When opened in 1878, the Maitland school consisted of a residence and one large room. It housed 80 children and cost £938 to build. Further stone rooms were later added over the next hundred years as numbers increased and the school went from primary to higher primary (1922) and an area school in (1943). A new school was built on Junction Road in 1966, but the Junior Primary School remained here until 1978. In 1979 the property was vacated by the education department and granted to the National Trust for use as a museum. It is now staffed by volunteers and is a popular tourist attraction in Maitland.
