Chelsea High School - Beacon Yearbook (Chelsea, MA)

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' l Bellingham School, 1872-1905. Crescent Avenue School, 1905-1926. it revolved made it almost impossible to carry on a class because of the noise. In 1884, from this school, graduated the largest graduating class since 1847—thirty-four students! Although hardly comparable to our present school, looking back through the years we find that some of the most enjoyable school relationships, activities, and organizations (such as the first P.-T. A.) sprang from that little school from the time of its erection to the day of the tragic, historically fam¬ ous fire in 1908 that consumed everything in its path i lcluding the Bellingham High School itself. liven before the destruction brought on by the fire, the increasing enrollment of high school pupils and the crowded conditions at the Bellingham School brought up the question of a new school. For several years it was the chief topic of discussion until finally the plans for a new school were accepted because of obvious necessity. At last, in 1905, the plans were completed and the cornerstone laid for the pride and joy of the city and the first wing of our present building. The location of Tudor Street was ideal and space ample for nearly 1,200 pupils. Soon after the erection of this new building, the Bellingham School was converted to a junior high school until the Chelsea fire erased it from the hill. In 1911 the faculty consisted of one master, one submaster, and fourteen teachers. During the years 1911 through 1025 the enrollment of students rose from 396 to 1,159. This period also saw the introduction of the office as a vital part of the high school department. The progressive new high school contained features that added countless pleasures and re¬ laxation to the regular routine of studies. A lunch counter was installed by the Chelsea Women’s Club. Regular as¬ semblies were held to encourage school spirit, at many of which the newly organized class orchestra performed. To this enterprising new high school came the first blows of a war that had already struck in many other parts of the world just as the effects of an even more universal war were felt deeply in the hearts of young men and women twenty- three years later. Scanning the pages of our historical accounts, the activities of the students in the periods before and during World War I correspond with remarkable similarity to those of high school students in the second World War. Then, too, it was a constantly prominent topic of interest. The same deep-rooted spirit of self-sacrifice and patriotism existed among our parents and their friends that we, and our brothers, sisters, and friends felt. A large number of pupils even left school for high wages brought about by the war. Schools took an active part in war activities such as the pur¬ chase of Liberty bonds and stamps, and contributions to Red Cross funds and activities. Tragedy, too, first found its way into the lives of young high school students and their close acquaintances during World War I. And after the signing of the Armistice on November 11, they rejoiced with the same wild exultation, checked a little by the grave realism that also found its way into our celebration. In the year 1926, during the real “flood tide of prosperity,” the additional wing of the high school was erected on Crescent and Clark Avenue to meet the demand of an ever-increasing enrollment. The spacious, well-equipped rooms, outside of numerous improvements and additions were much the same as they are today. The completed high school fully succeeded in holding the same high reputation as its predecessors, and in 1930, Chelsea was rated as a Class A school and has been ever since. The highest number of students in a graduating class was 485, in 1938. This year there were 1,150 pupils in the school, under a faculty of one headmaster, one submaster, one junior master and fifty-three teachers. 3

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The Birth of Once upon a time, long- ago, when Chelsea was just a serene little town of winding roads, trees, parks, and wooded hills, far from being the thriving industrial center in which we now live, the first Chelsea Senior High School was established. The date, 1847, marked the beginning of years of plan¬ ning, progress, failures, and success, in maintaining a high school of the highest standards. Every day, sixty young people, girls with their starched skirts rustling as they walked, and boys in their high, stiff collars, took their places for the opening class in the little room on the second floor of Low ' s 11 all, which could hardly be called a school In this cramped space over a store on Broadway near Everett Avenue where Craft’s now stands, the foundation was laid for one of the most outstanding high schools in all New England, one from which thousands of voting people would emerge, many to become great men and women, a credit to their city and their school, and others, although perhaps less illustrious as civic or national figures, to see their children and grandchildren follow in their footsteps along the corridors of Chelsea High School. Rumney Marsh — First school for Chelsea and surrounding districts. Carey School served as the high school from But as the prosperity and population of the little community began to expand, the neces¬ sity and demand for suitable education and college preparation for young people who had completed grammar school became more evi¬ dent, eventually the tiny space of the “two by four classroom with its high, small windows and creaking desks became inadequate for so staggering a number of enrollments. The am¬ bitious interests of parents and civic leaders made possible the erection of the first high school building in 18 0, known as the Cary School. This school, with its high windows and large square rooms, was used for primary grades until very recently when condemned because of dangerous construction and fire hazards. After ninety-seven years of faithful service, the tired old school retired to sit back and watch its successors carry on. As the population of Chelsea (which had obtained enough recognition to become a city in 1S47) grew each year, even the building that had been constructed in 1850 was not suf¬ ficient to hold the students that flocked to be enrolled. By 1872 the need for a new building was so acute that a completely new and modern high school was built near the foot of Belling¬ ham hill. The Bellingham School consisted of two floors of classrooms, complete with a labora¬ tory in the basement and the “very newest improvement out” in ventilation systems, a high fan at the top of the building which, when 1850 to 1872. 2

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As We Interior of Low’s Hall, first high school for Chelsea, founded in 1847, and located in a small room above the business sec¬ tion of Chelsea at the corner of Broad- wax ' and Everett Avenue. 4 M