Piedmont High School - Summit Yearbook (Lawndale, NC)

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6 Piedmont High School fitted up for the primary department, other recita¬ tion rooms were enlarged and the dining-hall was remodeled. Yet, when the session opened and boys and girls began to arrive we found that we needed more room. The fact that it seems almost impos¬ sible to secure enough room for our students dem¬ onstrates clearly the wisdom of our plans and t he soundness of our policy; not, perhaps, from a financ¬ ial standpoint, but from the standpoint of doing the most good to the most people. A handsome build¬ ing, thirty by fifty, two stories high, was erected during the summer and it was ready for occupancy at the beginning of the session in 1909-1910. The lower story of this building is used as a boys ' dormi¬ tory. The upper story is used by the Musigmarho- nian and the Pierian Literary Societies. On the seventh of March, 1910, the main build¬ ing, containing recitation rooms, dining-room, audi¬ torium, Principal ' s office and residence, girls ' dormi¬ tory, and one dormitory for boys, was destroyed by fire. As only two dormitories for boys and the society halls remained, it was impossible to con¬ tinue our work, so the school was suspended for the remainder of the session. Major Schenck, the President of the Board of Truste es, called a meet¬ ing of the citizens and it was determined to re¬ build. The contract was let and work was begun at once. Sequestered student life gave place to the builder ' s work. Girls, boys, teachers, study and exam¬ inations had given way to the carpenter, the mason and the tinner. Soon the wooded hill was resonant with the craftsman ' s tool. Out of the ashes of the old was born a bigger and a better Piedmont. Out of the fire-fiend ' s ruin, out of cherished, broken plans have come the fruition of broader foundations and the realization of higher ideals. Three handsome structures, more modern in construction than the

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HISTORY AND SITUATION This school was established seventeen years ago. Under the generous patronage of the people, it has grown till it now not only numbers its students from the mountains to the sea-shore in this State, but others recognizing its merits have entrusted to its care their sons and daughters. In fact, its rapid growth made necessary larger buildings and ampler grounds. Seeing its needs, its friends rallied to its support, formed a joint stock company, secured a charter from the Legislature, and commenced work in earnest. A large, conveniently arranged building was erected. Ten years ago it was found that we did not have room sufficient to accommodate our fast-growing patronage. The owners of the property added an annex thirty-two feet wide and forty feet long, two stories high. This addition to the first building, which was one hundred and thirty-two feet in length by thirty-two feet in width, two stories high, with verandas aggregating more than three hundred feet in length, gave our students ample room and comfort for those years. Seven years ago at the beginning of the session it was found that our dormitory was taxed to its limit. The trus¬ tees and the friends of the School once more made enlargement possible. A new building was com¬ pleted. This new building, forty-eight by sixty- eight, two stories high, with a large basement, gave us a splendid dormitory for girls, with a large and conveniently arranged auditorium. Notwithstanding the great enlargement, it was soon found that our room was still insufficient; students were turned away for lack of room. This lack was met six years ago by the erection of another dormitory sufficient to accomodate forty more boys. Five years ago other improvements were made, new rooms were

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Lawndale, North Carolina 7 old, more dormitory rooms, more recitation rooms, greater conveniences, water-works, a larger campus, larger play grounds and electric lights are the out¬ come of our terrible disaster. In all there are six buildings on our campus. The main building, Schenck Hall, contains four well lighted and well ventilated recitation rooms, a dining room, thirty-three by seventy, a kitchen with many conveniences, an of¬ fice and rooms for the Principal and his family. The whole of the upper story of this building is used as a dormitory for girls. The next is a stately build¬ ing containing the department of Music, the busi¬ ness school, the primary department and an audi¬ torium fitted with raised seats and modern stage scenery. Its seating capacity is about nine hundred. The Waters’ Library building was completed at the beginning of the last sesssion. This building, by the bequest of Miss Nancy Waters, was erected in memory of her brother, Capt. A. G. Waters, who was a brave Confederate soldier killed in the battle of Gains Mill, near Richmond, Va., June 27, 1862. The legacy was not sufficient for the building desired but the deficit was made up by Major H. F. Schenck and Mr. John F. Schenck. The building, thirty by thirty-six, two stories, built of pressed brick, the smallest but the finest of our buildings, adorns the crest of the hill. It is a fit monument for one who gave life for native land—more appropriate by far than glistering marble or lofty granite. On the evening of February the fifteenth, when the majority of the boys were attending church in Lawndale, fire broke out in Newton Hall, and in spite of the water-works and heroic efforts on the part of those present the building could not be saved as it was too far gone when discovered. There was some insurance and the hall will be exactly duplicated by the opening of the next session.