Founded in 1868 on the edge of the Chuhuahuan Desert and just three miles from the Rio Grande, Del Rio began as an agricultural community whose children had only intermittent schooling opportunities. In the 1870s, the community used an adobe structure as a schoolhouse whenever a teacher was available, and during the 1880s children attended classes in a two-room, wood-frame building at Pecan and Greenwood streets. Significant changes came in that decade as the Del Rio Common School District organized in 1884 and Val Verde County began the following year with Del Rio as the seat of government. In 1890, residents voted to create an independent school district that included much of present-day Del Rio except for the San Felipe neighborhood, which formed its own district. After the Del Rio district was created, trustees approved a new school building at this site called Del Rio High School, or Secondary School, which housed classes through the tenth grade. By 1906, the district had divided into three campuses: the high school, Hill School (Northside Elementary), and an African American school. Continued construction projects expanded the system to meet growing enrollment, and the district added an eleventh grade in 1910 and a twelfth grade after construction of this school building in 1930. Built by Phil Garoni, the new structure served until 1968, when a larger high school was built on the north side, and the 1930 building continues in use for school programs as a reminder of Del Rio's early educational efforts.