SUNY Plattsburgh - Cardinal Yearbook (Plattsburgh, NY)

Page 12 text:

YESTERDAY During the years 1889 and 1890 there was erected in Plattsburg a hand- some, stately building, known as the Plattsburg State Normal School. For forty years it stood, one of the chief sources of pride to the community. The fine old building was erected at the head of Court Street, on a gentle rise over- looking the city. A professional landscape artist had tastefully laid out the spacious campus. It contained an artificial lake, fed by a fountain, which gave a pleasant contrast to the majestic trees, green lawns, and gravel walks. The lofty tower, the brick walls, covered with ivy which had been planted through the years by graduating classes, at once drew admiring glances from passersby. Everyone felt a personal affection for the old school. To the boys and girls who attended it and to the people of Plattsb urg it seemed a friendly guardian. It fairly irradiated a personality that was truly lovable. On January 26, 1929, a fire swept through the school totally destroying it. Everyone who gazed upon the bleak, ice-covered ruins, the tottering walls, the once majestic tower with great strips torn out of its sides, sensed a personal loss, and a deep feeling of regret. To those closely connected with the school came the thought of the many pleasant hours spent within its walls. These happy associations dear to their hearts seemed taken away within an instant. There was the inevitable feeling that its place could never be filled, but — « 12 »

Page 11 text:

THE DOMES OF NORMAL When o ' er the western slopes the day-star ' s fading light Bedecks the heavenly span in spectral grandeur bright, There stands within our view, reflected in the west, The pigeoned toivers of Normal! The dormered eaves of Normal! The storied lights of Normal , where Learning ' s banners rest. Dark shades the vision clouds; destruction blinds our eyes; All ' round our sacred place, a fiendish sacrifice, The work of years, where Art and Wisdom blessed us all, Sinks with the spires of Normal! The crumbling walls of Normal! Our ivy cloistered Normal, in one vast funeral pall. But on the placid face of Cham plain ' s sapphire bay Faint gleams of struggling light announce another day! They gleam! The vision grows! It fills the blinded eye, The risen domes of Normal! The burnished domes of Normal! The living domes of Normal, against the western sky. Then ban the black despair that threats to break the heart When proud -apparelled works of hand and mind depart; New courage take and on! You ' ll build again more vast, As were the domes of Normal! The sturdy domes of Normal! The rock-ribbed domes of Normal rebuild ed from the blast. — Paul H. Hartman. « i i »

Page 13 text:

TODAY — on the place where the old school stood, a magnificent new building has been erected. It was completed in 1 932. after a period of construction lasting two years, at a cost of slightly over a million dollars . This building far surpasses the fondest hopes of all as to what the new school would be. It is artistically constructed, the architecture being a modified Gothic. It is very extensive in size, covering far more space on the campus than did the old school. Upon visiting the building one is greatly impressed by the beautiful halls, the well-arranged, modernly furnished classrooms. The auditorium is espe- cially beautiful. Here is a stage equipped with modern lighting, a projection room, and provision for installing an organ. Other special features of the new school are the art. crafts, manual training, and science rooms: the kindergarten, library, children ' s library, music room, the gymnasiums, and the cafeteria. The landscaping about the building has been altered and will in the future provide a lovely setting. Once more life and youth, laughter and work are on the campus. Once more a building stands, a guardian, an inspiration, and an encouragement to those who are aspiring to higher fields of endeavor. To those who felt a per- sonal loss at the passing of the old school has come the feeling that perhaps the one of the present day will fill the place in their hearts that the old school held. New school, we hail thee! Frances Fayette. « 13 »