Fulton Elementary School and the Fulton Family Group will host an open house celebrating the legacy of the school on Sunday, May 22, from 3-4:30 p.m. The community is invited to attend. Fulton will close and be decommissioned as a school in the Dubuque Community School District at the conclusion of the school year.
At the open house, school staff and members of the Fulton Family Group will be on hand and self-guided tours will be available. Concessions available for purchase, old Fulton yearbooks, commemorative t-shirts and Fulton memorabilia will be able for purchase (cash only).
There will also be an opportunity for attendees to sign a commemorative item that will be placed in a Fulton time capsule. During the open house, the school’s former technology coach Jeff Dyer will be on hand showing Fulton Films made with Fulton students over the years.
In 1856, the Dubuque Community School District constructed Couler Avenue School on the corner of Couler Avenue and Diagonal Streets in Dubuque. In 1889, the building was renamed Fulton School at a time when the school board elected to name schools after famous Americans. The building is named after Robert Fulton, who was inventor of the steamboat as well as an artist and engineer. In 1891, an addition to the school was added at that original site.
In 1939, the school board called for a special election to build four new district schools to replace existing ones, including Fulton. A new Fulton School, built in its current location at a cost of $212,763.73, was accepted by the board and dedicated in 1941. In 1944, a nursery school and childcare center were opened at Fulton School to supplement the nursery school in operation in other district schools. Today, Fulton serves approximately 240 students in grades PreK-5.