300 Third St.--3rd Street School

Originally built as Belvidere Classical Academy, this building stands on property donated by Garrett D. and Ann Wall for school purposes in 1841 or 1842. The first principal was the Rev. R. B. Foresman who became the pastor of the "Yellow Frame" Church in Frelinghuysen.

Because of the terms under which the land was made available for educational purposes, when Belvidere Classical Academy folded, a lawsuit was brought against Mr. Morrow (who lived in the large white estate across the street, Tour Site #46) "who seems to have been in possession and control of the building [when] he occasionally, and for short spaces, used it in part for the storage of crops, housing..., and latterly permitted the upper floor to be used for the giving of dancing lessons. On the lawn he erected a tennis court for use of the young folks of the town, and also sometimes kept his fancy chickens in the yard."

More recently, the building was used for elementary students in kindergarten through third grades.

This modest design projects room functions with the classrooms having five-ganged windows and the entry doors have windows above them to illuminate the stairwells. The rusticated foundation adds some weight to the school's appearance.