Garfield School Building - Salem, Oregon
Posted by: 
ddtfamily
N 44° 56.606 W 123° 01.864
10T E 497548 N 4976666
Historic grade school building named for the 20th U.S. President
Waymark Code: WMJ7DJ
Location: Oregon, United States
Date Posted: 10/06/2013
Views: 3
The Place: Listed on the National Register of Historic Places, this former school building was named for President James A. Garfield. Built in 1909, this three and one-half story structure was the first brick public elementary school built in Salem. It was also the last remaining elementary school building in downtown Salem when it closed in 1973. The building was designed by noted local architect Fred A. Legg. The school board was pleased with the building and hired Legg to design the next three elementary schools in Salem: Englewood, Highland and Richmond.
After it's closure as a school building, it was acquired by local businessmen and converted into use as an office building, providing approximately 22,000 square feet of space. Tenants have included law firms, insurance companies, realty companies and state offices.
The Person: James Abram Garfield served as the 20th President of the United States. He served nine consecutive terms in the U.S. House of Representatives before being elected President, beginning his term of office March 4, 1881. A Republican, Garfield remains the only sitting member of the House of Representatives to be elected President. After just 200 days in office, Garfield was assassinated by Charles J. Guiteau, a disgruntled office seeker whose several requests for the administration to give him a job had been denied.