East High School - Tiger Yearbook (Cincinnati, OH)

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1,3 4.3. 15,53 Q

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f N F lJREViRDl HIS is thel first l'l:1st High Sc-lmul Alllllllll. lt has no pix-ilu-vssm's3 it is :1 D2ltl1lll1tll'l' :tml must hlzlzv its own wziy. Sim-v thv yvur that h:1s just viithwl is thv first yt-zu' uf lizist High, mu' sclmul has no trzulitimis. :tml thuugh it is ai tim' thing to llfililllill-1' from il st-Iiool with il long :xml lmiiomhlv h1sto1'y. lt 1s:1 HUlll'K'K' ot Ilfllltx to us that ours has its history still lmton- 1t. W ri iw 1-nlitirlviit that this institution, so W0l11l1'l'l.lll in its physic-:il vquipluvut, will h:iVc- :1 1'tlt'Ul'1l that iii vvnrs to 4-01110 will nizxlw thu vhtss of 1lll1UfC'l'I1-lWlxllfj' 1-vc-ii iuorv proml than it is tmlziy, of hving its first QQI'illlll2ltPS. The- lmppy timvs spvut tugvtlic-1' tm' mul short yvzu' :incl thv t'I'ic-mlsliips inzulv tlu-rv will vwfi' lm :1 IDll'2lS2lllf IIlf'llllJI'y tu us alll. A1141 pvrlmps iii 2ll'ft'l' yU2ll'S, whvn :1 llilllll' may hc- l.Ol'f1:Uttl'l1, or :i t':u'0, :1 gl:111f'0 into this ,xlllllhll will 1'1'r':1ll thx- uzmiv :tml thv fzivt-, :intl zilmvv ull, that good ti111vs zissocizitlml with our vlzissiiiaitvs :tt tli'2lI' nhl lilzist High. lt is for just this DllI'lJ4lSt' thzit thx- zxllllllill wzis pulmlisliwlg mel it' it st-rvt-s to ra-1-:ill thv happy timvs wi' haivv spa-ut tugt-tlwi' :it our won- fh-rt'i1l uvw sr-lmol, this lmolq will hrivv Fllllilhwl its I7lII'DUSf'.

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OUR SCHOOL -1- 1-4'-- 1-1f11-1'1'1-- --f-- U --11-11'-1 -f -1- AST HIGH SCHOOL is built on a thirty-two acre tract that belonged originally to the Erkenbrecker estate. It was like other dairy farms with its small shabby farm house, broken down fences, scattered build- ings, and sleepy cattle. This little tract has the distinction of being the birth place of the Cincinnati Zoo. The Erkenbrecker family, being animal fanciers, had a small collection of birds and animals. Today this collection has grown to be one of Americafs largest and finest Zoological Exhibitions. The location of the school was chosen by committees representing the Welfare Associations of the eastern part of the city. The School Board approved their choice and made the purchase. The plans were made in 1914, and the ground was broken in December, 1915. The school, as first planned, was to be opened in 1918. It is an inter- esting fact that if the war had continued, the school would first have served as a government hospital for wounded soldiers. Although the ending of the war made this unnecessary, difficulty in getting materials, transportation and labor troubles, delayed the opening a year. Twenty-six strikes affecting practically every trade added to the worries of the contractors, whose contracts, due to rising prices and war conditions, had to be remade at a much larger figure, cven then they lost large sums of money. The cost was one million, three hundred and fifty thousand dollars. This compares favorably with the cost of Hughes. If these buildings were to be rebuilt now, the cost would be more than twice this amount. More expensive schools have been built, but there are none more complete and forward looking. A group of foreign delegates who visited this school stated that there is nothing of this type in Europe to compare with it. Mr. Kelsey, a prominent Philadelphia architect, in praising the Cincinnati schools, says of East High, The East High School represents probably a more pene- trating look into the needs of the future than any other public school in the world. What such a community center will mean to the physical, mental, and moral development of the people in the next fifty years is beyond calcu- lation. Mr. Kelsey praises also the inspiring quotations which are cut in the walls. The clock tower, a hundred and fifteen feet high, which stands facing the center of Erie Avenue, is the axis of the whole school plan. The tower itself is not like the tower of Independence Hall as has often been said, but is modeled after the steeples of New England churches. Instead of the customary single building, the school is divided into four units or groups of buildings, the academic, the industrial with the power plant adjoining, the gymnasium, and the agricultural buildings, grouped around a large stadium seating eight thousand. l7l