{"id":540211,"date":"2024-11-20T09:43:07","date_gmt":"2024-11-20T14:43:07","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.brownstoner.com\/?p=540211"},"modified":"2024-11-20T10:16:31","modified_gmt":"2024-11-20T15:16:31","slug":"erasmus-hall-academy-high-school-flatbush-history-architecture","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www.brownstoner.com\/architecture\/erasmus-hall-academy-high-school-flatbush-history-architecture\/","title":{"rendered":"A Masterpiece of Education: Flatbush\u2019s Erasmus Hall Academy and High School"},"content":{"rendered":"

When the Dutch and then the English established settlements and towns in Brooklyn in the late 1600s, aside from homes, the first three buildings to go up were usually a church, a tavern and a school. (Not necessarily in that order.) It was felt that it was important for a free man to be able to read the Bible, sign his name, and do simple arithmetic. Farmers as well as townspeople needed to be able to \u201cdo sums,\u201d as mathematics were called, and have the basic reading skills needed to function in their society.<\/p>\n

The earliest schools were established and run by churches. In 1659, Peter Stuyvesant, the Dutch governor of New Amsterdam, mandated that a school be established in the village of Midwout, now Flatbush. A one-story stone building was built on a parcel owned by the Dutch Reformed Church, already established just across the street. Today, that\u2019s the corner of Flatbush and Church avenues.<\/p>\n

\"flatbush
Erasmus High School at 911 Flatbush Avenue. Photo by Susan De Vries<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>

The school was directly tied to the church. The first headmasters of the school were sextons in the church, served as choristers, and were called on to conduct services and deliver sermons, should the pastor for some reason be unable to do so. Church records show that an early teacher named Johannes Van Eckellen, who served from 1682 to 1700, had much more in his day than simply teaching a few classes. <\/p>\n %<\/span><\/span> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> | %<\/span><\/a> Single Page<\/a>","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

One of the most important 18th century buildings in the city, Erasmus Hall Academy now sits at the center of a grand early 20th century high school.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":11099,"featured_media":540267,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"schneps_byline":"","schneps_post_style":"","schneps_post_source":"","schneps_syndicated_read_more":"","schneps_post_source_sitename":"","schneps_syndicated_thumb_html":"","schneps_syndicated_thumb_src":"","schneps_post_source_shortname":"","schneps_post_source_url":"","schneps_post_source_id":0,"_jetpack_memberships_contains_paid_content":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[7645,7681],"tags":[35023,34092,7099,35050,30358,4631],"districts":[],"class_list":["post-540211","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-architecture","category-flatbush","tag-911-flatbush-avenue","tag-best-of-brownstoner","tag-c-b-j-snyder","tag-erasmus-hall-academy","tag-erasmus-high-school","tag-suzanne-spellen"],"acf":[],"parsely":{"version":"1.1.0","meta":{"@context":"https:\/\/schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","headline":"A Masterpiece of Education: Flatbush\u2019s Erasmus Hall Academy and High School","url":"http:\/\/www.brownstoner.com\/architecture\/erasmus-hall-academy-high-school-flatbush-history-architecture\/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"http:\/\/www.brownstoner.com\/architecture\/erasmus-hall-academy-high-school-flatbush-history-architecture\/"},"thumbnailUrl":"https:\/\/www.brownstoner.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/erasmus-hall-flatbush-1966-LPC-photo-collection.jpg?w=150&h=150&crop=1","image":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https:\/\/www.brownstoner.com\/wp-content\/uploads\/2024\/11\/erasmus-hall-flatbush-1966-LPC-photo-collection.jpg"},"articleSection":"Architecture","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Suzanne Spellen"}],"creator":["Suzanne Spellen"],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Brownstoner","logo":""},"keywords":["911 flatbush avenue","best of brownstoner","c.b. j. snyder","erasmus hall academy","erasmus high school","suzanne spellen"],"dateCreated":"2024-11-20T14:43:07Z","datePublished":"2024-11-20T14:43:07Z","dateModified":"2024-11-20T15:16:31Z"},"rendered":"