P.S. 31 The Bayside School

c. 1842 - present

Before being known as P.S. 31 and before Bayside was considered a New York City neighborhood, The Bayside School opened in 1842 as a one-room schoolhouse at 48th avenue and 216th street to serve its community. As the schoolhouse became more popular, the school was relocated across the street and opened a two-room schoolhouse in 1859. The school relocated within the Bayside area again in 1883, closer to the present-day site of P.S. 31. As the needs of the community grew, by 1895, the school was reconstructed to include four classrooms, a library, an office and a reception room, two playrooms, and an apartment space for the custodian to reside in. Additionally, the two rooms that belonged to the older building were repurposed and used as an assembly room. When Bayside was established a New York City neighborhood in Queens in 1898, the school became known as P.S. 31 The Bayside School. A campaign was initiated by the Bayside Taxpayers and Improvement Association in 1929 to replace the old 1895 building with a new one to update facilities and accommodate a larger number of students. The old school was dismantled and in July 1939, construction of the new school commenced. The school welcomed students in the Fall of 1940. Today, the school serves about 450 students in Pre-K- 5th grade.