Bonner Springs High School

category : Historic Schoolhouses
The Bonner Springs High School, listed on the National Register of Historic Places, was built in 1918 and was in continuous use until 1982. A three to one vote approved the tax levy as the City, Board of Education, and the Superintendent of Schools wanted a High School of the latest design with a gymnasium and auditorium. The School was built at the end of World War I, and the nation had realized they had to make the young people more physically fit and ready to make their way in the world.

Bonner Springs was fortunate to hire one of the best architects in the Kansas City, Missouri School District. Eight of his buildings in Kansas City, Missouri are listed on the National Register, and 23 of his schools in Kansas City, Missouri have been determined eligible for listing.


This corner property has always been utilized as a school. John McDanield, the founder of Bonner Springs, donated the property in 1873, before the town was plotted. The deed filed in 1873 gave the school ground to the City to be used as a school. If the town did not use it as a school, it would be reverted to the heirs of the McDanield family. A small brick school was built upon it and was called Tiblow School. This one-room school served the needs of the community until 1897 when a two story building was built. This school was known as McDanield School and was for elementary students. At that time, high school classes were held on the upper floor. A new McDanield school was built in 1906 on the corner of Nettleton and Kump and was first used as a High School, then later changed when the 1918 High School was built.

The 1918 High School was built on the spot where the two story frame building stood. L.L. Hart organized the high school in Bonner Springs in 1899. Only a two year course was offered until 1905, when two more years were added.

Address: Third and Cedar Streets

Come visit us in Bonner Springs, Kansas