"The Hicklin School, built in 1914 about two miles east of Lexington in Lafayette County, is significant [in the areas of education and architecture. In the area of education] the property contributed greatly to furthering the education of children in rural Missouri School District No. 11 (formerly District No. 1), while providing a central meeting place for the surrounding community. In addition, the first PTA in rural Lafayette County was established there in 1927. [In the area of architecture,] the Hicklin School is significant as a good and well-preserved example of a Felt's one-room schoolhouse in Lafayette County. Architecturally, the Hicklin School is a plan book building, one of four rural schoolhouse categories suggested by Fred Schroeder. While as many as 87 one-room schoolhouses were built in Lafayette County, Hicklin is one of the few preserved largely intact, both in its exterior and interior views. The school retains its original layout of rooms and is relatively unaltered. It is also the only extant Felt's plan schoolhouse in Lafayette County still standing on its original site. A sense of the building's past is easily conveyed by the setting within an agricultural landscape and the presence of an original privy and a sink with a hand pump.
In 1914, a "modem" Hicklin school, using a plan developed by the J.H.Felt architectural firm, was erected on the site of the original Hicklin School at a cost of $1,600. The first teacher was Bertha Sue Larkin, who returned to teaching in 1950. 14 Hicklin School Board directors over the years include Young Hicklin, Charles Meyer, George Knapheide, J.R. Hicklin, Joe B. Williams, H.H. LJchte, E.E. Roderick, Waiter Luehrman, C.J. Heimeyer, E.A. Clawson, J.R. Ainsworth, Harry Frey, Reid Moreland, Thomas Owen, John Barrer, Frank Bliss, John LJchte, Jesse Lee Lewis, J.H. Rivers and Dana Emerson. In 1927, the first Parent-Teacher Association in rural Lafayette County was organized there by Alma Davis Hicklin, Young Hicklin's daughter-in-law. The Hicklin PTA, with a charter membership of 29 patrons, was an important adjunct to the school throughout its remaining history. Classes were taught at Hicklin until 1957 when the school was consolidated into the Lexington School District. Known today as Lexington R-V. The Hicklin school district was originally known as School District No. 1, but in later years it was redesignated as District No. 11. During much of its history, the Hicklin School was a community gathering place. In addition to PTA meetings, Christmas programs, community plays, pie suppers, and the Last Day of School were all important occasions for visiting with neighbors. After the school closed, it became a private residence for a short time, but has largely been uninhabited since the 1960s." - National Register Nomination form
In 1995 the exterior of the building were partially renovated and in 1996 a reunion was held at the school for former students. From 2004 to 2006 the interior was renovated and converted to a suite to be used as part of a
bed and breakfast though it now appears it is no longer used for that purpose. The interior layout was left largely unaltered and schoolhouse feel was retained. Marcia Hicklin was awarded a DAR Historic Preservation Medal for her work on the school. The school building was featured in the Daughters of American Revolution's American Spirit Magazine in the
July/August 2009 edition.