There’s something fascinating about stepping inside an old schoolhouse.
The desks may be smaller, the chalkboards simpler, and the classrooms far removed from today’s technology-filled schools, but these historic spaces tell surprisingly powerful stories about American communities.
While filming Love Eat Travel with Michelle Valentine in St. Landry Parish, Louisiana, I had the opportunity to explore places where education, culture, faith, and history intersect. Those experiences gave me an even greater appreciation for preserving America’s educational history.
From Louisiana to Florida, historic schools and museums offer travelers a chance to see how generations of children learned and how access to education changed over time.
Here are several places where those stories are still being preserved.
Opelousas Museum and Interpretive Center in Louisiana
One of my most memorable history experiences while filming our St. Landry Parish episode took place at the Opelousas Museum and Interpretive Center.
The museum explores the history and culture of Opelousas and the surrounding region through exhibits, photographs, artifacts, and stories.
What particularly interested me was learning about education in earlier Louisiana communities.
One-room schoolhouses once served children across rural America, often bringing students of different ages together under one teacher and one roof.
It’s easy to romanticize the little red schoolhouse, but these buildings also tell much larger stories about access to education, community resources, segregation, and the enormous changes American schools experienced over generations.
Visiting places that preserve those stories makes history tangible.
Instead of simply reading that children once learned in one-room schools, you can begin imagining what their daily lives were actually like.
Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau, Louisiana
Our St. Landry filming also brought me to the Academy of the Sacred Heart in Grand Coteau.
Founded in 1821, the Academy has an extraordinary history stretching back more than two centuries.
Walking through a place with that kind of longevity is remarkable.
Generations of students have passed through the school, while the surrounding world changed dramatically.
The historic campus also reflects the close relationship between education and faith that shaped many early American schools.
During our visit, I was especially struck by the peaceful atmosphere and the sense of history surrounding the grounds.
This wasn’t a recreated historic schoolhouse.
It was a place where generations of education had actually taken place.
More Than a School: The Shrine of St. John Berchmans
Our visit to the Academy also introduced me to a remarkable story beyond its educational history.
The grounds are associated with the Shrine of St. John Berchmans and the story of Mary Wilson, a young novice who became gravely ill in the 19th century.
The story connected with her recovery became part of the canonization history of St. John Berchmans.
It added another layer to our visit.
That’s something I repeatedly discover while traveling: one historic location can contain many different stories.
You may arrive expecting to learn about education and discover stories involving religion, architecture, community life, social history, or people whose experiences reached far beyond the place itself.
Old Dillard Museum in Fort Lauderdale, Florida
Another important example of preserved educational history can be found at the Old Dillard Museum in Fort Lauderdale.
The original Dillard School was established to educate African American children during segregation, and the historic site now preserves and interprets African American history and culture.
Places such as this are important because the story of American education isn’t simply about how classrooms looked.
It’s also about who was permitted to attend particular schools, what resources were available to students, and how communities fought to create educational opportunities.
Historic schools can help us understand those realities in ways a textbook alone cannot.
The Oldest Wooden School House in St. Augustine, Florida
St. Augustine offers a very different glimpse into early education.
The city’s Oldest Wooden School House represents the small, intimate style of classroom associated with early American communities.
Visitors can see how students and teachers functioned in a much simpler educational environment, long before sprawling campuses, school buses, computers, or modern classroom technology.
Whether or not you’re traveling with children, places like this can be surprisingly thought-provoking.
It’s difficult to stand inside a tiny historic classroom without comparing it to the schools we know today.
Why Visit Historic Schools When You Travel?
Historic schoolhouses may not be the first attractions people think of when planning a vacation.
That’s part of what makes them interesting.
They can reveal aspects of a destination that you might otherwise miss.
Schools often sat at the center of community life. Their stories can tell us about immigration, religion, race, rural life, economic conditions, women’s history, local traditions, and the changing expectations families had for their children.
They also make history personal.
A desk scratched by generations of students or an old classroom photograph can sometimes communicate more than a long list of historical dates.
What I Learned While Filming in St. Landry Parish
Filming in St. Landry Parish reminded me that some of the most meaningful travel experiences aren’t necessarily the biggest attractions.
Sometimes it’s a quiet room.
An old photograph.
A story someone has preserved.
Or a building that has witnessed generations of change.
At the Opelousas Museum and the Academy of the Sacred Heart, I wasn’t simply learning about old schools. I was learning about the communities surrounding them and the people whose lives were shaped by those institutions.
That’s exactly why I enjoy incorporating history into Love Eat Travel.
Food and entertainment may draw us into a destination, but understanding its history gives the experience depth.
Discover More of St. Landry Parish, Louisiana
Education was only one part of what I experienced while filming in St. Landry Parish.
I also explored Creole heritage, learned about Louisiana food traditions, played the rubboard alongside Zydeco musicians, tasted unforgettable Cajun cooking, visited historic communities, and met people passionate about preserving the culture of their region.
You can discover more of those experiences in my St. Landry Parish, Louisiana episode of Love Eat Travel with Michelle Valentine.
The next time you’re traveling through a historic town, look beyond the most obvious attractions.
Find the old school.
Visit the local museum.
Read the names on the photographs.
You might discover that one small classroom tells a surprisingly large story.
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