Mayflower School – Douglas AK

City:
Douglas, AK

Site Type:
Education and Health, Schools

New Deal Agencies:
Public Works Administration (PWA), Public Works Funding

Started:
1934

Quality of Information:
Very Good

Site Survival:
Extant

Description

The Mayflower School was built and the cost of $9,500 by the Bureau of Indian Affairs, with the help of a PWA grant. Lester Troster, a local architect and superintendent of the regional Bureau of Indian Affairs, designed the two story structure.1

The architectural features include Colonial Revival elements. “The accentuated doors with decorative pediments and pilasters, symmetrically-balanced windows and center door, double hung sashes and multiple panes are indicative of the Colonial Revival (1880-1955) style.”

“The U.S. Bureau of Indian Affairs built Mayflower School in 1933-1934 to serve as a model for Native schools in Alaska. The Bureau wanted the school to provide vocational education for Native children and to serve as a community center for the Douglas Tlingits. The Daily Alaska Empire (10/13/35) informed its readers that the operation of Mayflower School was a “radical departure from the old.” The handsome building was a source of great pride to the Douglas Native community. Today, Mayflower School is the only Native school building in the Juneau-Douglas area still standing. It is the only Colonial Revival Bureau of Indian Affairs school in Alaska. It represents a significant tie with the past for many Douglas Native people.”

“Designed to serve the community, the Mayflower School contained something for everyone in Douglas. The ground floor had a library, kitchen, and recreation room open for use by community residents. It also contained community laundry facilities, showers and lavatories. On the second floor was a library, classroom and facilities for home economics. The floors are of local hemlock. The top half-story had living quarters for the teacher(s) and included a bathroom and bedrooms. An oil burner supplied heat and hot water for the school.”2

Source notes

1. Mayflower School, accessed on June 12, 2017. 2. National Register of Historic Places Registration Form for Mayflower School, accessed on June 12, 2017.

Site originally submitted by Brent McKee on June 12, 2017.

Location Info


750 St Anns Avenue
Douglas, AK 99824

Coordinates: 58.27540055712844, -134.3924506111145

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2 comments on “Mayflower School – Douglas AK

  1. scott knowles

    hi my name is scott knowles i lived in this building,my dad worked for university of alaska it was called the douglas marine station in the mid 1960,s i hid some old baseball cards there when we left to go to japan and ended up going to fairbanks,and never came back i have more info if you would like scott

  2. Steve Guy

    I’d like info on the hidden baseball cards. I currently work in the building.

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2 comments on “Mayflower School – Douglas AK

  1. scott knowles

    hi my name is scott knowles i lived in this building,my dad worked for university of alaska it was called the douglas marine station in the mid 1960,s i hid some old baseball cards there when we left to go to japan and ended up going to fairbanks,and never came back i have more info if you would like scott

  2. Steve Guy

    I’d like info on the hidden baseball cards. I currently work in the building.

Join the Conversation

Please note:

  • We are not involved in the management of New Deal sites and have no information about visits, hours or rentals.
  • This page shows all the information we have for this site; if you have new information or photos to share, click the button above.

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