Plainview’s first schoolhouse was built in 1887, the year the town was founded. Located northwest of this site, it was a half-dugout sod building similar to many pioneer homes in the area. Built by local men under the supervision of Judge J. M. Carter and Col. R. P. Smyth, it also served as a community center and was used for the organization of at least two local churches. In 1889 the Plainview Masonic Lodge constructed a two-story frame building west of this site. Its second floor was used for lodge meetings, and its ground floor was occupied by the school, which became known as The Llano Estacado Institute for Male and Female in 1893. The building served as the schoolhouse until it burned in 1902. Shortly after the Plainview Independent School District was organized in 1902, the elementary school was renamed for the noted Texas leader Mirabeau B. Lamar. A two-story schoolhouse at this site was moved in 1910 when the original section of the present building was constructed. Later used as a vocational training center, Lamar School reflects the community’s pioneer educational, social, and religious growth.