Riverside City History
Schools

During the history of Riverside, there were three early schools that helped educate the area's young people. Boydston School was located on the north side of what is now I-29 and Northwood Road. Brenner Ridge School was across from Eagle Animal Hospital (Florence and Gateway). It later became a grocery store and a home, before being removed. But for many, "the" school was in a little frame building called Lakeside School where Miss Leila Keller, the first teacher, taught from 1921-24. Some of the first classes held in Riverside, however, actually took place in St. Matthew's Church (built in 1844). In the early years of the church, there was not a school in the community and the Sunday school class was used for secular education. Other schooling took place in a log home near the Brenner cemetery.

Lakeside School was the oldest school in the area. It was built before 1880 near the industrial area south of 9 Highway and Vandepopuliere. Originally serving as Riverside's first grocery, it later became the schoolhouse and eventually was razed in the 1950s. Because of its time and place, Lakeside left many memories. For years, students with last names such as Haeutter, Brenner, Renner and Linder were taught by teachers like Lelia and Amelia Keller.

Later, a small summer cottage, located north of the John and Elizabeth Brenner Memorial Cemetery, was purchased by the school board and rented out. In 1920, this school seceded from the Lakeside district. The cottage was rented for three years and called East Lakeside. It was a one-room school with a stove in the center. Grades first through fourth were taught here. In 1924, bonds were voted for the construction of another school. East Lakeside eventually became a grocery. All traces of the building are now gone.

Many Riverside residents also remember Brenner Ridge School, once located where El Chaparral Apartments are today. Initially constructed as a two-room school, it was attended by students living from Northmoor to Northwood Road. The memory of those early one- and two-room schools still lingers. In an earlier interview, Mrs. Keller recalled scenes at Lakeside that are straight from a Norman Rockwell painting. "The school had double desks with ink wells," she said. "Some boys liked to dip the girls' ponytails in them. There was a heating stove in the middle of the room and a 12-inch platform in front so the teacher could keep an eye on things. Reading, writing, arithmetic, penmanship and geography were among some of the subjects taught to all grades. Schoolbooks were handed down from family to family until they fell apart. Older boys usually could only attend two to three months during the winter when the weather was too bad to farm." Students walked three to five miles to school with books and sack lunches for the 9 a.m. to 4 p.m. school days. Other days the school was used as a community center by Park College for Sunday school. The school had two later additions, including modern plumbing in the 1950s. Throughout this period, most high school students from the area attended North Kansas City High School. This continued until the formation of the Park Hill District in the 1950s. Also during this time, the Brenner Ridge School became a school for exceptional children. In 1923 the Lakeside District had split again. A new school was built and called Brenner Ridge.

After the Park Hill District was organized, all three schools were eventually demolished as part of consolidation. The biggest school news in the late 1990s was when Park Hill South High School was completed in west Riverside. This modern facility near I-635 is the second high school in the Park Hill District and provides a significant new focus for the Riverside community. The city and individual residents have responded with support for programs such as the school's Renaissance project and funding of symphony performances.

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