Saugus High School - 1906

 

 
                  The History of Saugus High School

   In 1872, after several years of debate, the town fathers decided to establish a high school because of the large number of Saugus students who were attending the high school near Lynn Common.

   Mrs. Frances H. Newhall and a Miss Calley held classes for their twenty-two students in the Old Town Hall (now the American Legion Hall on Taylor Street). For various reasons it was transferred to the New Town Hall (the present one) in 1877. In 1882 the then large sum of one hundred dollars was appropriated for scientific apparatus after much debate by the Town Meeting.

    When Mrs. F. E. Emerich was appointed principal of a student body of thirty-seven (some classes today are larger than this), the number of teachers was raised from two to four. When the enrollment rose to forty-eight, three years before the turn of the century, the still infant Saugus High was moved to the upper floor of the newly completed Roby School, named for Saugus famed Revolutionary War preacher who carried a gun with his bible into the pulpit in case the Redcoats should surprise the citizens of Saugus while they were at church.

   At the turn of the century the enrollment totaled 123 pupils, and courses in bookkeeping, United States history and German were instituted. Incidentally, the German course was dropped during the First World War because of popular feeling against anything German.

   In 1902, all of the faculty, except a Miss Bacheller withdrew. One was granted a year leave of absence for study abroad; the rest resigned. In his report to the school committee, which was printed in the Annual Town Report, the new principal, Mr. Steven, deplored the fact that twenty percent of the body had become cigarette smokers and wondered what the young generation was coming to. What would Mr. Stevens think of us today?

  In 1903, the school appropriated for the entire town totaled $22,959.88. Principal Stevens resigned in that year and Mr. Leland A. Ross was appointed to take his place.

  In 1904, the ancestor of our present Focus made its first modest appearance as the Advocate. After much deliberation the New England College Entrance Certificate Board allowed Saugus High School the right to certify graduates to the New England colleges participating in the Board. Saugus High still holds this privilege. The Saugus High School band was born in the form of an orchestra of eight members (What! No twirlers?)

   In 1905, the Saugus High School faculty consisted of Principal Ross, Miss Bacheller, Miss Ellsbree, Miss Moore, and Miss Nute. Nineteen pupils received diplomas at graduation ceremonies in June. Few pupils brought their lunches (nothing like the basement of S.H.S. during a lunch period on a sub-zero winter's day). Many pupils were buying pie, cake, cookies, and candy at neighboring stores and from pushcart vendors, thereby incurring the displeasure of Principal Ross who advocated a cafeteria to remedy this evil.

   In 1905, the pressing issues were the advisability of employing a school physician, the confusion over the “no school” signals, and the question of a new high school. Land was purchased at the corner of Central and Winter Street for $3,606.15. Fifty thousand dollars was appropriated for building expenses. In a few months the citizens read that “The new high school building has eight classrooms, a chemical and a physics laboratory and an assembly hall. (The assembly hall is now used as the study hall.) The building accommodated 180 pupils. About this time the problem of keeping teachers was acute, as the turnover in the Saugus school system, including the high school, was large. The birthdays of President Lincoln and of the poets Whittier and Longfellow were school holidays.

   When the present century was eight years old, Fairfield Whitney was appointed Superintendent of Schools, a position then paying 1,500 per year. Several school physicians were appointed to comply with a recent state law. The school committee decided that high school students were having too many activities and laid down the law.

  Hereafter, there was to be only one evening social in any one school week, except the senior dance and operetta; the Junior Prom was abolished and only two Athletic Association whist parties were allowed per week; debates were restricted to Friday evenings. Soon afterward the school committee recommended a commercial and a manual training course.

    In 1911 a domestic science course was requested by Principal Butterworth. The total school expenditures were almost double what they had been eight years ago, having reached $44,764.10.

    In 1912, when the salary of Principal Butterworth was raised to $1,700 and the minimum salary for teachers was set at $500, Superintendent Sims recommended a commercial course. Mr. Sims also suggested oiling the schoolroom floors to counteract floating dust. (“Oil lwhen properly applied will not soil the teacher's skirts!)

    In this year, Mr. McKenna was appointed as sub master to assist Mr. Butterworth at $900 per annum for the enrollment had now risen to 137 pupils. Incidentally, the motto of the graduating class was “Row, don't drift.”

    By 1914 the salary of the school superintendent had risen to $1,800 and the enrollment of Saugus High skyrocketed to 335 pupils because five grades were now included in the building. Mr. Butterworth resigned and Mr. Arthur L. Williams was appointed to fill the vacant position. It was in this year that the high school library was inaugurated.

    1915 was a big year for Saugus High School. Because of the large enrollment, the two platoon system was started when plans for a badly needed addition to the high school building were delayed. In the summer came the Saugus Centennial. The town was one hundred years old; and the big event was celebrated by parades, pageants, special church services, speeches by prominent people, and by an essay contest, prize $20 in gold, won by Constance Hughes with her essay, “Boston's Country Cousin.”

