Address: Vicinity of Pryor, Oklahoma 040, Mayes County 097 County Mayes
Started: Completed 1938
Agencies:WPANRHP:No

Current Usage

Description:

This rectangular (85′ x 50′) school is constructed of cut, coarsed, and rusticated native stone. The roof is flat with parapets. The entrance is slightly recessed behind wide pilasters that reach beyond the roof line. The windows are paired at the entrance and placed in threes on other sides. All the windows have continuous brick sills and above them is a brick frieze. The stone building has been sprayed with polyester resin and fiberglass as well as white paint, an application that cannot be removed and thus impeaches the integrity of the building.
This school is significant because it constituted an economically important community resource at a time when residents faced the spectre of starvation and ignorance. Its construction provided local families with wages from some 32,000 man-hours of labor which were infused back into the depressed local economy. Jobs generated by the construction of the school restored a sense of pride to many men who might otherwise have been unable to provide for their families and prevented total destitution. The school enhanced educational opportunities for children in the area and stimulated an interest in academic excellence. Architecturally, it is unique in terms of type, style, materials, scale, and workmanship.[1]

VERBAL BOUNDARY DESCRIPTION: Go 7 miles east and three miles north of Pryor to a two acre tract in the southeast corner of the SW 1/4, Sec. 28, T 22 N, R 20 E.

Sources:

  1. Oklahoma Landmarks Inventory Nomination

Supported Documents:

  1. WPA Properties Mayes County – Welch School

Photos: