The 100-year-old Mabana Schoolhouse on Camano Island began as a school and is now owned by artist Linda Demetre who uses the building as a studio and also a classroom where she teaches painting.

The 100-year-old Mabana Schoolhouse on Camano Island began as a school and is now owned by artist Linda Demetre who uses the building as a studio and also a classroom where she teaches painting.

Malbana Schoolhouse on Camano added to heritage register

CAMANO ISLAND — The 100-year-old schoolhouse where Linda Demetre sets up her easel holds a local history as colorful as her oil paintings.

The schoolhouse is coming up on its 100th birthday. Earlier this month, it was added to the Washington Heritage Register, a statewide list of historical locations.

The school was built in 1916 by pioneers in the logging community of Mabana near the south tip of Camano Island. At the time, there was no bridge to the island, just a wharf where boats moved more timber than people.

“If the walls could talk,” Demetre said during a visit to the schoolhouse last week. “There’s so much history here.”

The 73-year-old artist lives nearby and spends much of her time at the schoolhouse, a white building with red accents — the doors the roof, the window frames. It is tucked into the woods off South Camano Road. When sunlight streams through the windows and highlights the wood floor, red rugs and white walls inside, she’ll paint all day long.

“I can just get lost,” Demetre said. “I’ll be painting and six hours later realize what time it is.”

She applied for the heritage register to protect the schoolhouse for future generations, she said. Some of the most influential figures in the island’s history left their legacy there.

Nils Anderson, a Swedish immigrant nicknamed “Peg Leg” after losing his leg in logging accident, owned the tidelands on the south part of Camano Island in the early 1900s and established the community of Mabana.

The school opened as Anderson Hall and the first teacher was Nils’ 18-year-old daughter, Pearl. Nils and Pearl Anderson went on to be county and state leaders.

Pearl in particular was a trailblazer. She became superintendent of Island County schools at age 24 and later served as a state representative and then senator. By then she’d married and was Pearl Wanamaker. She was the state superintendent of public instruction for 16 years and oversaw the elimination of one-room, multi-grade schoolhouses and formation of junior and senior high schools. She’s also known for her fight to get the Deception Pass Bridge built during the Great Depression.

“She was really quite the pioneer lady,” Demetre said.

In 1926, the Mabana school merged with Algers Bay and Triangle Bay schools. By 1936, older students rode the bus to Stanwood. The school became a community hall. Nils Anderson donated it to the Ladies Aid Society in 1962.

It was run-down when Jackie Longo bought it in 1984 and converted it into a home with the expertise of a Seattle architect, according to Demetre’s research. She stayed true to the original building while upgrading electric and plumbing, installing a bathroom and kitchen and lowering the attic to create a loft. The main classroom remains and the bell on the roof still has a strong, clear ring.

“I’m the sixth owner, but everybody’s kept its integrity and really kept it natural,” Demetre said.

She bought the schoolhouse on a handshake deal. She’d been leasing a building behind it as an art studio and her landlord decided to sell three years ago.

Now her paintings hang around the old classroom. A man and woman dancing and an idyllic red barn scene flank a blackboard with an alphabet above it. The space is a balance of history, art and nature.

Demetre sees deer, raccoons and eagles outside her windows and can catch a glimpse of water between the thick trees.

“It’s a bit on the wild side, and we’re going to keep it that way,” she said.

The school is full of connections between past and present, Demetre said. Volunteers with the Mabana Flames Fire Auxiliary meet there sometimes. During her research, Demetre learned that the group, formerly the Women’s Auxiliary, held a fundraiser at the school shortly after it opened and collected $5 to donate to Syrian refugees.

“I’m so glad we got this registered as a historic site,” Demetre said. “I think we owe it to our heritage to preserve these old buildings.”

