One hundred twenty five years ago, concerned citizens of Blanco and surrounding communities met in the pecan bottom of Blanco and formed a joint stock company to finance the building of the first Blanco High School. The result was a two-story building that stood where the Mission Revival-style building now stands. In 1893 that school burned; using the same stones and foundation, the citizens rebuilt the school. In 1921, community members were faced with another dilemma; the building was condemned. Again the community forged forward and built a larger one-story building from the old stones and materials salvaged from the earlier buildings.

Years have passed and decay has begun. We have decisions to make. Do we let this building rot and decay or do we pull together as the community did in 1883, in 1893 and again in 1921 and preserve this beautiful historic building which holds memories for so many?

Several concerned community members and staff members of BISD met and formed a Renovation Committee. Members of the committee are Dr. Shirley Beck, Connie Granberg, Becky Greathouse, Lori Cloud, Christie McGinnis, Lynn Boyd, Tony Petri, JoAnne Klier, Kathy Anderson, Darlass Head and Lula Corley. After careful study, the decision was made to use this historic building as the Blanco ISD Administration Building.

This would free up the space in the present administration building which would then be utilized as classrooms, providing students with a more appropriate educational environment. This will provide additional classroom space without the burden of a bond added to the BISD tax payers.

During the planning stages, it became apparent to all committee members that this building is different than most. Members, who attended school in this building, at times took the others on a stroll down memory lane. The stories shared were not ordinary memories, but an aggregation of experiences that bonded the students, teachers and community to each other and to this historic site. These were stories that brought life back to the old building and left each member wanting to hear more. Each story different, but filled with vivid details causing the mind’s eye to capture the story in a movie like production. An idea was born!

What better way to stimulate the interest in the Mission Revival style building (currently know as the old yellow building) than to solicit stories which will be shared with the community through the Blanco County News? Each student who attended classes in that building has a story to tell. The collection of stories will then become a book and published. Proceeds from the book will be dedicated to the renovation project.

Your stories are needed. Do not worry about spelling, grammar or punctuation. Someone will edit the story and make corrections (if necessary) before it is published.

For those interested in sharing your stories, please include your name, a telephone number, the years you attended school, the approximate date of the story, and copies of any pictures (if available) related to the building and names of persons appearing in the picture if known.

You can assist in preserving this part of our heritage by submitting your stories to the following address: Renovation Committee, BISD Mission Revival Building, Attention: Lula Corley, 814 11th Street, Blanco, TX 78606. Email submissions: lula.corley@blanco.txed.net.