The Crow Valley School Museum is now officially a part of the historical museum.

“Thanks to the incredible generosity of owners Richard Schneider and Bud McBride, the school was deeded over to the Orcas Island Historical Museum last month,” said museum representatives.

The museum has provided docents for the school in an informal arrangement the last several years, opening the school for the enjoyment of visitors in the summer.

In 1888, when Washington was still a territory, the Pleasant Valley School (later called Crow Valley School) was built on one acre of land donated by settler Peter Frechette. In the heyday of Orcas’ fruit orchard industry, the one-room school had as many as 47 students enrolled, 27 average in attendance. The school closed in 1918, after which the consolidated Eastsound school served the whole island. The building continued to be used for community events, housing a women’s club, the “Willing Workers” (later called the Crow Valley Club). The building was named to the National Register of Historic Places in August 1987.

When Schneider and McBride purchased the property, they proceeded to restore the building with painstaking care, spending hundreds of hours researching the history of not only Crow Valley School, but all the San Juan County District schools. Richard had a special motivation to uncover the school’s past, as both his mother and uncle were students there.

In the more recent past, the school has had visits from people all over the world. Mathew Chasanoff’s first grade class spent a school day there, writing with slate pencils and playing Duck, Duck, Goose on the playground. Starting June 29, the public can visit the museum Wednesdays and Saturdays, noon to 4 p.m.

Contact Margot Shaw at 376-3441 to be a docent.