Building date: 1847 or 1949
Original use: Schoolhouse
Corner structures:
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Map views courtesy Google Maps. Address is Google Earth confirmed; 42°57'19.14"N 85°07'58.51"W. Current owner of record, Michigan Department of Natural Resources as of the 2019 Tax Roll.
Berlin Township and Ionia County Maps.
Editor's Note There is no official address for the Sessions School as it is uninhabited and located on Michigan Department of Natural Resources land. Google Maps street level view shows an address of about 2999 Riverside Drive but the School is not marked with a street address. Currently Jordan Lake Road public paved portion ends to the south at the Sessions Lake BeachSide facility and Ionio State Recreation Area Campground. An unimproved single lane dirt access road continues north at the Beachside area intersecting with W. Riverside Drive just east of the School, but the intersection is not marked and is used as access to a parking lot behind the Sessions School with a gate blocking further road access. Use the provided GPS coordinates to find the exact location of the School.
The oldest cobblestone school house now standing in Michigan.
The Sessions Schoolhouse is located southwest of Ionia on the southside of Riverside Drive, near the junction of Riverside Drive and Jordan Lake Road. It is a one-room, rectangular (twenty feet by twenty-four feet in ground dimensions) cobblestone and rubble stone structure with a low-pitched, wood shingle, gable roof. The schoolhouse is located on what was once a farm owned by Alonzo Sessions, but is now part of the Ionia Recreation Area, owned by the Michigan Department of Natural Resources.
The Sessions Schoolhouse was built in 1847 (or 1849, according to the "Ionia Sentinel-Standard"). It was constructed of cobblestones or rubble stones taken from the fields of Alonzo Session's farm. The walls show some horizontal coursing of small stones from the foundation to about half-way up; from that point to the eaves the coursing becomes random and the stones are generally larger and smooth-faced, especially on the north end. Large stones with flattened surfaces add definition to the four corners. The eaves, which project slightly from the wall surfaces, are wooden with smooth soffits and simple "breaking-wave-pattern" vergeboards.
On the front (north) end is a central door which is flanked by two small windows. There are two windows on both the east and west sides; these are larger than those on the north. The south wall presently has no openings, but there is visible evidence on the interior side of the wall that there was formerly a window. The schoolhouse has been restored twice. In 1918, the Ionia County Board of Supervisors repaired the walls and roof. They also installed windows and a hinged door in the existing openings. The local chapter of the Daughters of the American Revolution placed a bronze plaque on the structure. Between that time and 1958, when the schoolhouse was again repaired, the structure was neglected and vanda1ized. The wood f1oor, p1aster, windows and door had been destroyed and the bronze plaque stolen. The south and east walls had sustained some damage. Repairs were again made on the walls and roof, and the door and windows were boarded with heavy planks. A polished granite stone reading SESSIONS SCHOOL 1847 is set in the ground at the north end of the building.
The floor and ceiling are missing from the interior, although joists remain as does some hand-split lath. The windows are splayed. The structure is in stable condition and is reasonably well protected from further damage. Page 2 of 21, 7. Description, Registration Form ID 2533953, 2/11/1985
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National Register of Historic Places Registration
 Ber-1 ~2999 Riverside Drive 1.jpg ¹ |  Ber-1 ~2999 Riverside Drive 2.jpg ¹ |  Ber-1 ~2999 Riverside Drive 3.jpg ¹ |  Sessions schoolhouse 2.jpg ¹ |
 MI Ionia County Sessions School Sign BA.jpg ² |
¹ Image courtesy Richard Palmer. Attribution not provided
