apartment therapy changing the world, one room at a time

The Howard School in Warrensburg, Mo is fighting for new life as a museum as it's the second oldest surviving black school in the state. We were there to take some photos for the local newspaper (where you can read more about it's history and details).

We walked through the door and over broken glass, bits of wood and roof that had caved in. It was about how a 120 year old building, with little shielding it from the elements would look. Beat up, run down, falling down and fragile (there were a few tense moments where we almost went through the floor!).

But in the middle of the destruction and falling bits of this and that, were roughly 50+ (it's hard to count in the dark when you're trying to keep your balance on a few small floor boards) vintage school lights. It was like a small treasure of shining glory inside this small dismal place that had seen better days. Our minds flooded with thoughts of the Rejuvenation catalogs and all the beautiful lighting that you could buy as reproductions... but these were the original beauties. Not a single one was broken or harmed and although they could use a good cleaning, they were the highlight of our day!

(Which is our really long way of saying, "Hey check out these awesome lights we found... if only we could have stashed one or two of them in the trunk before we left town!')

Link: The Pitch

(Images: Sarah Rae Trover)