Demetre was a flight attendant for 37 years and went to art classes and museums around the world. Now she juggles her art with volunteering and being a busy grandma to 5-year-old twins and an 8-month-old baby. She’s been married for 27 years to the next door neighbor she fell in love with at an opera. They moved to Camano Island in 1989.

Demetre sells her art at galleries and during events such as the open studio tour put on by the Camano Arts Association in May. She likes to paint in the quiet of the old school but wishes the walls could share the stories they hold.

“It’s kind of magical here,” Demetre said. “I never take it for granted, I tell you. I think it was meant to be.”

Kari Bray: 425-339-3439; kbray@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

Customers enter and exit the Costco on Dec. 2, 2022, in Lake Stevens. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Costco stores could be impacted by looming truck driver strike threat

Truck drivers who deliver groceries and produce to Costco warehouses… Continue reading

Two Washington State ferries pass along the route between Mukilteo and Clinton as scuba divers swim near the shore Sunday, Oct. 22, 2023, in Mukilteo, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Ferry system increases ridership by a half million in 2024

Edmonds-Kingston route remains second-busiest route in the system.

Alina Langbehn, 6, center, and Vera A., 6, right, sit on a swing together at Drew Nielsen Neighborhood Park after school on Tuesday, Jan. 28, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett council votes to renovate Drew Nielsen Park

Construction on the $345,000 upgrade could start as early as this fall.

Northshore School District bus driver Stewart O’Leary pictured next to his buses shattered drivers side windshield on Friday, Feb. 14, 2025 in Bothell, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘Put me in, coach’: Bus driver back at work after struck by metal bar

Stewart O’Leary, a Northshore employee, has received national attention for his composure during a frightening bus trip.

Lynnwood councilor Joshua Binda speaks during a Lynnwood City Council meeting on Wednesday, Nov. 20, 2024. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Does the Lynnwood Council VP live in Lynnwood? It’s hard to say.

Josh Binda’s residency has been called into question following an eviction and FEC filings listing an Everett address. He insists he lives in Lynnwood.

Robin Cain with 50 of her marathon medals hanging on a display board she made with her father on Thursday, Jan. 2, 2025 in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Running a marathon is hard. She ran one in every state.

Robin Cain, of Lake Stevens, is one of only a few thousand people to ever achieve the feat.

People line up to grab food at the Everett Recovery Cafe on Wednesday, Dec. 4, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Coffee, meals and compassion are free at the Everett Recovery Cafe

The free, membership-based day center offers free coffee and meals and more importantly, camaraderie and recovery support.

The Everett Wastewater Treatment Plant along the Snohomish River on Thursday, June 16, 2022 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Everett water, sewer rates could jump 43% by 2028

The rate hikes would pay for improvements to the city’s sewer infrastructure.

The bond funded new track and field at Northshore Middle School on Thursday, Oct. 24, 2024 in Bothell, Washington. (Courtesy of Northshore School District)
Northshore School District bond improvements underway

The $425 million bond is funding new track and field complexes, playgrounds and phase one of two school replacements.

An American Robin picks a berry from a holly tree on Thursday, Feb. 13, 2025 in Edmonds, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Calling all birders for the annual Great Backyard Bird Count

The Audubon Society will hold its 28th annual Great Backyard… Continue reading

A view of one of the potential locations of the new Aquasox stadium on Monday, Feb. 26, 2024 in Everett, Washington. The site sits between Hewitt Avenue, Broadway, Pacific Avenue and the railroad. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Initial prep work for AquaSox stadium to start, with $200k price tag

The temporary agreement allows some surveying and design work as the city negotiates contracts with designers and builders.

Aaron Kennedy / The Herald
The Joann Fabric and Crafts store at 7601 Evergreen Way, Everett, is one of three stores in Snohomish County that will close as part of the retailer’s larger plan to shutter more than half of its stores nationwide.
Joann store closure plan includes Everett, Arlington, Lynnwood locations

The retail giant filed a motion in court to close approximately 500 stores in the U.S.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.