The first house for the village of Flat Rock was constructed in the 1830's. Soon after a school made of logs was erected on the banks of the Huron River. School was in session for only a three-month period in the winter, due to the amount of work the boys had to do on the farms during the rest of the year.
By the time of the Civil War, Flat Rock had grown and a new school building was needed. It was built on Dearborn Plank Road, which is now known as Telegraph Road.
In the years following the Civil War, Flat Rock built a third school at the present site of the Reading Building on Gibraltar Road. It was a combination of high school and grade school and was divided into separate halves, one for the boys and one for the girls.
In 1879, Flat Rock High School graduated its first class of four students. But in 1911, the school burned and a new one had to be built. It was named after Gertrude R. Reading, a former teacher, principal and superintendent of Flat Rock Schools.
In 1930, the high school was accepted as a member of the North Central Association of Secondary Schools and Colleges.
During the late 1940's and early 1950's, a new subdivision was built on the east side of Flat Rock. The influx of families with children brought about an overflow of students and a need for more classroom space.
In 1951, a new addition was built to the high school, providing more space, facilities, and broader curriculum.
As the population grew, the need for an elementary school arose. The John M. Barnes Elementary School was constructed on the east side of Flat Rock in 1954. In 1957, Evergreen Elementary (since changed to Ethel C. Bobcean Elementary School in 1982) was constructed. In 1962, an addition of ten classrooms was added to Bobcean. In the fall of 1958 a gymnasium, shop area, and four classrooms were added to the high school.
A new junior high school (grades 7-8) was readied for occupancy in the fall of 1965. The school was named Thomas Simpson Junior High after a former Assistant Superintendent, who had been associated with the school system since 1925. In the 1978-79 school year, this building became an intermediate school (grades 6-8) and the high school housed grades 9-12.
Continued growth of the city seemed assured with the development of the Ford Casting Plant in 1973, and the construction of a new subdivision (Pebblebrook) in 1974-75. However, the future of Flat Rock became uncertain as the auto industry forced the closing of the casting plant in December of 1981. The plant was taken over by the Mazda company and once again the city began to face the future with a more positive attitude.
