Cleveland High School - Beacon Yearbook (St Louis, MO)

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MEMORIES A MEMORY Can you picture the site of Cleveland High School as a vineyard? That is exactly what it was in the latter part of the nineteenth century when Mr. Philip Bardenheier purchased from the banker, Mr. Miltenberger, a huge house and the adjoining property, which now comprises the present site of Cleveland. The surrounding neighborhood was called Maryville after Maryville Academy, and most of the inhabitants were wealthy French who owned great estates. No street cut through the property between Grand Ave., which was then a dirt road, and Spring Town Road, now Virginia Ave. Osceola Street was the boundary between St. Louis and Carondelet. Travelers from the one town to the other paid toll at a gate located at the intersection of Spring Town Road and Osceola Street. The Bardenheier residence stood about one hundred feet west of the present Louisiana Avenue, on the second highest spot in the city, the City Sanitarium being the highest. A spacious lawn extended from the house to Spring Town Road, which it faced. A driveway lined with cedars led from Spring Town Road to the house. A formal garden with many varieties of fruit trees and a large circular flower bed added to the prestige of the residence. The house itself was built of brick painted white, and was about sixty feet across the front and almost equally as deep. A long veranda extended across the front. The entire southern half of the house was used as an impressive parlor. To the rear of this main building was another roomy structure. This addition contained an immense kitchen, a sub- kitchen, a large room for the servants, and a second dining room. When Mr. Page Thirteen

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Mr. Drake was beloved by his students, for he was thorough, yet always kindly, thoughtful and considerate. Among the members of the faculty he was held in the highest esteem, for he was co-operative and helpful to a very marked degree. He was keenly interested in his profession and faithfully supported and participated in its many organi- zations. Always temperate in his habits, he enjoyed life to the utmost, never failing to avail himself of those things which gave him pleasure. During his long illness of many months, he revealed a fortitude of spirit that amazed all who visited him, always radiating cheerfulness and hopefulness -ever solicitous of the welfare of others. His passing will be a great loss to Cleveland and we shall long miss his friendly spirit. Page Twelve

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Twenty-Five Years Bardenheier bought the property he tore down the quarters which had been occupied by the slaves of the Miltenberger family, and erected barns and housing for live stock. About seven acres of the estate were devoted to vineyards. About 1902 Anheuser-Busch bought the property, together with that for miles around, for railroad purposes, Later, the estate was acquired by the Board of Education for the erection of our Cleveland High School. Ellen Kern Class of June 1940 FAMOUS LANDMARK MAKES WAY FOR EDUCATION Time alone can obliterate the memories of yesteryear. With each decade are torn away old scenes and beloved landmarks. The past twenty- five years have witnessed the destruction of many old familiar places in and about St. Louis. The most recent landmark of St. Louis to disappear was the stately mansion to the north of Cleveland High School. Once a great house on a magnificent site, neighboring with other famous estates, it was located only a short distance from the city of St. Louis and not quite in the village of Carondelet. The city slowly crept nearer and nearer to its beautiful grounds. The great farm lands around were sub-divided and Within a decade a new and less fascinating South St. Louis grew up. The cry for greater educational facilities grew louder and Grover Cleveland High School was constructed next door. Even this did not cause any great alarm to the old house until the city grew even greater and it was necessary at last to tear down its time-worn walls and haul its lumber away for the Board of Education to establish more classrooms for the students of the new city. The history of the house begins some seventy years ago when Abraham Lincoln had just taken his seat in the White House. It was an exciting time for the entire country, and the majority shared in the turmoil. One man, however, took little part in the spreading propaganda. He was a Mr. Prichard, who had arrived in St. Louis from an eastern state with a large sum of money. He was now building his home, some miles south of the city, and so paid little attention to the thought of war. It was an elegant home when completed, two stories high with many rooms, in fact it was one of the finest homes west of the Mississippi River. Page Fourteen