Location: 42.30652, -83.53649, at 50440 Cherry Hill Rd, Canton Township, MI.
Cherry Hill School (Canton & Superior Fractional District No 1), of Italianate design, was in use from 1876-1955. It replaced a log school built in 1836. It was originally located across from Cherry Hill Church. The arched school identification plaque engraved into the building above the door says "F.S.D. No 1 C&S 1876", meaning "Fractional School District No 1, Canton and Superior Township, built in 1876". It is built from "soft fired" bricks, made from the clay soils in Canton, and fired in the nearby brick kiln at a local farm. It has 3 large arched windows on each side, and 2 more in the front, one on each side of a large centered double door. The windows and door have arches above them of projecting brickwork. Projecting brickwork is also used under the eaves, with dental patterns, on the four corners of the building, and on the sides to separate the windows from each other. All of the bricks are painted white, which in my opinion, reduces their beauty and impact, as did the white paint of McKinley School. In 1944, Henry Ford, who operated a small factory in Cherry Hill, paid for an addition in the rear of this building, as well as for the salary for a second teacher. The school became part of Ford's Greenfield Village School System where students benefitted from art, music and dance curricula. Cherry Hill School was absorbed by the Plymouth School District in 1955.
