Octagonal Schoolhouse
a.k.a. Eight-square School House
E of Cowgill, Cowgill's Corner, DEThe structure, architecturally interesting in itself, is significant for interpreting the public school history of Dela- ware and the life of the rural region. this specific building served. In 1829 Delaware became the second State to establish a permanent system of genuinely free district public schools. The Octagonal Schoolhouse opened in 1836, is one of the very few survivals among the buildings erected in the first few years of that movement, and to the best of our knowledge, the only one not extensively altered. It is the last in the State of its octagonal design. It is also an example of very rare stone construction in Kent County.
The Octagonal Schoolhouse remained a public school well. into the present century. After the consolidation of its districts, it was used as a community meeting house until it was presented to the State. Virtually all the long-resident families of the section, including several of local prominence, have had an association with this building.
Listed in National Register of Historic Places in 1971.
The National Register of Historic Places is the official list of the Nation’s historic places worthy of preservation. Authorized by the National Historic Preservation Act of 1966, the National Park Service’s National Register of Historic Places is part of a national program to coordinate and support public and private efforts to identify, evaluate, and protect America’s historic and archeological resources.