National Register of Historic Places

Union School

West Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut
Listed
November 13, 1987
Type
Building
Period
Civil War
Ref No.
87001899

About this property

The Union School is a historic school building at 174 Center Street in West Haven, Connecticut. Built in 1890, when the area was still part of Orange, it was West Haven's first brick school building, serving as a grammar school and high school for generations of local students. Now a senior living facility, it was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in 1987. West Haven's former Union School stands in a residential area east of the town center, at the southwest corner of Union Avenue and Center Street. It is a two-story brick building with terra cotta and East Haven red sandstone trim, and a hip roof. Its massing is somewhat typical of Queen Anne Victorian residential architecture, with an asymmetrical arrangement of features that include a three-story polygonal tower. Its main entrance is recessed in a projecting bay that features a Romanesque round-arch opening. A nearly identical addition was added to the rear in 1914. In 1890, West Haven was the most populous part of Orange, with most of the town's student population. Planning for this school began in 1889, and accelerated when one of the nearby district schoolhouses burned down. The new building was designed by architect Leoni W. Robinson, one of New Haven's leading architects of the late 19th century. Some of Robinson's larger-scale industrial works in New Haven bear some resemblance to this school, which opened in 1890. It has been converted to senior housing after serving for many years as a grammar and high school. National Register of Historic Places listings in New Haven County, Connecticut

Location

174 Center St.
West Haven, New Haven County, Connecticut
41.27486, -72.94644

Categories

EDUCATIONARCHITECTURE
National Register nomination ›
Sources

Property data from the National Register of Historic Places, National Park Service (public domain).

Description adapted from Wikipedia under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 International License.

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Native Heritage
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Nearby Historic Sites

Ward-Heitman House
Industrial
0.3 mi
West Haven Green Historic District
Listed
0.3 mi
Oyster Point Historic District
Listed
1 mi
Howard Avenue Historic District
Listed
1.4 mi
American Mills Web Shop
Industrial
1.5 mi

Nearby Battles

Raid on New Haven (Connecticut)
1779Revolutionary War
2.5 mi

Questions about this property

When was Union School listed on the National Register?

Union School was listed on the National Register of Historic Places on November 13, 1987.

What type of historic resource is Union School?

Union School is classified as a building in the National Register of Historic Places.

What is the period of significance for Union School?

The period of significance for Union School is recorded as the civil_war era.

Can I research the history near Union School?

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