    Mr. H. H. Atherton compiled a history of Saugus for use as a school textbook. Monday, July 5th, was a big day in Saugus; bands were playing, flags were flying and crowds lined the street to watch the Saugus Centennial Parade. The Saugus school system had nine colorful floats picturing, among other things, the Old Rock Schoolhouse, a district school, a primary school, “a number of pupils typewriting to show our commercial department, four boys doing bench and lathe work typifying our manual training department another float held two pictures of the Ballard School.”

   Principal Williams urging that girls basketball should be played for pleasure only said, “I am opposed to all public exhibition of girls basketball!”

    Cafeteria prices were extremely low as compared to prices today; sandwiches were only two cents; soup, stew, chowder, and fish cakes were five cents each; a piece of pie cost only three cents; and cupcakes and doughnuts were only one cent.

   There was talk of buying a barge to transport pupils living in North Saugus across Lily Pond. The Bay State Street Railway was paid $699 for transporting pupils to school. The sum of $51,207.29 was appropriated for the new addition to the high school.

   The new addition was opened for public inspection on Friday, September 7th, 1917. The first class was held on Monday, September 10th. The building now held 850 pupils. “The class rooms, the report says, are the best that can be devised.” The building now looked much as it does today with the exception of the Junior High Annex. The superintendent, extolling the new stereocopticon, quoted President Eliot of Harvard as saying that “The school would as soon get along without a teacher as without a stereocopticon.” The principal suggested a large athletic field and physical education for all students. The influence of the First World War was making itself felt as student collected $31.18 for relief of European children and purchased a Liberty Bond for the school.

   In 1918, when Mr. Jesse Lambert was appointed superintendent, the schools were closed for five weeks in Septembers because of the terrible flu epidemic. High ways lured 33 students to the factories. Five died from the flu. The school day was five hours and twenty-five minutes long. The youngest student was twelve years old. The minimum salary of Saugus teachers was fixed at seven hundred dollars.

    In 1920 the difficulty of transporting pupils form outlying sections of Saugus increased as the Eastern Mass. Street Company abandoned several trolley lines. The following year the principal dreaded serious overcrowding, as three times the number of students entered as graduated the previous year. The enrollment came to 806 in the combined junior and senior high school, the principal's salary was increased to fifty dollars per week, the orchestra was increased to twenty members and all school expenses totaled $160,393.23.

    In 1924 the high school was seriously overcrowded; and in spite of the fact that high school sessions were held in the morning and junior high sessions in the afternoon, both the balcony and the floor of the assembly hall were used for classes.

    In the 1925 Annual Report, Principal Webber lauded the new front cement walk at SHS as a convenience and a thing of beauty. He praised the new library books and equipment and also the manual training room.

    In 1926 a granolithic walk from the side door to Central Street was completed. Another much larger project was also completed. This was the Sweetser School, built on the site of the old Lincoln School near Cliftondale Square. This building made the continuance of the two platoon system unnecessary. Language courses in French and Latin were offered to eighth grade students. The seven period day began at 8 a.m. and ended at 1.40 p.m., including two lunch periods and a physical education period. The school was allowed to certify pupils to all colleges.

   In 1927, when the enrollment reach 513 and two new teachers, Mr. Warren and Miss Towle, were added to the S.H.S. staff, a debating club was organized. The first debate was held with Revere on “Resolved: that the eighteenth amendment to the Constitution should be abolished.” The debate was won by Revere due to their greater experience along this line,(sic) reports Principal Webber.

   In 1929, the two platoon system was again renewed under pressure of enrollment. The first platoon met from 7: 40 a.m. to 12:50 p.m. The second section met from 1:00 to 4:52 p.m. Physical education came between the second and third periods, together with an intermission between the fifth and sixth periods. The first section had seven period; the second section had six periods. In this same year the senior play presented bore the interesting title of “Adam and Eve.”

   In 1930, Mr. Webber resigned as principal and was replaced by Mr. Vernon Evans who immediately advocated a new high school built to accommodate 1,000 pupils. Saugus High School faculty included Mr. Evans, Messrs. Blossom, Haley, Pinciss, Rice, Warren, Watson, Davis, and Hayes and the Misses Hayward, Marrison, Stanhope, Towle and Willey.

   The following year Mr. Potts, Mr. Taylor and Mr. McCullough, the last having resigned from the school board to become a teacher, were added. Because the financial depression made drastic economy necessary, the courses in manual training, sewing, and penmanship were eliminated. The Saugus football team won four games, lost four, and tied two.

