Eldorado High School - Golden E Yearbook (Eldorado, IL)

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. 3. . l .K ' .Nw - , 1? .f K7 I - if .Lf lt - - il T' ' - 'Y iff v-n The Raibourn Building erected 1922. Cafeteria facilities were provided in a small way in about 1925 and enlarged and constant- ly improved from that time until at the present all pupils and teachers who desire, may be accommodated with a hot noon day meal of well-balanced selections under the supervision of the School Lunch Program. The Athletic Department has always oc- cupied the proper place in the school program Jneither predominate, nor obscure. Since 1910 there have been track, basketball and football teams engaging in competition with other schools. Eldorado Township High School has always enjoyed the respect of its citizens and of schools with which its teams have com- peted for sportmanship and prowess. From the beginning, pupils from without the district have attended the school in great numbers. Additions to the geographical boun- daries have been made from time to time by petition, and 'at the present the district which was originally only East Eldorado Township, 36 square miles, has been extended to in- clude parts of adjoining townships and reach- es into Hamilton and Gallatin counties. The buildings constructed to meet the de- mands of the growing school population re- flect not only the growth of the community, but also the enrichment of facilities for always keeping pace and often taking the lead in secondary education. Buildings added to the plant, with approximate dates of completion are: frame gymnasium, 1914, Raibourn build- ing, 1922g Westbrook gymnasium, l93Og Dodd building, 1943, Vocational Department addi- tion to the Westbrook gymnasium, and the new gymnasium, 1957. At first there were no facilities for indoor basketball. An outdoor court was set up and used when weather would permit. The walls of classrooms on the first floor of the Van Cleve building still bear the marks of basketball goals attached for improvised quarters. No games with other schools were ever played in these quarters, however. The history of gymnasiums is very color- ful. lt was the dream of those most interested in the school in its early years that there should be a gymnasium. However, the tax and bond burden was so great that it seemed im- possible to achieve. Quite in keeping with the spirit of Eldorado -then and now - where there is a will, there is a way, the late C. O DuBois, an educator and a landowner, donat- ed all the lumber necessary for the construc- tion of a frame gymnasium in 1912, provided the people would cut the timber from his pro- The Westbrook Gymnasium erected 1930. perty. The coach and manual training teacher, I. Marshall Peer, led the work with the result that within two years a large frame gym- nasium was ready for occupancy. The Board of Education was in a position to complete the interior of the building in 1918. This was the first gymnasium in the area. In 1929 this building was destroyed by fire. Again there was a heavy bonded indebtedness, due to the recent construction of the Raibourn building, and again the will and the way teamed up for a new gymnasium. Local deal- ers expressed a willingness to furnish build- ing materials on long term credit. Labor was paid for in part by current funds and part by anticipation warrants. The result was that

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U1 r, . M ,2 al w 1. : m-vc. ' W n TY fn..-7. 4: M., 1 ' ! mn if 5 1... X U' rf Football Squad of 1912, Back Row: Coach Put- nam Cecil Murphy Henry Kirkland, Ray Wiggins, Homer Bramlet, Frank Sutton, ,'Vlidd'e Row: Hubert Bramlet, Cecil Simpson, McKinley Hicks Hal Burnett. Front Row: George Wilson, Louis Beasley Earl Simp, son, Simon Sutton, John Cox first'class to graduate, having had all its training in the new school was the class ot 1912, with e1e'ven members, three boys and eight girls From that time the size of gradua- ting classes increased untzl 1942, when the Baseball Team of 1912. Baseball was resumed at E.T,H S. in 1958 number of graduates reached 147 The en- rcllment of the school has usually reflected the economic candit1ons, not only in the com- munity, but in the country in general When unemployrnent has been great, greater num- bers have attended the school, due in part to pasrtions being filled by adults, and in ig The first gymnasium erected 1914. part by the fact that young families employed away from Eldorado returned to live here during periods oi unemployment. As rapidly as they could be provided, considering room, revenue, and demands for the new courses, the curriculum was expanded to include a well-rounded course of instruc- tion. Vocational Agriculture was added in 1919. Manual Training, or Industrial Arts, has been enlarged. Home Economics, Band, Or- chestra7 Chorus, a lull commercial course, Lan- guages, including at times, Latin, French, Ger- man, and Spanish, have been offered. Instruc- tion in Health, including Drivers Training, has been offered for several years, The first picture of the entire student body taken in 1910-1911.

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The Dodd Building erected 1943. again the high school boasted the best gym- nasium in the area Within the next few years the program of Physical Education and of Health was enriched to such extent that more facilities were needed for these courses and for the expanding Athletics, lnaustrial Arts, Music, and Agriculture, This time, for the first Our new gymnasiurn erected l957. time, there was not only a need but also available funds for the construction of needed facilities ln l957 the present spacious and beautiful gymnasium with large addition to the existing gymnasium was completed, used during the basketball season, and dedicated to the youth of our community These are structures of which the people of Eldorado Community are justly proud The fine tradition of willingness to furnish the best within our means for the educational advantage of the young people of Eldorado has been main- tained, Through the years the Board of Education has been careful to select and employ a staff of men and women suited to the performance ot duties to which they have been assigned, with reference only to aualifications in terms of character, training, and the desire to be of service. The instructors have numbered from the small staff of three at the beginning to a staff of over thirty at times, including principal, teachers, custodians, cafeteria employees, and bus drivers, Many graduates of the school have returned to join the teaching staff, in- cluding T. Leo Dodd and I. Ward Barnes who have served as principals. na , a A v -f x