Centreville School - 1890

It’s called Centreville because it was in the centre between Holland and Treherne. It was a typical one-room school house with grades 1 to 8. The teacher’s desk was used from 1893 to 1962. The teacher’s strap now resides in one of the drawers.

The desks in front of the teacher are of the three-seater variety, the double design and the more progressive single units of later years. Many of the older desks are scarred with generations of initials - sometimes entwined in hearts, a tribute to the carver’s current heart throb.

The desks are covered with antique text books donated from throughout the Province by interested Manitobans. The Centreville School has one of the largest collections of text books, used throughout the history of education in Manitoba. Most prized and kept under glass are the Sweet Pea readers used to teach First Graders how to read in 1910-1912.

The myriads of stove pipes extending across the ceiling from the old pot bellied stove, the school room brings back memories of those winter days in the rural schools. Beside the stove pupils fried and, away from it, they froze.

There are some modern innovations in the restored Centreville School. The "modern" water fountain replaced the bucket and dipper. When the Edison record player with cylindrical records was introduced into Manitoba schools, it must have been considered "magical" by the students of the day. The large bell outside rung to start school which usually went from 9:00 to 4:00 or 4:30.