| Roslindale High School | |
|---|---|
 External view of the high school in 1946 | |
| Location | |
 | |
United States | |
| Coordinates | 42°17′04″N 71°07′41″W / 42.284342°N 71.128011°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Public high school |
| Established | 1936 |
| Headmaster | (1974–1976) Donald Burgess |
| Faculty | 81 (1973)[2] |
| Enrollment | >1,500 (1973)[1] |
| Color(s) | Crimson
Gold |
| Team name | Tigers |
| Newspaper | The Tattler |
| Yearbook | The Lamp (1957)[3] |
Roslindale High School is a defunct four-year public high school that served students in ninth through twelfth grades in the Boston neighborhood of Roslindale, Massachusetts, United States. The school held its first classes in 1936 and was located at 110 Poplar Street from 1936 until its closure in 1976.
History
editFounding and development
editRoslindale High School was established in 1936, in what was then the independent town of Hyde Park, Massachusetts.[4] In its early years, the school offered two courses of study for pupils, a four year classical preparatory education, and a two year business training course.[5] Hyde Park was annexed by the City of Boston in 1912, and the administration of Hyde Park High School was assumed by Boston Public Schools (BPS). Male and female pupils were taught separately until senior year, at which time the studies became co-educational.[6]Into the 1960s, the school was a popular choice for parents and students, even for those outside of the neighborhood, evidenced by the population increase at the school from 1,236 pupils enrolled in 1960 to 1,700 students in 1967. The headmaster reported a waiting list of 250 at that time.[7]
Later years
editIn 1973, Mayor Kevin White surprised the West Roxbury/Roslindale area with intentions to build a new high school in West Roxbury on a 14 acre site on the VFW Parkway. Mayor White and city officials broke ground on Monday, January 7, 1974. Original plans called for the school to be completed by September, 1975 and to be a magnet school, attracting students from all over the city.
US Federal Judge W. Arthur Garrity Jr. in 1974 ordered a desegregation plan of the schools with a goal of achieving racial balance throughout the system. In a reorganization plan, junior high schools became middle schools with grades 6-8 instead of 7-9 and district high schools added a ninth grade to become four year schools instead of three. On September 12, 1974, Roslindale High opened with a ninth grade class and with a new headmaster, Donald G. Burgess.
In the spring of 1976, Judge Garrity announced plans for the new school to replace Roslindale High School as a district high school. Roslindale was to close for a year and undergo a major renovation. The last class to graduate from Roslindale High took place on June 4, 1976 at the Hynes Auditorium. Diplomas were presented to 232 graduates. Over the summer of 1976, the school moved ito the new West Roxbury High, and the new school opened on September 12, 1976.[8] The plan to renovate and reopen the school never materialized. The building remained abandoned and boarded up for ten years.
On Saturday, February 15, 1986, Mayor Raymond Flynn led residents and alumni in a celebration to begin the transformation of the boarded up building into elderly housing. The project was completed in May, 1987 and is today known as Roslindale House at 120 Poplar Street.
Notable alumni
edit- Joseph Abboud, fashion designer/author
- Martha Goodway, metallurgist
- Billy West, voice actor
Headmasters
editA total of 7 educators served as headmaster of the school:
Further reading
edit- Sammarco, Anthony Mitchell, Roslindale: Then & Now, Arcadia Publishing, 2003
See also
editExternal links
editReferences
edit- ^ "Extra seats sought at Roslindale High", Boston Globe, September 24, 1973
- ^ "Roslindale High School". Boston Public Library via archive.org. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
- ^ "Roslindale High School". Boston Public Library via archive.org. Retrieved January 19, 2019.
- ^ Hyde Park Historical Society (1892). The Hyde Park Historical Record, Volumes 1-4. Hyde Park, Mass.
- ^ Hyde Park, Mass. (1888). Memorial Sketch of Hyde Park, Mass. ).
- ^ "HYDE PARK HIGH CADETS HAVE WON FIRST PLACE SIX CONSECUTIVE YEARS", Boston Globe, April 17, 1934
- ^ "Hyde Park High Population, Crowded", Boston Globe, February 19, 1967
- ^ a b c d e Patrick O'Connor (2010). "History of Roslindale High School". Webchica, roslindalehighschool.com.
- ^ a b "Roslindale Open $10,000 Fund Drive for Scholarships", Boston Globe, June 26, 1947
- ^ "Roslindale remains cool throuhg (sic) a tension-filled year", Boston Globe, June 26, 1976
{{Commons category|Roslindale High School (Boston, Massachusetts)}} {{Massachusetts Public High Schools}} {{DEFAULTSORT:Roslindale High School}} [[Category:High schools in Boston]] [[Category:Educational institutions established in 1936]] [[Category:Public high schools in Massachusetts]] [[Category:1936 establishments in Massachusetts]] [[Category:Educational institutions disestablished in 1976]] [[Category:Defunct schools in Massachusetts]]