Overview

The Ida Patterson Elementary School educated pupils between 1957 and 2004 in Eugene, OR. Construction of the César Chávez Elementary School on the same property in 2004 made the 47-year-old Patterson School superfluous.

Building History

The Eugene architectural firm of Balzhiser and Seder designed the Ida Patterson School, completed in 1957. The Eugene School District 4J named the school in honor of a long-time teacher and administrator in the system, Ida Patterson (1866-1944). It operated until about 2023.

It was the second school in Eugene named for the Patterson Family, the first built in 1901 honoring Ida's father Dr. Andrew Wilson Patterson (1814-1904), an accomplished physician, surveyor and public servant. (Andrew Patterson also served as Lane County's School superintendent.) Eugene residents elected Andrew Patterson to the State Senate in 1870 and during his term became very influential in the political debate to locate the state univeristy in Eugene. Ida Patterson graduated from the University of Oregon in 1886. By 1905, Ida Patterson served as the Principal of the Patterson School. (See R.L. Polk and Company's Eugene, Oregon, City Directory, 1905, p. 95.)

Building Notes

The Family School operated at same location as the Ida Patterson Elementary School, during the 1980s until 2004.. (See Eugene School District 4J.edu, "Family School Co-Location Approved," published 02/04/2026, accessed 03/03/2026.) The Family School moved to César Chávez Elementary School between 2004 and 2009. (See "Family School looking for a home," Eugene Register-Guard, 06/17/2015, p. 11.)

PCAD id: 25955