The McKinley School District was established formally in October 1932. It was named for local settler Jack McKinley who donated land for construction of a school, and is not to be confused with a school of the same name in southern Manitoba. That land was found unsuitable and a one-room frame school building was subsequently erected (using plans purchased from the T. Eaton Company) on the southwest quarter of 16-40-25 west of the Principal Meridian, in what is now the Rural Municipality of Mountain. It closed in June 1967 when it was amalgamated into the Swan Valley School Division. As of 2014, the former school building was still standing at the site, along with a commemorative sign.
Among the teachers of McKinley School were Olive Sigurdson (1945) and Jeanne Parker (1965-1967).
McKinley School (no date) by J. S. Peach
Source: Archives of Manitoba, School Inspectors Photographs,
GR8461, A0233, C131-3, page 120.
The former McKinley School building (July 2014)
Source: Alan Mason
Interior of the former McKinley School building (July 2014)
Source: Alan Mason
McKinley School commemorative sign (September 2012)
Source: Kendra McFadyenSite Coordinates (lat/long): N52.43467, W101.01533
denoted by symbol on the map above
See also:
Historic Sites of Manitoba: Brigdenley Consolidated School No. 497 (RM of Dufferin)
MHS Resources: Manitoba’s Rural School Designs
One Hundred Years in the History of the Rural Schools of Manitoba: Their Formation, Reorganization and Dissolution (1871-1971) by Mary B. Perfect, MEd thesis, University of Manitoba, April 1978.
Boots, Buggies & Buses: Swan Valley Schools in Quest of Education, Swan Valley School Division No. 35, circa 1998.
This page was prepared by Kendra McFadyen, Alan Mason, and Gordon Goldsborough.
Page revised: 4 February 2021
Historic Sites of Manitoba
This is a collection of historic sites in Manitoba compiled by the Manitoba Historical Society. The information is offered for historical interest only.
Browse lists of:
Museums/Archives | Buildings | Monuments | Cemeteries | Locations | OtherInclusion in this collection does not confer special status or protection. Official heritage designation may only come from municipal, provincial, or federal governments. Some sites are on private property and permission to visit must be secured from the owner.
Site information is provided by the Manitoba Historical Society as a free public service only for non-commercial purposes.
Send corrections and additions to this page
to the MHS Webmaster at webmaster@mhs.mb.ca.Help us keep history alive!
