History and Current Happenings of Malabar School in Malabar Florida

When I go to Nana’s House, my favorite thrift store and charity, I pass nearby the old Malabar School house. Malabar School is now Brevard Hardwoods and no longer a teaching institution. When students did grace its halls, there were only four classrooms; at times just two with a large auditorium on the second floor. Grades 1 to 6 were in a room on the downstairs level. Their classroom had six rows of desks. Each row was a grade. For example, row one was for first graders, two for second graders, etc. They had one teacher solely. Since Ms. Rogero taught to eighth grade level, the other classroom may have been 7th and 8th graders.

When Louise Rogero went to Eau Gallie High School in a neighboring town, I suspect that she would not have guessed she would teach six grades together in one room of a large school building. Miss Rogero graduated from Florida State College for Woman and began teaching in rural Brevard County Schools. In 1927 when Malabar School opened, it was rural. In some ways the area is still rural.

Student Duties: Each classroom had a wood burning stove and the students took an axe into the woods to chop fuel for the stoves. Also, at the end of each school day students and Miss Rogero would sweep the floors, preparing the building for classes the next day.

Depression and Food: Volunteers, likely parents, arranged with Huggins Store in Malabar to provide food for the school day. Miss Rogero would stop to pick up the food on her way to classes every day and then would make sandwiches for her students.

Nan’s Chateau: Malabar School closed in 1935 when students were assigned to schools in Melbourne, Florida. The building may have been vacant until the 1940s when the Malabar Schoolhouse became a restaurant and night spot, Nan’s Chateau. Guests would enjoy an evening of dancing and dining, behind windows that had been covered with darkening curtains. The building is just a short ways from the Indian River which leads to the Atlantic Ocean where German submarines lurked during the war. Diners could walk up to the building’s flat roof and overlook the area and the sky.

1970s Millworks: Eventually, in the 1970s Eli Leone opened Malabar Millworks in the old school workshop. Today the property is owned by Jim Nobel who runs Brevard Hardwoods, including a millwork area. A master craftsman, he has greatly renovated the building which is listed on the Brevard County Register of Historic Places. Mr. Nobel removed asbestos and lead paint, and resolved subflooring issues. It is involves wood, Jim can do it for his customers, including providing marine plywood and boat teak wood services.

EEL Program: Where is the 5557 square foot two story old masonry and stucco schoolhouse with the adjoining 2304 square foot workshop? It is located at 1490 Marie Street in Malabar Florida 32950. Adjoining the building is a conservation area which is part of the Brevard Environmentally Endangered Lands (EEL) Program, comprised of 395 acres of Malabar Sandhill Scrub Preserve and the Sandhill Trailhead for hiking and horseback riding. This EEL connects to the 100 acres Cameron Preserve. Quite a next door neighbor.

Retirement of Louise Rogero: Miss Rogero retired from the Brevard County School System in 1951 at which time she was awarded the Good Citizenship Medal. She was born in 1903 and died in 1992. Although she did not marry, her sister Ethel Corine Rogero married John Benson. They had four children. After the couple died, Louise Rogero raised the four children. Louise died when she was 88. During her fulfilling life, she taught students, raised her sister’s children, was a member of Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Church, was active in the South Brevard Historical Society, and was a member of the Retired Teachers Association and the Catholic Womens Guild.

The Malabar Schoolhouse was available as a location for special events such as weddings, receptions, parties and meetings. The building still contains some old pine flooring, and has high ceilings with lots of natural window light. It may still offer space for such events.

I love history, especially when that location is still useful today. Very nice.

Book Sources:
The Promised Land: The Malabar Years and Beyond, by Carolyn Rinaman Durak
Indian River Journal, Fall/Winter 2010