Park View School (and Auditorium Interior): This school is distinctive among the District’s elementary schools for its large auditorium.

In 1911, the quickly developing Park View neighborhood was in need of an elementary school for its 600 children. In 1916, after years of advocacy by the Park View Citizens’ Association, the 16-room school designed by DC Municipal Architect Snowden Ashford was completed. With its Elizabethan Revival style, the school closely resembles Ashford’s high school designs and was a rare departure from the city’s Victorian Era or Colonial Revival style elementary schools.

Also unique to the Park View School is its 700-seat auditorium, which has a rare interior landmark designation. The hall, built well before other elementary schools in DC had auditoriums, was to be used for both school and community functions, and includes a striking wooden truss supporting its roof.

DC Inventory: May 24, 2012

National Register: May 1, 2013