Historic Trafton Schoolhouse in Arlington transformed into a stately home - Unreal Estate
4It was a school before Washington became a state.
"This is the Trafton Schoolhouse. It was built in 1888. It is the oldest continuously operating school in the state of Washington," said Dawn Hecker with Kraken Real Estate. "After a fire, it was rebuilt with four classrooms for kindergarten through fifth grade. And the last class to attend the last year was in 2011."
"In 2006 it was actually entered into the National Historical Register and there's a plaque on the front."
Though the beloved school sat empty for years, locals in the Arlington area were hopeful its halls would be filled again.
"To see this school being run down broke everybody's heart," said Ken Hecker. "They didn't want to see this house be destroyed or continue to be run down, they wanted to see it rejuvenated."
Now the abandoned school has been given a new life as a stately home.
"The Trafton Schoolhouse sits on a little over two acres. 2.15 to be exact. There are six bedrooms, five and a half baths, and a little over 5000 square feet," Ken said. "This great room houses the original windows. When you're sitting here, you're getting the natural sunlight, and you're kind of getting a piece of the schoolhouse history."
"Open concept kitchen. Plenty of cabinet space for cooking. This would be an amazing room not only for entertaining, but the possibilities are endless."
The staircase where children once ran up to their classroom, now leads to the primary bedroom.
"Primary bedroom and this house is very gran," Dawn said. "You walk in and it doesn't only have space for you know, a massive bed but it has sitting space and you have stairs that go up and make it feel very elegant to the primary bathroom, which has a beautiful porcelain tub and shower, but it's just the windows and the light and the view from the bedroom. It's just incredible."
While the building has been updated, you'll still find pieces of the school's past.
"I think it's really cool that they maintain some of the integrity by keeping the original doors,” Dawn said. "They took the cupola down and put the bell on display."
At a recent open house, hundreds of locals showed up to see how the former school was transformed.
"I cried with so many people during the open house, I was so glad I don't wear makeup because I'm like, I would be a mess. I cried. I got full-body chills. They were sharing stories and memories and emotions," Dawn said.
"The Arlington community is strong," Ken said. "They are so close-knit, and they love this school. It is just the icon of their community."
The Trafton Schoolhouse is on the market for $1,590,000.
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