National Register Record for WHITTIER SCHOOL

Historic Name: WHITTIER SCHOOL
Current Name: WHITTIER SCHOOL
Address: 1900 NORTHWEST 10TH STREET
City: OKLAHOMA CITY            County: OKLAHOMA
Section: 32           Township: 12N           Range: 3W          
Description of significance: WHITTIER SCHOOL IS ELIGIBLE FOR LISTING IN THE NATIONAL REGISTER OF HISTORIC PLACES UNDER CRITERION A AT THE LOCAL LEVEL OF SIGNIFICANCE FOR EDUCATION AND UNDER CRITERION C AT THE LOCAL LEVEL OF SIGNIFICANCE FOR ARCHITECTURE. THE PERIOD OF SIGNIFICANCE IS FROM 1910 TO 1957. BUILT IN 1910 (WITH ADDITIONS COMPLETED IN 1919 AND 1923), WHITTIER SCHOOL WAS DESIGNED IN THE CLASSICAL REVIVAL ARCHITECTURAL STYLE BY SOLOMON ANDREW LAYTON, WHO WAS OKLAHOMA’S MOST PROMINENT ARCHITECT DURING THE EARLY TWENTIETH CENTURY. WHITTIER SCHOOL WAS ALSO THE SITE OF A WORKS PROGRESS ADMINISTRATION (WPA)-SPONSORED “NURSERY SCHOOL,” WHICH PROVIDED OKLAHOMA CITY’S ONLY PUBLIC PRESCHOOL PROGRAM DURING THE LATE 1930S AND EARLY 1940S. THE OKLAHOMA CITY BOARD OF EDUCATION CLOSED WHITTIER SCHOOL IN 1957, CITING INCREASED MAINTENANCE COSTS AND DECLINING STUDENT ENROLLMENT.

Type: BUILDING
Historic Function: EDUCATION
Current Function: VACANT
Area of Significance 1: EDUCATION
Area of Significance 2: ARCHITECTURE
Architectural Style: CLASSICAL REVIVAL
Architect: LAYTON & SMITH / OKLAHOMA CONSTRUCTION CO., INC / GROSS CONSTRUCTION CO.
Year Built: 1910            Original Site: YES
Condition: GOOD
Restricted: None
Documentation Source: None
Date Prepared: 2020