Newton High School - Newtonian Yearbook (Newton, MA)

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5 ' 7 it Courtery of lacktorz Homertead Newton High School 1859-1959 When the Massachusetts legislature of 1853 passed a law requiring any town with a population of 8000 residents to provide a high school for its students, the Newton School Board was faced with the prospect of building a school in the village of Newtonville. In 1859, the Committee proposed the establishment of a pure high school to replace the high school departments previously located within the framework of the two elementary schools in Newton Centre and West Newton. Even then there was a space problem, and the Com- mittee hoped that the new building would solve this difficulty as well as house the needed high school. Construction proceeded so rapidly that on September 6, 1859, the new school was ready to house its 75 initial students. The first courses were primarily classical - algebra, geometry, Greek, Latin, music, and drawing. Weekly declarations in English were the forerunners of our speech classes of today. Many students may envy those original students, allowed to walk to Newtonville Square for a snack during the short lunch period. Under the anxious eyes of the School Committee and the first principal, Mr. J. N. Beal, Newton High School survived its first year. The first graduating class of four girls surprised many pessimists and provided the citizens of Newton with a reward for their faith and their fS200,000. Courtesy of Iacleron Homenead

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Drill Team - 1886 .rs-cf. f J was rj' gs jiri! Qmmal sillflfllil January 2811, 1881 NEWTON IIB! 80H00la. . n t--.-:sn ri- n- n-nn. l-- Quai!-ul With the end of the Civil War came the enrollment of many more boys freed from military service. Nevertheless, the School Board, considering high school an important part of one's education, objected that many students were thrust by their parents into the herce battles of life before they had time to practice in the armor which they must use in order to become successful. At the same time, the officials offered a stiff entrance examination in an attempt to establish high standards for the students. Their success was mirrored by the high acceptance rate at Harvard College, the destination of almost every student in the Boston area. A new, general course of instruction was introduced in 1867. German, French, and many practical subjects, previously found only in commercial school, were offered to the growing student body. Half the conscripts for the Union Army had been ex- empted because of ill health or physical disability, and the concern over the condition of the nation's youth was as great then as it is today, Therefore, many people were pleased to note the addition of a physical education course to the program. Of these new courses, the School Committee said, We cannot justifiably lower the standard of education here to be secured, but we can give it breadth. There were, of course, many sharply contested issues in the development of the new school. In 1871, entrance examina- tions were discontinued. The superintendent of schools, Hiram H. Walker, complained that, lf anything, the quantity of the last entering class was rather at the expense of quality, The problem was partly solved by the introduction of examina- tions into the elementary school programs. While many students walked from such places as Newton Highlands, some rode the train to Newtonville. Even these students walked home after school because of the irregular train schedules. Still, many parents expressed apprehension over the bad effect which the trains had on the students. Chil- dren often walked idly about the train yards, disregarding their studies. Others rode the few miles to school, and their parents feared they would become lazy. Today, many parents are concerned that their children always drive or ride the bus to and from school, reminding one of the universal controversies over transportation. 1910 'I9