Of Outhouses and Historic Landmarks

Jacqueline Freeman, president of the Venersborg Community Club, opens the door to one of two outhouses at the Venersborg schoolhouse, which has no indoor restroom. The community club is raising money to build one. (Steven Lane/The Columbian)

VENERSBORG — If you're thinking about attending the Sweetheart's Dance at the Venersborg schoolhouse on Valentine's Day, don't drink too much water beforehand, and relieve yourself before you arrive.

Otherwise, you'll get an intimate look at one of the quaint aspects of the historic schoolhouse — one labeled "Ladies" and the other, "Gents."

The two outhouses are the 97-year-old building's only restroom facilities.

"They're not the most pleasant things," said B.J. Schulte, vice president of the Venersborg Community Club, as she swept dried leaves and pine needles from the entryway of the schoolhouse on a recent morning.

The club is throwing the dance to raise money for an indoor bathroom. The schoolhouse, now the tiny unincorporated town's community center, has indoor plumbing for a kitchen sink, but not for a toilet.

Even without that fundamental modern amenity, the building still sees plenty of action as a venue for family reunions, wedding receptions, showers, Bible classes, birthday parties, ice cream socials and Boy Scout meetings. A giant wood stove heats the building. Bare bulbs and paned windows supply the light. Fair ribbons serve as interior decor.

The building is the oldest continuously used community center in Washington and the last intact one-room schoolhouse in Clark County. It's listed on state and national historic registers — honorary designations that do not impose restrictions on the property.

If the schoolhouse were listed on the local historic register, alterations would require review by the county's Historic Preservation Commission, said Jacqui Kamp, a Clark County planner.

"Most of the times, only the exterior … is required to be reviewed," Kamp said in e-mail.

At the schoolhouse, the planned restroom would be built on the back of the building and would not alter its appearance from the road.

Swedish carpenter John Kullberg constructed the schoolhouse in 1912 to serve Venersborg. In Swedish the name means "friendly haven." The unincorporated town, founded in 1909 by Swedish Land and Colonization Co., lies five miles east of Battle Ground in the forested Cascade foothills.

Consolidation with the Battle Ground School District closed the schoolhouse in 1931. One year later, the Venersborg Social and Athletic Club took over the property. The group became the Venersborg Homemakers Club and now is known as the Venersborg Community Club.

The club's president, Jacqueline Freeman, said she feels bad for the elderly club members who alter their medication schedules on days they'll be at the schoolhouse to avoid a trip to the outhouse.

"Imagine it's February, raining and you're 80 years old and you use a walker," Freeman said.

The club will rely on donated materials and labor but estimates the project price tag will reach the $14,000. Much of the necessary prep work has already been completed, and paid for with money the club raised through raffles and similar efforts.

"When you think that this is little old ladies baking cookies and hand-stitching quilts, it's miraculous. It really is a dollar at a time," Freeman said.

But the club still needs another $5,000. Thus, the dance.

"We're a small community," Freeman said. "This is how we do things."