1913 BOYNTON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL

Boynton Elementary School, originally called Boynton School, was designed by West Palm Beach architect William Maughlin. It opened in 1913 and was Boynton’s only K-12 school for the next 14 years. It was used continuously as a public school until 1989. The masonry vernacular building has two floors, six classrooms and attic space leading to the belfry. The originally preserved staircase and all floors were built of Florida pine. Although it had indoor plumbing, electricity was not installed until the 1920’s. The schoolhouse was the community’s hub of activity, used for both education and social gatherings. In the early 1990’s city residents revived the downtown, with the old schoolhouse as the cornerstone. In March 1994, the City of Boynton Beach acquired the schoolhouse and had it listed in the National Register of Historic Places. It was restored in 1997. In 1998-99, with funding from the City of Boynton Beach and the Division of Historical Resources, the building underwent a $1.4 million renovation. In 2001 it re-opened as the Schoolhouse Children’s Museum whose mission is to encourage children and families to learn about city and county history through an array of hands-on and interactive exhibitions and programs.