https://digital.buffalolib.org/files/original/4987dacb08f14a09b4c536f281eaf700.jpg 3cf856f7e3927e1ce8ccaf0296398f4e Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource Buffalo Public School Buildings, 1908 Description An account of the resource This collection consists of photographs of Buffalo Public School buildings taken in March 1908. These 83 black & white platinum prints were originally mounted on black pages in an album. While the album is no longer intact, information noted on the photographs reveals they were produced for a building survey for the Buffalo Common Council. The Deputy Building Commissioner of the Department of Public Works wrote a report on the condition of the school buildings and submitted it to the Common Council in 1908. The report paid particular attention to doors and fire escapes, and recommended safety improvements. Many of the photographs show the back or sides of the schools in order to document the fire escape(s). “Condemned” is written on some of the photos, but this may have been added at a later time. While the majority of the buildings documented here no longer exist today, most were still in use for many years after the photographs were taken. In 1908, the Buffalo Public School System consisted of 62 primary schools, 3 high schools, and one public teacher’s college. Nine of the primary schools are no longer in this collection, lost before the photographs were acquired by the B&ECPL. Many of the buildings in use in 1908 were erected between 1880 and 1900, a period of heavy construction when student enrollment almost doubled. Often the schools pictured are actually the second or third building to serve the neighborhood. The school system was organized in 1838, and the original buildings were small wood schoolhouses. As Buffalo’s population grew with the annexation of Black Rock in 1853, and the influx of immigrants in the second half of the 19th century, there was a need for larger schools, and more districts to handle the increase in students. As most of the buildings in these photographs no longer exist, this collection is a snapshot of educational architecture in the early 20th century. And while the schools are the main subjects of each photo, we also see a glimpse of life in 1908 Buffalo -- neighborhood shops, unpaved and brick roads, trolley car lines, early automobiles, and horse-drawn wagons. Some students took the opportunity to have their picture taken, and are lined up outside for the photographer. Others can be spotted peering out of the windows, curious faces against the glass. Some of the primary schools were designed by the architectural firm of Louise Bethune, the first professional female architect in the United States. She and/or her husband, Robert A. Bethune, designed six of the schools in the collection. Other notable architects of these schools include Esenwein & Johnson, M.E. Beebe & Son, and Charles D. Swan. The following sources were essential in describing the brief history of each building: <a href="https://bepl.ent.sirsi.net/client/en_US/default/search/detailnonmodal/ent:$002f$002fSD_ILS$002f0$002fSD_ILS:1100755/one">School days of yesterday: Buffalo Public School History</a> by G. Morton Weed.(2001) <a href="https://bepl.ent.sirsi.net/client/en_US/default/search/detailnonmodal/ent:$002f$002fSD_ILS$002f0$002fSD_ILS:392248/one">From the Boiler Room, The Buffalo Public Schools 1807-1984: A History of the Buffalo Public Schools and the school engineers who maintain them</a> by G. Morton Weed. (1984) <a href="https://bepl.ent.sirsi.net/client/en_US/default/search/detailnonmodal/ent:$002f$002fSD_ILS$002f0$002fSD_ILS:880491/one">Buffalo Common Council Proceedings</a>, 1908, pages 447-453. Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Buffalo (N.Y.). Department of Public Works Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource March 1908 Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Buffalo Public School Buildings, 1908 Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Grosvenor Room of the B&ECPL Still Image A static visual representation. Examples include paintings, drawings, graphic designs, plans and maps. Recommended best practice is to assign the type Text to images of textual materials. Dublin Core The Dublin Core metadata element set is common to all Omeka records, including items, files, and collections. For more information see, http://dublincore.org/documents/dces/. Title A name given to the resource School No. 29, South Park School Description An account of the resource Built in 1906, this building replaced the original school at 2219 South Park Avenue. It closed in 1980 during desegregation and later became a Buffalo Police Station. The building has recently housed charter schools, and still exists (as of 2018). Creator An entity primarily responsible for making the resource Buffalo (N.Y.). Department of Public Works Date A point or period of time associated with an event in the lifecycle of the resource 1908-03 Subject The topic of the resource Buffalo (N.Y.)--Public schools Buffalo Public Schools (Buffalo, N.Y.) Public schools--New York (State)--Buffalo Source A related resource from which the described resource is derived Buffalo Public School Buildings, 1908 Publisher An entity responsible for making the resource available Buffalo & Erie County Public Library (Publisher of digital) Relation A related resource Digital Collections of the B&ECPL Format The file format, physical medium, or dimensions of the resource image/tiff Type The nature or genre of the resource Still Image Coverage The spatial or temporal topic of the resource, the spatial applicability of the resource, or the jurisdiction under which the resource is relevant Early Twentieth Century (1900-1925) Rights Information about rights held in and over the resource Digital image copyright 2018 by the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library. Images in this collection are not to be used for any commercial purposes without the expressed written permission of the Buffalo & Erie County Public Library. Users of this website are free to utilize material from this collection for non-commercial and educational purposes. Language A language of the resource eng Contributor An entity responsible for making contributions to the resource Grosvenor Room of the B&ECPL (repository)