Research indicates that the first school in Boise was opened by F. B. Smith in the fall of 1863 at the corner of Idaho and Seventh Streets.
In 1864, a public school system was established in the Idaho Territory. In 1865, the territorial governor appointed J. B. Knight as the county superintendent for Ada County; and he organized School District No. 1, which included Boise City and adjacent lands.

The first public school in Boise opened in June 1865. Financial support came primarily from public contributions, as county funds were insufficient to build and maintain schools. Due to financial problems, the public school was closed from June 1866 until July 1868. In September, 1868, the citizens of Boise approved a tax levy of 5 mills for each dollar of taxable property. The money generated was used to build a school on Eighth and Washington Streets. Unfortunately, the school cost more than was anticipated, and the voters turned down a proposal to increase taxes and pay the excess building costs. Because of this, the building debt was not completely paid off until 1871.

An attempt to improve the financial condition of the District was made in 1880. Three districts were created to serve Boise City: District No. 1 serving an area bounded by Main Street on the south and Eighth Street on the east; District No. 22, serving the area south of Main; and District No. 24 serving the area west of Eighth. Increasing enrollment and increasing financial problems again caused the citizens of Boise to request a better method of providing for public schools. Thus, in an effort to strengthen the public schools and provide a graded system, the three existing districts were combined to form the Independent School District of Boise City #1.

When the legislature met in January, 1881, the citizens of Boise were determined to secure a better public school system. R. Z. Johnson, a territorial legislator, and later a trustee, drew up the bill creating the Boise District. The bill was signed by the territorial governor on February 4, 1881, and the Independent School District of Boise City #1 came into existence.

The bill, which established the Boise District, granted the District a charter, which is still in existence today. While the Charter has been amended by the legislature from time to time, many of the original provisions remain. Today, among the Charter provisions are the following which allow the Board of Trustees to:

Make rules and regulations to govern the schools;

Employ or discharge a superintendent, teachers and other employees and determine their salaries;

Determine tuition for nonresident pupils;

Adopt textbooks and determine the course of study;

Determine the length of the school term;

Determine annually the District's budget.

The most important provision is the one giving the Board of Trustees the power and authority to propose a budget, provide a public hearing on the budget, and, after adoption of the budget, and determine the amount of money needed to be raised by taxes. The right to determine the tax levy gives the District local control of its own affairs.