Read time: 4 min.

Old neighborhood schools still dot Anderson, Indiana, nearly everywhere you turn. Some are old and some are more modern, but if you asked me to pick the most striking of them all, I’d have a hard time choosing anything other than Shadeland Elementary. With its elaborate Gothic Revival styling, castle-like appearance, and commanding presence, it’s still one of Anderson’s architectural standouts a century after it opened,

Shadeland Elementary School was built in 1925, fifteen years after a petition was first circulated to replace the previous Shadeland school -a one-room schoolhouse on Fifteenth Street- that had gradually been expanded¹. The $165,000 structure measured 66 x 180 feet and featured sixteen rooms and an auditorium. It immediately took in about seven hundred students from Kindergarten through sixth grade². 

The basement of Shadeland School housed heating and ventilation equipment, and two large recitation rooms on the second floor were separated by folding doors. When unfurled, the space could be used as a 400-person auditorium³. The building was fireproof, since the only wood used was in doors, trim, and flooring adhered to a concrete base⁴. 

A multipurpose room was built to be used as a gymnasium, auditorium, and cafeteria, along with two classrooms and storage, in 1962⁵. That year, Shadeland was also home to one of Madison County’s radioactive fallout shelters⁶. 

By 1979, Shadeland was operating below its student capacity. Rumors abounded that declining enrollments and additional student busing could lead to its closure⁷. Instead, the building was renovated for $580,000 in the early eighties⁸.  Unfortunately, that wasn’t enough: Shadeland was shuttered for good in 1998⁹. 

In 2009, the old elementary school was home to Mercy House, Shadeland Tutoring and Recreation, and Shadeland Thrift¹⁰. It was empty by 2014¹¹, but a private party purchased the building five years later¹². As of this writing, the 37,000-square-foot building’s up for sale! See inside here. 

Sources Cited
1 Newest Educational Center in Anderson (1925, April 5). The Anderson Herald. pp. 1, 9. 
2 (See footnote 1). 
3 (See footnote 1). 
4 (See footnote 1). 
5 Appropriation For Shadeland Is Considered (1962, October 17). The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 1. 
6 MAP: Known fallout shelter locations in Madison County (2018, May 20). The Anderson Herald Bulletin. Web. Retrieved July 12, 2026. 
7 Douglas, D. (1979, May 16). Gallagher denies rumor of Shadeland closing. The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 1. 
8 Whitaker Hartsfield, K. (1982, November 2). School board approves $580,000 to renovate Shadeland Elementary. The Anderson Daily Bulletin. p. 1. 
9 Hirsch, S. (2015, September 6). Former ACS school buildings take on new identities. The Anderson Herald Bulletin. Web. Retrieved July 12, 2026. 
10 Cleary, J. (2009, March 18). Old Closed ACS buildings. Anderson Herald Bulletin. Web. Retrieved July 12, 2026. 
11 Bailey, J. (2014, May 24). Jim Bailey: School days, school days, good old vacant buildings. Anderson Herald Bulletin. Web. Retrieved July 12, 2026. 
12 Parcel 48-11-14-103-148.000-003 (2026). Office of the Assessor. Madison County [Anderson]. Web. Retrieved July 12, 2026.