Stratton Public School
Location: Stratton
County: Kit Carson County
Date Constructed: 1937
Built by: WPA
Architectural Description:
This concrete school is made up of a large gymnasium/auditorium with classroom wings on both the east and the west sides that form a cross shape. The core of the building has a low-pitched gable roof that extends over the wings. The building has symmetrical fluted pilasters and a stringcourse between the first and second level of the main core. The concrete appears to be rows around the building, but this is in fact a result of the forms used to set the concrete. There is a one-story concrete addition with a corrugated-metal shed roof on the southeast corner of the building.
Historical Background:
The building of the school was a WPA project. The school was included on a joint application along with a proposed new town hall. However, the town hall was not approved. The first federal allocation for this project was $24,980, with a local contribution of $10,526 from School District No. 57. In order to complete the project, an additional $16,040 in federal grants was needed. Almost six thousand bags of Portland Cement and fifteen miles of rebar were used to construct the school. The pace of the project was impeded by the restrictions set by the WPA to five-hour work days and only thirty hours per week per worker. The gymnasium/auditorium was used not only for sporting events but also for stage productions and proms. In the 1980s, the building was converted to a bowling alley and restaurant, but was recently ruined in a 2004 fire.