Classical High School - Blue and White Yearbook (Springfield, MA)

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ABOVE: Timothy Leary, drug guru of the 1960’s, class of 1938. BELOW: Adele Ad- dison, opera and stage star, class of 1942. William Manchester, author and historian, class of 1940. History v

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- ABOVE: Theodor Geisel, famous children’s au- thor, 1921. BELOW: Frank Freedman (top), feder- al judge, class of 1942, and Charles Ryan (bottom), iv Congressman Edward Boland, class of 1928. Though not every Classical graduate has gone on to become a notable public figure, there are many who used their talents and their education to make a name for them- selves in this world. Quite a few local politicans have graduat- ed from Classical. State senators Linda Mel- conian and Martin Reilly attended this school, as did former state senator Alan Si- sitsky. At least three former Springfield mayors graduated from Classical: Tom 0’Connor, Charles Ryan (1944), and Frank Freedman (1942), who went on to become a federal judge. Congressman Edward Boland received his diploma from Classical in 1928. Not all noteworthy Classical graduates entered politics; entertainment is another field in which our school is well-represent- ed. Adele Addison (1942) became an opera singer and a star in the musical “Porgy and Bess.” Joan Goodman has become a familiar name in television news broadcasting. Be- hind the scenes in Hollywood, two Classical graduates are responsible for producing the movies and television shows that entertain us: David Garber is a producer, and Ashley Boone is an executive at Twentieth Century Fox. History former mayor, class of 1944. Classical has even produced a world champion sprinter: Howard Drew attained this sports honor in the 100 yard sprint- dash. Several noted writers attended Classical. Newspaper reporter Zedra Aranow gradu- ated from this school. William Manchester (1940), who is a renowned author and histo- rian, and is currently in residence at Wes- leyan University, also graduated from Clas- sical. But perhaps the best-known writer to attend Classical was Theodor Geisel (1920%), who is popularly known as Dr. Seuss. One last Classical graduate who gained a certain degree of notoriety during the 1960’s as a drug guru was Timothy Leary (1938), who was the chemist responsible for the creation of LSD. There are numerous other Classical alum- nae who have achieved exceptional goals. As Classical ends its tradition of producing politicians, entertainers, sports figures, writers, and other outstanding citizens, Central High School begins a similar tradi- tion of its own. ©

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vi The balcony, which was once used by students. The High School in Springfield has changed its name a number of times. Once it was “The High School’, then ‘Springfield High School”, “Central High School”, and finally, ‘““‘Classical High School” in 1934. The atmosphere, however, has remained un- changed, as has its goal of educating young people. Not only has the school changed, but so has its appearance. Many of the changes the building has gone through are apparent. In the late 1800’s and early 1900’s, Classical was an ex- tremely modern school. There were gas lights in the halls and lampposts in the foy- er. The floors were sparkling clean. There were also glass doors at the entrance. But, of course, the building has aged over the past 90 years and has gone through a lot of water and wear that has forced the removal of some of these things. In the basement, to the left of the boys’ room, is the janitor’s office, which was once an aquarium. The aquarium was quite large and was used for biological studies. Another modern privilege similar to the aquarium was the observatory, which was located in the attic. The observatory had several mi- croscopes available for the students’ use. Room 211, currently Mr. Ligarski’s com- puter room, was once the location of the school library. The back of today’s library was a classroom, and the front portion was a study hall. This study hall was for use by girls only. The boys had their own study History years. (bottom) hall on the first floor. This type of separa- tion of boys from girls wasn’t an unusual occurence. Hach morning, the boys entered from the east entrance and the girls from the west entrance. Their recreation rooms were also separated. Room 323, which is now the big study hall, was once a huge lecture room. The room was furnished with tiers of seats and large demonstration tables. Also on the third floor, across from room 316, there is a room which is now deteriorated, but was a greenhouse. Here, plants were grown for the use of the science classes. Another asset to the students of Classical was the annex. It was located near Techni- cal High School and was used until 1980. It served as extra space for Classical’s stu- dents until the classroom space in the annex was no longer needed. Finally, Classical was proud to have a magnificent piece of art as part of its build- ing. A mural entitled “The Light of Educa- tion”, which is located in the auditorium, was painted in 1910 by Robert Reid, a fam- ous New York artist, and donated to the school. It depicts Samuel Chapin educating the Indians and the settlers. Every person who attended Classical was very fortunate to attend such a beautiful school. Not only is Classical highly recog- nized for its academics, but it is one of the most beautiful and historic schools to ever exist. ABOVE: The foyer, elegantly illuminated with lamps. BELOW: The auditorium in the early 1900’s (top), and Mr. Stevens, Classical teacher for many