Development of early Frederick Schools

Sent to The Frederick Leader and The Frederick Press, May 24, 2011

The first Frederick High School nears completion in 1908 at 300 East Grand (site of current middle school building)

Early buildings served Frederick students

When Vol. II of the Tillman County History was published in 1978, a comprehensive early history of the Frederick School District was written for the book by longtime Frederick educator Estelle Faulconer and former superintendent Prather Brown.

Following are excerpts from their work, explaining location and construction of school buildings in Frederick’s earliest decades.

“The public schools of Frederick were organized in 1903 in the little town of Hazel, with one teacher and very few students. Early in the history of the district, the school building was moved from Hazel to Frederick and an addition built, making it a commodious six-room building. Professor A.A. Rogers, county superintendent, became the school’s first administrator.”

“In 1906 W.T. Dodson became superintendent of schools, which by then included 339 pupils and six teachers. The school grew rapidly and it was decided to build a central high school building on a site a bit north of where the school from Hazel had been relocated. (This was in the 300 block of East Grand Avenue where the present junior high school [currently Frederick Middle School] now stands). During the erection of this building, the school board rented a hall and some offices in the business section of the town, and the high school and eighth grade classes were conducted there.

“One of the early-day teachers, Anne D. Caldwell, 1905-06-07, remembers teaching in a concrete block building on the southeast corner of North 9^th Street and Floral Avenue“ [current site of Benson Law Firm].

“While classes were being held downtown, the course of high school study was increased from two to four years.

“After completion of the new high school building [at 300 E. Grand], the old building was moved across the Frisco tracks and used for a ward building in the west part of Frederick. During the school year 1909-10, the enrollment grew to 1,100, and it was decided to build two other ward buildings, one in the south and one in the north part of town.

“Lowell School was built in the 800 block between North 12^th and 13^th Streets in 1911. Whittier School was built in the 500 block between South 12^th and 13^th Streets in 1911. [NOTE: This location as cited in the Tillman County History, Vol. II is incorrect. The original Whittier School was actually located in the 500 block between South 13^th and 14^th Streets. It occupied the whole block. When the "new" Whittier was constructed in mid-1950s, it was built at the same location but occupied only half the block.]. 

"When west ward patrons complained that they had only the frame school building, the district voted $5,000 in bonds and Emerson School was built in the 500 block between North 3^rd and 4^th in 1914.”

The second Frederick High School (later Central Elementary) was completed in 1923 at South 12th and Dahlia.

“As enrollment in the high school continued to increase, the old high school building became inadequate, and plans for the erecting of a new high school were made. This allowed the former high school to become a junior high. The last class to graduate from the old high school building was the Class of 1922.”

“The site chosen for the new high school was south of the old school… on South 12^th Street facing Dahlia Avenue.

“The new building was completed in 1923. That year’s seniors transferred from the old building and were the first to graduate from the new high school. [NOTE: this is the building that we know as Central Grade School]

“The 1923 graduation class left as a memorial a full-size statue of George Washington which stood on a pedestal by the south door of the stage in the auditorium. One of the pranks played on George was to place a ragged straw hat on his head. The effect was quite humorous.

Frederick Middle School building soon after its completion in 1938

“This building served as a high school until 1950 when the present high school [at North 15^th and Gladstone] was completed.” At that time the building at South 12^th and Dahlia became Central Grade School.

“In 1938 when W.P.A. projects were available, the present Frederick Junior High [currently Frederick Middle School] building was built with the help of the federal government.”

Joe Wynn is a member of the Tillman County Historical Society’s board of directors. He can be contacted by e-mail at tillmanokhistory@gmail.com.

First Lowell and Whittier Schools

Sent to The Frederick Leader and The Frederick Press, May 17, 2011

Boys play football at the North Ward Lowell School, Frederick, in the 1940s

 Click on photos to see larger.

First ward schools were at different sites

Whoops. Sometimes, in the course of writing this column, I get something wrong. That’s easy to do when the subject is history, but some good folks usually let me know when they are sure that I have stated a fact incorrectly. I like that.

A few weeks ago when I wrote about the May Day festivities at the old North Ward Lowell School, I stated that the school was located at the site of present-day Frederick Elementary on North 15^th Street.  As a matter of fact, I had assumed that when the “new” Lowell School and the “new” Whittier School were built in the mid-1950s, they had been built at the sites of the previous schools that bore these names.

Nope.

Several folks called or e-mailed me to tell me that was not the case. In fact, the old North Ward Lowell School, a two-story brick building constructed in 1911, was located in the 800 block between North 12^th and North 13^th Street.

I received a couple of nice e-mails from Paul Nicholson who wrote the following about the first Lowell School:

Photo of Mrs. Arthur Kelly's class shows fire escape in background

“Actually the old school was on 13th Street. I went there for my 6th grade which was the last year it was open. It covered the whole block except for one house which housed Shoemaker's candy store where I bought all those great old bubblegum baseball cards and failed to keep them.”

“It was a two story brick building with big round enclosed fire slides from the 2nd floor. We used to climb up them and slide back down. I finished the 6th grade in May 1950 and they tore it down shortly thereafter. It seems all the kids went to Central Grade for a few years as the 6th grade was in junior high.”

“I think maybe at first they thought they could handle all the kids in Central Grade, but shortly decided to build North and South Ward for the first five grades”

It was in 1950 that the high school moved to the present school campus at 15^th and Gladstone and the former high school building became Central Grade School.

The “new” Lowell School was built on 15^th Street in the mid-‘50s and currently serves as the Frederick School District’s administration office. The current Frederick Elementary School was built next to the administration office in 1997.

According to The Tillman County History, Vol. II (1978), the original South Ward Whittier School, a two story brick building that was similar to the first Lowell, was also located at a site different site than the “new” Whittier, built in the mid-1950s.

The history book says, “Whittier School was built in the 500 block between South 12^th and South 13^th Street in 1911.”

The new Whittier School, a “modern” four classroom layout, was built at a site in the 500 block of South 14^th Street.

Next week, we’ll look at a comprehensive history of early school buildings in Frederick.

         Numerous photos of the North Ward Lowell School follow:

Lowell Students circa 1912-1914.

Lowell Students, 1924-25

Legendary Frederick educator Blanche Hall served at teacher and principal at Lowell in 1945.

Joe Wynn is a member of the Tillman County Historical Society’s board of directors. He can be contacted by e-mail at tillmanokhistory@gmail.com.