History

Its current front building opened in 1916. It was designed by Royal W. Lescher and John R. Kibbey

Lescher & Mahoney

Lescher & Mahoney, a Phoenix, Arizona architecture firm, designed many significant buildings in Arizona, including several architectural significant theater buildings...

, architects who "dominated the design of educational buildings in Arizona". The Neoclassical Revival structure incorporates elements of the Spanish Revival style popular in the region. A one-story design was chosen, as many students would have traveled several miles on foot or on horseback. The building's orientation helped to keep temperature in the rooms, cooling in the summer and heating in the winter. In addition, the area under the front arches once featured windows and doors that opened at the front and back of the auditorium, creating a cooling cross breeze.

The front building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places

National Register of Historic Places

The National Register of Historic Places is the United States government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures, and objects deemed worthy of preservation...

on June 22, 1987 for its architecture, as well as for its significance as "a well-preserved example of institutional architecture in the early statehood period of Arizona history".
The original central entry was filled in, leaving nothing behind the arches. This was the case at the time of the NRHP nomination of this building in the Florence MRA. Since then, a central entry with windows and doors has been restored.