Winter School No. 70
C on the Farm Tour Map
744 N 1800 Rd., Lecompton
Managed by: Katie Winter, Winter School Preservation, Inc
Facebook: @winterschool70
Instagram: @winterschool70
YouTube: @winterschool70
The Winter School No. 70 is a historic one-room schoolhouse near Lecompton in Douglas County, Kansas. Built in 1870, it is an example of a typical rural school used during its time. The building is a model of 19th century vernacular house and barn construction along the frontier in Kansas.
The Winter School was carefully renovated and placed on the National Registry of Historic Places in 2020. An ancient remnant prairie sits outside of the schoolhouse and offers opportunities for natural education. Since reopening, we have received multiple grants by the Kansas Arts Commission to incorporate art into our exhibitions and curriculum.
In our inaugural exhibition “History, Notice Me”, we explore the historical and philosophical foundations of education. We use the one-room school era as a starting point to discover the origins and evolutions of our current school system. Both inside the building and the grounds offer many interactive opportunities to learn or to just hang around. While we don’t host many events, we have many local partners who help bring the place to life once again!
Visitors will get to see how traditional farming families went to school. The Winter School is a comfortable place to roam around for a quick look at the art or stay a while and read a book in the sun. There is art, history and ecology woven into every part of the property. We celebrate all the ways of knowing – especially those that come from relationships with each other and the natural world.
The entire grounds are kid friendly! There are lots of outdoor games like horseshoes, cornhole, basketball, a ninja line, chalk, a tree fort and a scavenger hunt. Inside kids and parents may sift through books, draw or play with blocks. Visitors can also jump into our curriculum with custom-made art-based activities as well as short videos at a kiosk.
Enjoy hands on arts and crafts, outdoor play area, games, blocks, books.