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The high school is founded
On March 30, 1846 at a meeting of Manchester School District No. 2, the district's Prudential Committee was directed to establish a high school. Thus it was that in 1846 Manchester High School, to which was later added "Central', came into being. It was open to both boys and girls and housed on the second floor of the "Brick Schoolhouse." The building still stands at the corner of Lowell and Chestnut Streets, but it has been many a year since students attended there. The building went on to become the School Department Offices and today stands silent.
The high school course at that time took three years to complete and consisted of a rigid curriculum consisting of Natural History, Rhetoric, Physiology, Surveying, Intellectual Philosophy and more, much more. Penmanship was stressed as well as declamation (reading aloud). Bible readings, instruction in morals singing and physical education were also included. The first students graduated in 1848.
The school remained in the brick building until 1867 crowding forced the city to build a new building. While on the second floor new events did take place. The first report cards were issued in 1861-62, they had to be taken home, signed and returned. Grades were given as numbers and based on attendance, deportment and scholastic achievement. The first diplomas were granted in 1860, the oldest known copy is dated 1876 and awarded to Walter Wright.
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The new school building
In 1865, at the end of the Civil War, a building lot just up the street from the brick schoolhouse was purchased and construction begun on the first school building just for secondary students. The new school on the corner of Lowell and Beech Streets opened in 1867 with room for 300 students. It was a two story school with a basement that became a third. The school had classrooms, an assembly hall, library, museum and later, science labs. The boys' and girls' privies, attached to the back of the school, were replaced with flush toilets in 1881!
By 1873 Manchester High School offered three choices of courses: a four year Classical course; a three year English course; and a special four year English course. By 1876, fifty students graduated. The school year was lowered from 40 to 37.5 weeks, there were two terms a year, students could only register at the of the fall term and were expected to attend regularly. After some sorting out, the school day was set at a single five hour session, students were dismissed at one o'clock.
The 1880's saw the principal become a full-time administrator without teaching duties, the hiring of a clerk to keep the records and an office established. The '90's saw free textbooks and supplies mandated by the state and the requirement that the American flag be flown by all schools.
This building too became crowded and by the 1890's a new facility was needed. We still have some mementos from those years. The Class of 1876 gave an enormous fossil sea shell embedded in a rock some three feet in diameter which is still with us. A telescope manufactured by Alvan Clark & Sons and considered to be a valuable antique is also still with us as are many photographs.
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The Classical Building
During the summer of 1895, the Straw School was completed and the high school moved there while the old building on Lowell and Beech was torn down and a new building constructed. September 1897 saw the entire high school faculty and students body joined by the Mayor, school committee members and other city officials at the dedication of the new building.
The exterior of the Classical Building is yellow brick and across the upper facing were installed oval stone plaques inscribed with the names of famous classical and modern men. The names include Lincoln, Aristotle and Plato. The roof was of slate with copper urns and the copper downspouts with straps pressed into the images of dragons. On the roof was constructed an observatory to house the Clark telescope.
There are four floors of classrooms (including the basement) and an enormous attic. Desks were screwed down and a raised platform in front was provided for the teacher. A modern ventilation and heating system were installed. There was even running water in classrooms in closets with marble sinks.
In 1888 there had been 187 students, by 1898 there were 447 and by 1922 over 1250 students were enrolled at Manchester High School. The Classical Building had been built for 650! Then as now the high school always seems to be coping with large numbers.
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School life in the early 20th Century
The new school increased the offerings, typewriting, cooking and sewing classes for girls, while manual arts were provided down Lowell Street at the original school. College admissions increased as did the colleges that were available to attend. Dartmouth College came to Manchester looking for students and found a ready supply. The academic reputation of the school was strong.
A school day consisted of six periods, four for classes and two for supervised study. During the four 38 week long school years, a student needed 16 credits to graduate, four years of English, two of math and one year of science. By 1904 a passing grade was raised from 60% to 70%. No matter what the weather conditions, the high school always remained open.
Sports became increasingly important. The first high school football team was started in 1890 and was organized most years thereafter. Football, basketball, track and tennis were the most popular sports in the early 1900's. The football was so strong that in 1919 there was talk of a national championship game between Manchester and a Chicago team. Unfortunately, Manchester lost a close game to Portland High School and the championship was called off.
