West Pittston High School - Caravan Yearbook (West Pittston, PA)

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quam we :LW XX xx SCHOOL BUILDING on Luzerne Avenue between Parke and Spring Streets were accordingly pur- chased, and construction begun. Although, before it was completed, the entire area was affected by a mine subsidence, the new high school was finally opened in 1909. The 1910 class, housed in the new building, was graduated from the Strand Theatre, on Broad Street, adjacent to the Gazette Building. In 1924, the district was reorganized on the 6-3-3 planfsix years for the elementary grades, three for the Junior High School, and three for the Senior High School. Previously, the 8-4 plan had been used. This year, the enrollment was so large that the Senior High School occupied the building in the morning, and the Junior High School held their sessions in the afternoon. This was the last year in which Commencement exercises took place in the Strand. The school auditorium was to become the scene of graduation activities henceforth. After a study of conditions that fall, the board decided to erect a modern J unior-Senior High School on the present site, rather than to enlarge the Lu- zerne Avenue structure to accommodate the increasing school population. The Warren Street and Wyoming Avenue buildings were abandoned. The new building was placed in operation at the beginning of the 1927-8 school term at a total construction cost of ?'p325,000. Double sessions were resumed at that time. In June, on the occasion of the fiftieth Commencement, baccalaureate services were held in the new auditorium. 9 Oo 00 fir! A M2 42 'ff s

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fbecw UM 'lf' ' irifiif' -4-,Q ' r 5 .ig 'L' , no wif fi' '. 0 o ov 0 0 J i o O ., A X X, , - Ay' t f f Qi --.-I s.,,NN OUR MODERN was originally a part of the Peter Polen farm and is now the present school site. The land had been bought in 1851 by the West Pittston Land Association, and was later taken by one of the members, E. A. Coray, who then sold it to the founders of the academy. Although the latter was opened with a student at- tendance of over 300, its existence was a precarious one, and the owners of the property made a proposition early in 1873 to sell it to the school district for 32,800 After much controversy, the academy was formally purchased in Au- gust, 1874, and the Vine Street property was disposed of at public auction. The records of the board tell us that in 1876 the high school was established and a course of study adopted. A class was organized and plans were made to complete the course in 1878. The six members of the first graduating class were: Gertrude N. Griffith, Clara Hiscock, Laura B. Lance, Anna L. Meade, Jessie Sax, and Wilbur Stevens. The first and second Commencement exer- cises were held in the First Methodist Episcopal Church, and the third, in 1880, was held in Music Hall. As the school population continued to grow, new buildings kept pace with it: first, in 1882, a four-room brick building on the Warren Street corner cf the property 9 eight years later, the Linden Street building, and, in 1897, a two- story brick building at the corner of Washington Street and Exeter Avenue. Ten years later, the school board saw the need for new classrooms, Two lots 8

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Oloo 00 A51 ffrv In 1930 the need for addltlonal classrooms stlll ex1sted and the Warren Street addltlon was erected at a cost of S66 000 and completed for use the same year 1937 saw Improvements 1n the unlficatxon of the Hlgh School and Lmden Street bulldlngs as well as the enlargement and modernlzailon of the hlgh school audltorlum Two mme subsldences occurred 1n 1941 one of whlch affected the Luzerne and Warren Street Bulldlngs and the other of wh1ch permanently closed the Washlngton Street School Slnce for a five year perlod the Luzerne Avenue structure was also out of use all classes were temporarlly housed IH the Hlgh School Llnden Street bu1ld1ng Wlth the passlng of tlme varlous changes IH school routlne and actlvltles have been effected In 1897 the course was lengthened from three to four years thus one year elapsed wxthout a graduatlng class Later courses IU the com merclal field and ln mdustrlal arts and home economlcs were mtroduced on a small scale and subsequently extended courses ln health physlcal educatlon publlc speaklng and guldance were offered the hlgh school llbrary became a reahty a full tlme school nurse was employed an exploratory course and a testlng program were lnaugurated ln Junlor Hlgh School to enable stucents to make a wlse cholce of thelr hlgh school currxculum and thelr later l1fe work a pubhc klndergarten was opened and a summer playground organmed and such groups as the P T A Cwhlch ln 1938 had a membershlp of 1 3135 the Lettermen s Club and the Alumnl Assoclatlon gave thelr support to student act1v1t1es Over the sevf nty five year perlod the admlnlstratlve head of the school system has been uccesslvely entltled Prlnclpal Cat the tlme when accorolng Winn.. MR WILLIAM HIBBS t'I'erm of Office 1883 18883 10 1 1, H , 1 1 1 , 1 , 1 o . 1 1 , 1 1 1 , 2 1 1 , 1 W 1 ,1 1 ' ' ' .' . J I . K' Y , . . 1 , 1 1 , ,1 1 1 1 ' 1 , 1 - . 3 I . 5 ' . . . E , . I . . . . . . 5 1 . . . ' 1 . . . , , , . . . . ,, 3 - - . , . . . S , swap f f 1,5 . Ax ,v , fax L 1. w f ffm no I I , 'if ' a , ' A rf . N fl 1 - 0 - o . . X s QW-I A f' '112 I I .xi .F ff -: 5 2, ' r. :'- A Q ' x' I, X I e H 1 f Q V xl , It V-.f I A v I ' 1 MR LOUISI BIERLY CTerm of Office 1898 19233