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Page 10 text:
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Our Washington Union High School Have we ever wondered about our school’s past? When was it started? What have been its triumphs, its progress, and its failures? Let us look into the past years and see what our school has done. Washington Union High School was started in 1892 in one room on the lower floor of the old Masonic Hall. The entrance was five feet wide and extended along the side of the building, where seats had been placed at one end for recitation. The laboratory equipment consisted of a 2,inc lined box, a faucet and a drain pipe. (If we had to work with such equipment, wouldn’t we feel abused?) The library was a new set of the Encyclopedia Britannica and a few other books. Even though there were only twenty-four students, they had eighteen separate classes all taught by their principal, Mr. William Wentworth; but soon Miss Crocker was added to the staff. As the number of students increased, plans were made for a school build¬ ing. The site was chosen on the Niles-Centerville road, and when the build¬ ing was completed the students joyfully moved to their new quarters. Our school continued to grow in numbers and in activities, and sports played an important part in the school life. Let us go back to Football in 1899. After a fairly successful season, the school decided to enter the Academic Athletic League. The first opponent, Oakland High, fell under Washington’s blows, being defeated with a score
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Page 11 text:
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of 16 to 0. Then a game with Lowell High of San Francisco loomed in sight—the winner to play Belmont for the State Championship. Friends of the team got the services of Jack Craig, famous U. C. end, to give the team some coaching. After two weeks of diligent practice the team met Lowell High in a game played in a sea of mud, which did not bother Washington for she was used to playing in this sort of field. Washington emerged from the mud as victor, after playing water-polo for most of the game. Then tv o more weeks of hard work, and the game with Belmont was at hand. The two teams played until exhausted; still neither team gave that added punch so vital in football. After the scoreless game, a second was arranged. This was a duplicate of the first. League officials refused when Washington tried to secure a third game, so Washington Union High tied for the honor of state championship. It was a fortunate day in 1905 when Mr. George Whitfield Wright came to our school. Finding only a college preparatory course, M r. Wright added the homemaking and shop courses and a commercial department to o m school. Mr. Wright was lovingly called ‘Trof’’ by the students who have many fond memories of him such as these: The football team had won several games and the boys were getting a little cocky. It was time for roll call and the students were assembled in the Study Hall. As Mr. Wright took roll, he quoted, as he so often did, from the Bible— ' Wherefore let him that thinkest he standest, take heed lest he fall.’ ” It was time for the World Series. The class in algebra was wondering why they should bother about X and Y, when there were such interesting things to think about as baseball. Mr. Wright quietly stepped into the room and wrote on the board N. Y. 6, Phil. 3, and with a twinkle in his eye went out without saying a word. Class and teacher smiled and somehow algebra seemed worth while after all.” The Hatchet, a two column paper, was the pride and joy of the students in 1916. The paper was due to Philip Griffen and Kelly” Wales and their adviser R. O. Moyer. The origin of the Hatchet is interesting. It was born in the library,” said Mr. Griffen, we wanted a paper, so we decided that Washington’s Hatchet might be regarded as an instrument used to bring deceit to an end. Therefore, we decided that our paper, the Washington Hatchet, should be an agency o be utsed to end and deceit that might crop up to keep truth from growing, so that the better growth might be in no danger of being crowded out. Secondly, it was something different with the necessary pep and life, just enough of a pu 2 , 2 ,ler and not too deep.” The Hatchet was published twice a year; but when the persons interested left school, it was discontinued.
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