World War I, the "war to end all wars" took a toll at the high school. Students left to join the services and their letters home were published in the Oracle. There is a flag in McAllister Hall that commemorates the 576 students who served and the 16 who died in the war. A student committee raised $12,500 in the Second Liberty Loan drive.
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Green and White and Alma Mater
The high school has had the dubious distinction of having had two different school colors. Originally the school chose a bright red crimson. Problems began when Concord High School chose the same colors. The story goes that the two schools agreed that the school which won the championship title in the Triangular Interscholastic League would keep the crimson. This was in either 1902 or 1903 and Manchester lost. Concord to this day is the the "Crimson Tide." Manchester High School chose forest green, the same color as Dartmouth College.
In February, 1912, Mrs. Helen Furness, a teacher, conducted a contest to pick an alma mater for the school. All the entries were submitted in May and the winner was "Hail, Alma Mater." It was written by Alfred Lemon '09 and composed by Carl Robinson '09. Later it was arranged for orchestra by William McAllaster '13.
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"A" or "B" or even "C" classes
At one time parents were allowed to enroll their children in either September or February. At the high school this resulted in "A" classes graduating in June, "B" classes in February and even"C" classes in August. For twenty-four years this plan was in use. The first "B" classes were in 1920, the last in 1943. In 1925, 1926 and 1927 there were "C" graduations for those who completed their credits in summer school.
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The P.A. & Corey Buildings
By the 1920's the school was again becoming too small. 1922 saw the opening of both the Practical Arts Building and West High School. This was when the name "central" was given to the original Manchester High School. The P.A. had many improvements and additions for the school. The centerpiece was the auditorium with seating for 1500 and reputed to have the best acoustic quality of any auditorium in the state. In 1999 the auditorium was dedicated to William McAllaster.
The building also had a gym on the lowest floor. It was about 40 feet by 80 feet and was overlooked by a nineteen foot-wide balcony. It was from the balcony that events on the floor were watched, and the balcony served as the eating place for lunch up until the 1960's.
The PA was connected to the Classical Building by a tunnel. The Tunnel was used to carry steam heating pipes and served as a passageway between the buildings in foul weather. The tunnel still serves this purpose over eighty years later.
In 1926 the Corey Needle Factory was leased and equipped as a vocational training facility. Re-named the William Corey Memorial Training School, 270 boys were soon taking classes there. This freed up more room in the basement of the PA for classrooms.
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The '20's and '30's
With the completion of the PA and West High School the school was put back onto a single five-hour session. New courses were added and an increasing number of extra curricular activities. For example every Wednesday there were assemblies. Everything from music to lectures, including one where Dr. Thomas Watson, Alexander Graham Bell's assistant, presented the school with a model of the first telephone. The model is still displayed at the school.
Hubie McDonugh '12 became the coach and teacher at central. He coached football, basketball and baseball as well as taught business. He established a spectacular football record, and his 1924 basketball placed third in the nation.
It was during this time that the nickname Central became the standard way of identifying the school. The additional nickname of "Little Green" came into use as sportswriters compared Central's powerhouse football teams with the "Big Green" of Dartmouth College.
In 1938 there were 2,260 students at Central with 86 teachers. There was a headmaster (principal), a sub master (assistant principal), a registrar and two secretaries. There were eleven academic fields and three buildings. Clubs consisted of art, civics, dramatics, French, German, Hi-Y, home economics, rifle and social science. Music offered band, chorus, glee club and two orchestras. For sports there were football, basketball (boys and girls), baseball, cross country, golf, special gym, track, hockey and skiing. The Oracle , Hi-Lights (a weekly newspaper), a French and Latin paper were published.
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World War II
A Central graduate, Joseph Rozmus '39B, was among the crew members of the USS Arizona killed on December 7, 1941 when the Japanese attacked Peral Harbor. As students left to join the fighting a number of names should be mentioned.
Dr. Ben Bronstein '32B was among the first killed, Hanover Common was renamed in his honor as Bronstein Park. Rene Gagnon '43, was a member of the famous Marine squad that raised the flag on Iwo Jima. Rogers Blood '40B was killed leading a charge in the Pacific, later a troop transport was named in his honor. When the ship was decommissioned, the ship's bell was loaned to the school and is still on display in the Classical Building.
Altogether 3,356 men and women from Central served in the armed forces. Of these, 116 were killed. On May 29, 1947, a World War II monument was dedicated with the names of those who died. The monument stands today with two others on the spot where the old fountain, gift of the Class of 1879 once stood.
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