Before the Civil War, most public education in Vermont was in one-room schools, and Morristown students who wished to attend high school had to go to Johnson, Bakersfield, or a distant boarding school. In 1847, the village of Morrisville bought land between present-day Park and Main Streets for use as a common, and despite opposition from wealthier community members, Morristown citizens raised $1500 to build the first Peoples Academy, sometimes called the “Poor People's Academy,” on the site of the current playground behind the Civil War monument. The academy opened in September 1847 to 84 students from 11 towns. The building is a fine example of Greek Revival architecture popular in the decades before the Civil War, with a gable front, wide corner pilasters, and a continuous cornice forming a triangular pediment that creates a classical temple form. In 1874, it was moved to its current location to make way for a new high school building and then housed several businesses. In 1924, Lamoille Grange #233 bought it for use as a grange hall, and in 2005, River Arts bought and carefully restored it for use as a multi-generational community arts center while preserving its historic integrity.