   Mr. Jesse Lambert, Superintendent of Saugus Schools for fifteen years, died on February 10, 1933, and was replaced by Mr. Evans. Mr. Earle MacLeod was appointed to replace Mr. Evans, as high school principal. In this year the badly needed twelve-room junior high annex, including the Commercial Department was completed. The following year the parking lot was completed and the new cafeteria in the basement of the annex was opened. About this time Mr. John Leahy was added to the faculty and Mr. Leon Young was appointed sub-master.

    In 1935 Mr. MacLeod resigned and Mr. John A. W. Pearce, principal of the Rockland Junior and Senior High School, was appointed to replace him. The high school enrollment now reached 1,400 students.

   In 1936 Superintendent Evans recommended woodworking classes for interested high school boys. Mr. Charles “Buzz” Harvey was hired to coach the now famous Saugus Sachems. In September of 1936 the first Girl's Club meeting was held.

   Although there had been an orchestra for many years, the Saugus High School band was not officially formed until 1937. Mr. Evans suggested a vocational trade school and a new senior high school for Saugus students; neither of these suggestions has as yet been adopted. In 1937 there were two more “firsts”; the first Student Council and the first Girls Club dance. (Needless to say it was a great success.)

   Robert Hill won third prize in 1938 in a national essay contest conducted by the Veteran's of Foreign Wars Auxiliary on The Constitution of the United States. Stackpole Field, scene of many gridiron battles, was greatly enlarged and improved. The Ski Club was first started at the behest of some rugged members of the student body.

   In 1939 Saugus was the second highest scoring football team in the entire Commonwealth of Massachusetts. ( In case anyone is interested, Brockton was first.) The Sachems won the North Shore Championship, were called the best defensive team, and won second place in Class C out of fifty-one teams. In that year they won eight games, lost one and tied one. As a reward the team was presented with a five-day trip to New York City during their Christmas vacation. Also, at this time, Mr. Hammond announced that the membership of the Saugus High School Band had passed the fifty mark and was steadily increasing. The first edition of the well-known Freshman Handbook was printed. Activity periods were scheduled only occasionally. Because of the large number of pupils the assembly hall was pressed into use as a second study hall.

  The following year an Industrial Arts course was started for boys intending to enter factory work. The band membership had jumped to sixty, an increase of ten members. In this year Miss Francis Page (Mrs. Egan), Mr. Stephen Lovett, and Mr. Belden Gerald Bly, Jr, was added to the staff.
The Sachems won the Class C title in 1941 under the instruction of Coaches Henry Toczlowski and Galligan. In the last month of 1941 an event occurred which affected the entire school. Basement windows were stripped with tape and covered with wooden shutters to minimize flying glass. Air raid stations were assigned to each room. Air raid drills were held. Rumors about enemy invasions and air raid attacks made their rounds. Many students heard President Roosevelt tell the Congress of the United States that “Our people, our territory and our interests are in grave danger ...we will gain the inevitable triumph.”

   The following year physical education classes were started for all boys in the upper three classes and courses in aeronautics, review math, and review science were introduced. The first of several war bond rallies was held; the total exceeded everyone's wildest dreams. Although the goals were only one thousand dollars, the thermometer didn't stop until it had reached $2,700. Out of 84 school systems selling war stamps and bonds in Massachusetts, Saugus ranked fourth in total amount of sales. Many students were called to enter the armed forces before completion of their courses. Six teachers entered various branches of the armed forces: Messrs. Galligan, Burns, Hockmuth, Hammond, Gibbs, and Lovett. Three teachers, Mr. Moylan, Mrs. Bisbee, and Miss Solomita, were appointed. The guidance programs were put on a full-time basis.

   In 1943 the shops were closed and physical education classes were abolished. David J. Lucey was appointed football coach; Mr. Taylor temporarily assumed Mr. Lovett's duties as Director of Guidance; Mr. Gordon George was hired to teach chemistry; and Mr. Germaine temporarily took over Mr. Hammond's place as band director.

   In 1944 the teacher shortage was a pressing problem. A ten percent increase in salary was proposed for Saugus teachers to help to meet the increased cost of living. The Saugus Sachems won the Class B Football Championship.

   In 1945 Mr. Philip Bradbury and Mr. Arthur Strout were added to the faculty to teach physics and mechanical drawing respectively. Three faculty members, Mr. Gibbs, Mr. Galligan and Mr. Lovett, returned from the armed forces. Early in February of the 1946 Mr. Harry L. Potts, teacher in Saugus High School for fifteen years died suddenly from a heart attack. Mr. Raymond Boyce was appointed to fill the vacancy. This same year Mr. Ralph Earle was selected as a shop teacher.

    Thus we have the history of Saugus High School, an institution which has served Saugus for seventy-four years. It's thousands of graduates in every walk of life are gratefully indebted to it and to its many principals and teachers for useful training. Last, but not least, they are indebted to Saugus High School for many friends, made and for the many good times which have been a part of the unofficial S.H.S. Curriculum.

              (By James H. Davis, SHS Class of 1947)