In 1905, the Canadian National Railway was being constructed and families were settling in what is now known as Old Coniston. Around this time, the first school was built in the area by Father Lebel to provide education to the children of the area. This bilingual public school was a one-room log building that was constructed at the end of what is now Fourth Avenue and the teachers of the school were mainly of French-Canadian descent.

This log schoolhouse was used until 1913 when the town's population began to grow in the area now known as Coniston. In 1913, the new town of Coniston was being developed thanks to the opening of a smelter by the Mond Nickel Company (they had closed their operations in Victoria Mine). Due to the influx of settlers, a separate school and a public school were subsequently built on the corner of Balsam Avenue and Second Avenue. Both structures were three-room frame buildings that looked almost identical.

Over the years, the school systems in Coniston improved and numerous children were enrolled in both the public and separate schools. Eventually, in 1925, the community was able to establish Coniston Continuation School, a high school for the local children.

Today, only the separate schools continue to operate in the area.