Old Rock School (Prairie du Chien, Wisconsin)

Prairie du Chien opened its first public school in 1846, though private schools operated as far back as the 1810s. The town built the Old Rock School in 1858 after outgrowing its original schoolhouse, as its population grew rapidly in the 1850s. The two-and-a-half story stone building cost nearly $4,000 and was funded through a special tax approved by the Wisconsin Legislature, as state law at the time only allowed school districts to raise $300 in taxes. The building had a Greek Revival design with a Palladian window on the attic level, a wooden canopy over the entrance, and a cupola atop the gable roof. The school operated until 1926; the building went on to serve as a community center and meeting area for local groups.^[2][3] In the 1980s, a memorial was added to the site to honor local soldiers who served in wars from the Black Hawk War to World War II.