09/02/2026
Mrs. Rice and her 1st grade class at Spalding Elementary, 1976-77 school year. The person who emailed us this photo didn't leave their name so if you're who sent it to us comment below so we can properly tag you!
The school has had a fascinating and somewhat unusual history. Spalding opened in October 1948 with 500 students. The original building contained 18 classrooms and had a capacity of 604 students. Mr. Ernest Nicolius served as the school’s first principal. In 1953, the school was expanded with the addition of six classrooms.
Spalding reached its peak enrollment in 1972, when approximately 900 students attended the school. Enrollment declined sharply over the following decade, however, falling to just 306 students by the 1981–82 school year. In April 1982, the Richland School Board made the decision to close the school. Following its closure, several social service agencies rented space in the building from the school district.
In 1984, the school district listed the building and property for sale, and a buyer was found the following year. Richland First Baptist Church, which had opened Liberty Christian School in 1980, agreed to purchase the property for $622,000. The sale was contingent upon a zoning change that would allow the church to operate on the site.
The proposed sale, however, met opposition from nearby residents. After neighbors protested the plans, the Richland Planning Commission voted against the requested zoning change, effectively canceling the sale.
Over the next several years, Spalding continued to serve the community in other ways. The building was used by Benton-Franklin Head Start and the Tri-Cities Food Bank, while the Benton-Franklin Developmental Center and a private preschool also occupied space in the former school.
By the early 1990s, Richland’s growing student population prompted members of the public to call for Spalding to be reopened. Those hopes were dashed in December 1995, when a fire destroyed one wing of the building and forced the organizations using the facility to relocate.
The following year, Liberty Christian once again expressed interest in purchasing Spalding after the school district announced that the property would be auctioned. Liberty Christian submitted a bid of $162,000—the only bid received—but the school board rejected it in November 1996 because the property had been appraised at $600,000.
Despite the failed auction, discussions between the private Christian school and the district continued. By February 1997, the two sides had reached an agreement on a sale price of $487,000.
Following extensive renovations to the building, Liberty Christian moved into its new home in the fall of 2000. More than two decades later, the former Spalding school building continues to serve as Liberty Christian’s home today.
