The ruins of this two-story schoolhouse stand along the road in rural Mason County watching the farmers work the fields. Above the entrance is a carved stone that reads: FERN SCHOOL DIST. 3 1906. It’s all that remains of the town of Fern. The town was built around a sawmill owned by J.S. Adams in Eden Township. A station was built on the Mason and Oceana railroad in 1886 and in 1888 It was given a post office. I am not sure why it was named Fern, but the town must have prospered to build a two-story brick schoolhouse, considering most of the school houses I see left standing are simple single-story wooden structures. A year after the school was built the town’s post office closed. Probably because the Post Office switched to its rural free delivery system. After the timber was gone, the mill must have closed along with the train depot, since there is no longer any tracks running near the old forgotten school. The school closed in 1959 and it stands eerily empty remembering the days when the children of Fern came to visit.
Please note. I enjoy seeing these old forgotten places from the road, Please be respectful and do not trespass.
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