Wellston High School - X Ray Yearbook (Wellston, OH)

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Oldies 9 OPENING

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The title of our yearbook has proven to be both intriguing and applicable, as well as being endurable throughout its sixty-five years of existance. The first yearbook was published in 1923 by the Senior class. It had a simple construction of one hundred pages containing all class pictures, activities in the school, sports, ads, and a variety of jokes. In 1923, a Sophomore class entitled the first annual yearbook “The X-Ray”, but what did they mean by “X-Ray”? The title probably meant that since an X-Ray allows you to look beyond flesh and right to the bone, that in looking at the yearbook you can do just that and see beyond the structure of the school right to the heart: the students. This idea must have required quite a bit of thought. For this, we give them much credit. In the early years, our yearbook didn’t display the traditional blue and gold cover. Although those were our school colors, they weren’t stressed much in the yearbook except in association with athletics where the writer often affectionately penned the team the “Blue and Gold”. Wellston High School was going through a big transitional period during the time the first yearbook was being produced. The new high school was about to be built, replacing the old one that stood on the same spot where Central School now stands. The new building was a quite modern one for the time. A sketch of the new High School appeared on the second page of the yearbook. As well as a new building, new ideas emerged. W.H.S. saw its second bit of published literature; preceded only by the newspaper, “The Hi-Times”. The yearbook served its purpose. It allowed us to look back into the past and to see the realities of school life then. It also let us see the similarities and differences between school life then and now. The title of “X-Ray” was, indeed, appropriate. STORY BY HOLLY SNEDECOR 8 OPENING Blue and Golden

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 9 A 4 4 14 ini PAST Most of us will remember Wellston as it looks today. Let’s take a trip down memory lane and have a look at what Wellston once was. In the early 1900’s, Wellston was considerably different than it is now. Waugh’s Insurance office used to be a hospital, the Pizza Pub was known as Rogan Hotel, and “The Getaway” was the post office. The city pool now sits where the Harvey Wells school was located, and the high school was at Central. One of the town’s three theaters once hosted the famous country western singer. Gene Autry. On the island at Lake Alma there used to be a merry-go-round and ferris wheel. Wellston also had a street car that traveled to Jackson and Hamden. There was also a picnicking and recreational area called Electric Park, which was on the hill at the junction of 93 and 788. Years ago, many businesses moved into the area. Close to the time of W.W.I, Wellston’s furnaces employed about 300 men each. The pants factory was also in operation, located on the third floor of the Harper’s Building. It moved to its present location in 1935. There were two cigar factories here that hired mostly women. In Wellston’s early years, the crime rate was so high that it acqired the nickname “Little Chicago”. For us today it is hard to imagine how big Wellston used to be. We occasionally hear a train coming through town, but once 20 to 30 trains passed through Wellston on any given day. These trains would stop at a place called the sand house, where they picked up sand to help with traction. There were also three depots, or train stations, operating in town at the time. Many changes have taken place in Wellston through the years, and many more will continue to take place in years to come. STORY BY VELVIE MASSIE 10 OPENING