the wood
<br />floor was covered with a vinyl flooring, and
<br />the paper board was replaced with fiber
<br />board. The building served as the Ramsey
<br />Town Hall until around 1974 when a new
<br />town hall was built.'
<br />Figure 4 - Ramsey Town Hall 1978
<br />After being listed in the National Register of
<br />Historic Places, rehabilitation of the building
<br />began. Currently, the building sits vacant and
<br />unfinished with several modern updates
<br />throughout.
<br />1 Alan Pearson and Betty Pearson, "Ramsey Town Hall / District No. 28 School," interview by Kate Stanger, November 29, 2017.
<br />2 Lynne VanBrocklin Spaeth, "School District No. 28," National Register of Historic Places Inventory/Nomination Form, St. Paul, November 6, 1979.
<br />Ramsey Town Hall 2
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