Building date: 1849
Original use: Schoolhouse
Corner structures: Red sandstone
Mortar application and content: Vertical, slight embellishment
Types and uses of stones: Small, various colors
Types and choice of windows: Lintels red stone solid
Structures with similar masonry details: LeR-1 Baron-Brown, Bar-1 Ernst, Bar-5 School 6, Gai-14 Stinson, She-3 Boyle
Masons who worked on building:
Unique features: A wood plank building with a veneer of cobblestones.
Map views courtesy Google Maps. Address is Google Earth confirmed; 43°17'14.77"N 78°11'15.89"W. Current owner of record, Cobblestone Society as of the 2019 Tax Roll.
Town of Gaines and Orleans County Maps
Gaines District No. 5 school house at 14447 Ridge Road, Childs, was built in 1849 and used as a school for 100 years. It is a part of the Cobblestone Society complex. It was built by William J. Babbitt who came to the town of Gaines from Rhode Island in 1810 when he was 24. He was a blacksmith and established the area's first brick yard. He also served as justice of the peace, postmaster and assemblyman. It is said he suggested the name Gaines for the town. The exterior of the building is of lake-washed stones with sandstone quoins. It has been restored and is interpreted as a mid-19th century rural school. Richard Palmer blog.
Editor's Note: Street address discrepancy.
"Cobblestone Architecture in the Rochester Area", by Gerda Peterich, 1953. Reference District School #5 and figure 13. Editor's Note: This digitized version of the original typescript manuscript is reformatted for digital display, edited for errors, and includes blue tinted highlighted links to improve access within the document, to the appropriate structure pages in the Cobblestone Info Base, or to external resources on the internet. This document is one of two known typescript drafts, likely a thesis or essay bound as a book and apparently never published. One is available in the Cobblestone Museum Resource Center, the other in the University of Rochester Art and Music Library. A companion or precursor typed paper of the same title exists, perhaps used for a talk and/or photographic display of cobblestone structures.
July 1 2016 short Biography of William Jenks Babbitt
When you pick up you mail in the next few days, you might want to remember this it was two hundred years ago this July 1st that a pioneer seller on the Ridge Road in Gaines became the first post master in Orleans County. William Jenks Babbitt ran that post office out of his log cabin home beginning in 1816.Born in Providence, Rhode Island on September 15, 1786, he learned the trade of blacksmith in his father's shop. In 1810, Babbitt came to the unbroken wilderness of "the Genesee Country" and began clearing land and building his log cabin near the corner of Crandall Road and Rte. 104. After the dangers of the War of 1812 subsided, he moved his wide and children to what was to become Gaines. He became the area's first blacksmith. He also established the first brickyard in Gaines, supplying the brick for many early buildings we still see standing today. He was appointed Justice of the Peace in 1815 and served in this capacity for 23 years. His "Marriage Day Book" with its first entry of June 2, 1815 is in the possession of the Town of Gaines. It can be seen in the display case at the town hall next to his original daguerreotype portrait. More about this photo latter.
In 1816 Wm. Babbitt was successful in getting the Ridge Road declared "The Post Road" by New York State, and his application as first post master of Gaines was granted. Babbitt was also working hard to get the town of Gaines organized. It was his suggestion that General Edmund Pendleton Gaines, hero of the War of 1812 be honored with its naming. His Valentines Day gift to his wife was the announcement that Gaines was now set off from Ridgeway and contained most of the present day Carlton and Barre.
On 1831 he became Town of Gaines Supervisor and soon after represented this area in the New York State Assembly.
Perhaps the most enduring legacy of Wm. Babbitt is the construction of Gaines District #5 Cobblestone Schoolhouse on the Ridge Road just east of Childs. It was built in 1849 and the work was superintended by Babbitt. It is most unusual in that it has a sloping floor and its facade of lake washed cobblestones are set on the hewn wooden framework. Mr. Babbitt gave the district a gift of the bell, costing $20 in 1849. In was used as a schoolhouse until 1952. Plans are underway to restore the bell to working order, so once again visitors to the Cobblestone Museum in Childs, Town of Gaines will be delighted by the chiming of Babbitt's bell.
One last note about the photo of Mr. Babbitt with a stern look on his face. The story handed down is that his wife had arranged for this sitting, but Mr. Babbitt was upset since he was still in his work clothes. The photographer painted in the suit and collar as seen in the photograph. Mr. Babbitt was a remarkable man and those of us in Gaines and in Orleans County are indebted to his industry and vision.
Attribution not provided.
"The Cobblestone Houses of Upstate New York", compiled by Dorothy Wells Pease. Research done in collaboration with Hazed B. Jeffery, supplemented with material furnished by Carl F. Schmidt. Reference the first paragraph on page 6.
"William J. Babbitt", by Eleanor W. Wilder, page 7, "A Heritage of Cobblestone", a product of the Cobblestone Society c. 1966, 16 pages, printed and published through the facilities of and published as a supplement to "The Orleans Republican American".
"Albion Pupil, 11, Visits Cobblestone School Built by His Great-Great-Great-Grandfather", by Eleanor W. Wilder Childs. Circa 1960's. Attribution not provided.
Articles on page 5, "Cobblestone Walls-Earmarks of History", special section of Medina Daily Journal-Register, 2/21/1964. This page is a high resolution image file of a 15 x 22 inch newspaper page and requires time to load for display. Please be patient. Enlarge the displayed image if necessary. Each page includes a number of articles written by by Eleanor Weeks Wilder for the Cobblestone Society, except where noted.
