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Page 9 text:
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-0-0-o--0-4-o--o-a-of-u-so--a -Q-0-Q 0--0--o--1....-Q--o--o--o--o--o-Vc--s--o--4--m Q O O Histor of Woodward ...g..g.....g....,..g..q..g..g.g.-9-o1-o--o--o-o--o-o-o-o-- aug. n--o-o-n-q-.a'-o-n-m-o-o-s-o-o- On Ma1'ch 8, 1768, in a little, secluded house near Plainfield, Connecticut, was memory we hold so precious we have enjoyed the fruits horn the man whose . For four whole years of his unselfish labor. This building, Old Woodvsaid, was tl sin ill lout room house, surmounted by 1 beltry containing the Old Woodward bell. Tht two classrooms were Now, as we pass them on to fortunate we have been 'md others, we realize how . what a great service William Woodward, our Founder, has rendered mankind. VVhen only twenty-three years old, Mr. VVood- ward left his home to seek his fortune in the XVest. He landed at Cincinnati in the autumn of the year 1791, and built a house for himself from the wood of the boat on which he had come down the river. Here Mr. VVoodward lived for many years as a farmer and tanner. The little farm grew quite rap- idly, and in 1796 a strip of about one hundred and twenty acres from the Miami Purchase was added to it. On this land was built, in 1816, at what is now the northeast corner of Main and Webster, a new house, which in its time was considered quite the best in the neighborhood. Mr. VVoodward had always planned in some way to provide for an institution in which the youth of his community might benefit by the advantages of an education. In 1826 the deed of the gift was drawn up. According to its provisions seven acres of the farm were to be given for this purpose. Mr. Samuel Lewis and Mr. Osmond Cogswell, the two chosen trustees, were to further tl1e plans. This land, now worth Bti-400.000, is the source of the VVoodward fund. In 1831 was built the first VVoodward High School, the first high school in Cincinnati and the second in the state of Ohio. divided by a hall running noi th and south at mach end of which was an entrance. The room on the left on the second floor also served as a chapel, where every morning, at 9:00 o'clock, the students gathered for prayer. The faculty consisted of Mr. Frederick P1'escott, principal, and teacher of Englishg his broth- er, Mr. Thomas Prescott, teacher of languagesg Dr. Joseph Ray, instructor in mathematics, and Mr. Henry Rucker. The half-hour recitation period's were announced by the bell in the belfry. This same bell now occupies a place of honor above the door in our auditorium, and is rung on Founder's Day ol' each year. A white picket fence extended along the front of the building and a plain board fence along the other three sides. Sitting on this fence, Mr. VVoodward could often be found talking to the boys when school was dismissed. Behind the house was the well. the cool water of which, drawn up in an old oaken bucket by a windlass, cooled many a dry throat after a hard dayis study. Soon the building became too small, so, in 1811. a third story was added. This provided for a labor- atory as well as classrooms. After some years the little school was enlarged and the faculty increased. To its ranks were added Mr. tmmner, a teacher of Frenchg Mr. Aiken, a leader in music, and Miss Swan. the first woman teacher at Woodward. Miss Swan taught the girls, as there was now a class of seven. But as all good things must pass. so this little
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Page 10 text:
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schoolhouse, which had become too small, soon be- came only a memory, but a very happy memory it was. The old school had served its purpose, and in it many a lesson had been learned. A sum of 830,000 was allowed for the new school. and on December 31, 1855, the second Woodward was dedicated. It was so fine a specimen of Gothic architecture, with terra cotta ornamentations in the form of gargoyles, that when the Prince of Wales visited Cincinnati in 1860 he was taken to see this splendid high school. The building had four entrances, those on the north and south being exceptionally beautiful. There were spacious halls, which crossed each other, on the first and second floors. The north and south halls on the second floor were used as a chemical laboratory and a library, although there was a labor- atory in the basement. On the third floor was the assembly hall, where all the pupils gathered. At the sides of this hall were two retiring rooms, sur- mounted by balconies. As' the attendance increased steadily, more classrooms had to be provided. The retiring rooms were used, the south end of the hall was partitioned into rooms, and, finally, when there was no more available space in the building, an addi- tional wing, three stories high and one room deep, was built. Woodward now had fifteen rooms besides the gymnasium, which had been added in 1890. These arrangements served for a while, then the school became overcrowded, and pupils had to be transferred to the VValnut Hills High School. Be- sides, it became necessary to establish colonies in the Second and Third Intermediate Schools. It was quite evident that something had to be done to accommodate the ever-increasing number of stu- dents. The Woodward of 1855 was about to end its career and become, like its predecessor, Old VVood- ward, a memory. Soon the New VVoodward, our school, was to begin its existence. lt is needless to describe the building, t'or we all know every inch of it. But do we ever stop to think what the many conveniences, which we consider real necessities, would have meant to the pupils of 1831? The spacious library, the gym- nasium, the lunch room, the rest rooms, the audi- torium-with its seating capacity of eleven hundred -without all of which we could not imagine our school complete, were things unknown to the pupils of Old Woodward. New Woodward was begun in 1907, and on the fourth day of November, 1908, amid a gathering ot' thousands, the corner stone was laid. The Honor- able VVillian1 Howard Taft otticiated at the ceremony. On this occasion the gavel and trowel made from wood of the building of 1855 were used. These treas- ures are now to be found in the Woodward Museum and Graduates Room. Some of our other precious possessions are furni- ture from the house of our Founder, pieces of per- sonal property of the Woodward family, and the flag, now worn and tattered, which the Woodward girls made for their soldier classmates during the Civil War. Another thing of which we are very proud and for which we are thankful is the Bettens Library, presented to us in 1919 by Mr. Bettens, a former pupil of Woodward, in honor of his mother. Mrs. Louise E. Bettens. There are many other things in which we take great pride, but we must not forget the generosity which made all this possible. ln the crypt under the statue at the Broadway entrance lie the two peo- ple, Mr. and Mrs. VVoodward, who gave so gener- ously. To them must be attributed much of the suc- cess of the many famous men who have gone out from the old school. To them, we, too, owe a debt of gratitude, which we can best repay by living up to the ideals of VVoodward. ALBIA RlETM.AN, '21.
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