Schoolfield Preparatory School

Schoolfield Preparatory School. Bracken County's First School. This log cabin was built using white oak logs cut in 1797, with the oldest log displaying a growth ring from 1690. It is believed to be the oldest school building still standing in the tri-state region. Due to its larger size and high-quality craftsmanship, it is assumed that skilled builders constructed this cabin using well-squared logs and half-dovetailed notching., Early settlers emigrating to Kentucky from the East wanted a quality education for their children. Robert Schoolfield (abt.1750-1814), a Maryland native and one of the first trustees of Augusta, had this cabin built and ran the private Schoolfield Preparatory School for boys on the first floor. He and his wife, Mary, resided on the second floor. Students likely sat on wooden benches and wrote with quills on slate tablets., Like other homes in the Riverside Drive Historic District, this building withstood the Battle of Augusta during the Civil War (1862) and catastrophic Ohio River floods. In 1978, Universal Studios covered the front of the cabin with a facade to replicate a St. Louis silversmith's shop for the 1978 TV miniseries "Centennial.", The cabin is now a private residence.