"3 Homes, School Are Good Examples", Childs School House
"Book of Milestones Is Being Compiled"
"Schoolbell Rings For A Century"
"School of Yesteryear"
"No frills, But still We learned", by Norris W. Vagg, and "School Recollections", by Janice Barnum Thaine, page 10, "A Heritage of Cobblestone", a product of the Cobblestone Society, printed and published as a supplement to "The Orleans Republican American" circa 1966.
Scanned image of xerography copy of scrapbook page of 1946 class, Gaines School District #5. Attribution not provided.
"The School Bell Rings", by J. Howard Pratt, page 12, "A Heritage of Cobblestone", a product of the Cobblestone Society, printed and published as a supplement to "The Orleans Republican American" circa 1966.
Centennial Cover, New York State Education, Volume LIV, #6, April 1967. Photography by Dona McAdam. Cover Caption: The cobblestone schoolhouse on the cover was built in 1849 and is located on Ridge Road in Childs, a Rochester suburb. The schoolhouses currently maintained as a museum by the Cobblestone Society, reports Robert W. Frasch, director of the School of Science and Man for the Rochester Museum Association and head of the Education Division, Rochester Museum of Arts and Sciences.
School Classroom Photograph, New York State Education, Page 10, Volume LIV, #6, April 1967. Photograph by Jack Boucher, Historic Buildings of America Society.
"Old School Tiny, But Pupils Had Lots of Room to Learn", by Karen Brady, Second Section - B, Buffalo Evening News Magazine, 12/2/1967.
"Home Is A Rock Pile" by Chuck Lyons. "Upstate, Cobblestone Country", a unique form of architecture rose from the rock piles of the Rochester region. People, Places, Pleasures supplement, Sunday Democrat and Chronicle, November 27, 1988. Use this link to view the printable Cobblestone Country.
"Gaines Area Historian Wins Honor", Rochester Democrat and Chronicle Regional, Section B page 1, 12/24/1968.
"One schoolhouse, A bargain at $129", by Helen E. Allen, page 8, "A Heritage of Cobblestone", a product of the Cobblestone Society c. 1966, 16 pages, printed and published through the facilities of and published as a supplement to "The Orleans Republican American".
John Cunneen, his diary, by Mrs. Charlotte Cunneen Hackett page 14, "A Heritage of Cobblestone", a product of the Cobblestone Society, printed and published as a supplement to "The Orleans Republican American" circa 1966.
Recording made at the Cobblestone Schoolhouse at Childs, New York on November 21, 1967, by Howard Pratt. Editor's Note: This draft document is a transcription of the talk given by Howard Pratt. The scanned document is presented "as-is". Included are hand written edits done for whatever reason. The recording preceded the following Howard Pratt interview with Mrs. Mary Schuler by about 9+ years and has similar content.
"Cobblestone Schoolhouse, J. Howard Pratt Interview., Interview by Mrs. Mary Schuler, Orleans County Historical Association, 2/6/1977. Table of Contents with links to interview pages.
Teaching Geography, cobblestone museum schoolhouse. Clockwise from left: Tina Baker, Todd Ross, Ruth Baughan (teacher), Mike Thaine, Jay Morrison (at desk) 5/12/79. Image courtesy Cobblestone Museum.
"Gai-25 School 5, Class circa 1880" Postcard, Old View Series No 6, published by the Cobblestone Society, 1993. Editor's Note: Phone number area code 716 changed to 585 on 11/5/2001.
"Color Gai-25 School 5" Postcard, date unknown.
"Cobblestone Buildings of Orleans County, N. Y.", A Local History, pages 34 and 35, by Delia Robinson, Edited by Evelyn Lyman and William Nestle. Jointly published by The Cobblestone Society and The Orleans County Historical Association, December 1996.
"Antique bell rings again at the Cobblestone", By Virginia Kropf for the Daily News 8/21/2017, Photographs by Rocco Laurenzo, Daily News.
Historic Childs: Reflections from a student in the one-room schoolhouse, Part 1", by Nancy Jane Wilson Berger (1935-2015), Orleans Hub.com 2/6/2021, Connecting you with community news.
"Historic Town of Gaines Early School Houses, Historic Childs: Early Education Vol. 2 No. 26, pages 8 through 10, by Doug Farley, Cobblestone Museum Director.
Gaines District No. 5 School House, courtesy the Tom The Backroads Traveller blog.
The Cobblestone Society & Museum Tours:
Childs School House 1st Annual 06/10/1961, 2nd Annual 06/9/1962, 12th Annual 06/10/1972, 16th Annual 06/05/1976, Tour of Historic Cobblestone Homes 10/17/2009, Tour of Cobblestone Homes 09/30/2017, Tour of Cobblestone Homes 09/15/2018
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National Register of Historic Places Registration
- "Cobblestone Masonry", 1966, Carl Schmidt: Name reference, District School No. 5 Childs, N.Y.
- Page 129
- "Cobblestone Landmarks of New York State", 1978, by Olaf William Shelgren, Jr., Cary Lattin, and Robert W. Frasch, Photographs by Gerda Peterich: Name reference, District 5 Schoolhouse
- Pages 58 - 59
- "The Era of Cobblestone Architecture", unpublished manuscript 1972. To access the manuscript content about this structure, see 107. Orleans County, District 5 Schoolhouse.
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¹ Image courtesy Cobblestone Museum.
² Photography courtesy Gerda Peterich. Cobblestone Museum.
³ Photography Jack E Boucher courtesy Library of Congress.
4 Photography courtesy Richard Palmer.
