Furness High School

Last updated
Horace Howard Furness High School
Furness School Philly.JPG
Furness High School (Detail, May 2010)
Street map of Philadelphia and surrounding area.png
Red pog.svg
Location in Philadelphia
USA Pennsylvania location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in Pennsylvania
Usa edcp location map.svg
Red pog.svg
Location in United States
Location1900 S. Third St., Philadelphia, Pennsylvania 19148
Coordinates 39°55′26″N75°09′03″W / 39.9238°N 75.1508°W / 39.9238; -75.1508
Area2 acres (0.81 ha)
Built1914
Built byCramp & Co.
ArchitectHenry deCourcy Richards
Architectural styleLate Gothic Revival, Academic Gothic
MPS Philadelphia Public Schools TR
NRHP reference No. 86003286 [1]
Added to NRHPDecember 1, 1986
Horace Furness High School 1900 S 3rd St Philadelphia PA (DSC 3039).jpg
Horace Furness High School 1900 S 3rd St Philadelphia PA (DSC 3037).jpg

Horace Howard Furness High School is a secondary (9th-12th) school in South Philadelphia. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia. [2]

Contents

Portions of South Philadelphia (including Bella Vista, Passyunk Square, Pennsport, Queen Village, and Whitman) are zoned to Furness. [3] A section of Center City, including Society Hill and Old City, was formerly zoned to Furness for high school. [4]

History

It was originally built as an elementary school, with construction starting in 1913 and ending in 1914; it later became Horace Furness Junior High School. It was named for Shakespearean scholar Horace Howard Furness (1833–1912). [5]

It was added to the National Register of Historic Places as Horace Furness Junior High School in 1986. [1] It was later converted into a senior high school, and its first high school graduation was held in 1991. [5]

In 2012 Daniel Peou, a Cambodian American man who was once a refugee and had lived in Philadelphia, became the principal of Furness. [6]

Architecture

The school building was designed by Henry deCourcy Richards and built by Cramp & Co. It is a four-story, rectangular, reinforced concrete building clad in brick and terra cotta in the Late Gothic Revival-style. It features an oversized arched entryway, blind panels, terra cotta quoining, and a brick parapet. [7]

Student body

As of 2015 the school had 694 students. These students used over 25 different languages. [8]

In 2000 the school had about 1,200 students. In the 2009-2010 school year the school had 673 students, with 40% being African-American and 38% being Asian. [9]

Benjamin Herold of the Philadelphia Public School Notebook stated that Furness was largely free of racial tensions. [9]

Academic performance

In regards to Pennsylvania's state achievement tests, of 11th graders at Furness, the percentages of students meeting the standard or higher were 43% in reading and 58% in mathematics. In terms of Philadelphia's comprehensive schools these percentages were higher than the average. [9]

Transportation

SEPTA routes 29, 57 and 79 serve Furness. [10]

School uniforms

Furness requires its students to wear school uniforms. Students may wear a gray shirt that must have a collar on it with black pants. [11]

Feeder patterns

K-8 schools feeding into Furness include: [12]

Previously George A. McCall School in Society Hill fed Furness High. [3] [10] [13]

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Frank Furness</span> American architect

Frank Heyling Furness was an American architect of the Victorian era. He designed more than 600 buildings, most in the Philadelphia area, and is remembered for his diverse, muscular, often inordinately scaled buildings, and for his influence on the Chicago-based architect Louis Sullivan. Furness also received a Medal of Honor for bravery during the Civil War.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Southwark, Philadelphia</span> Former District in Pennsylvania, United States

Southwark was originally the Southwark District, a colonial-era municipality in Philadelphia County, Pennsylvania, United States. Today, it is a neighborhood in the South Philadelphia section of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. Because of its location south of the early Philadelphia, the name was adopted in allusion to the borough of Southwark in the county of London, England, just south of the city of London.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Fisher Fine Arts Library</span> Academic library in Pennsylvania, US

The Fisher Fine Arts Library was the primary library of the University of Pennsylvania in Philadelphia from 1891 to 1962. The red sandstone, brick-and-terra-cotta Venetian Gothic giant, part fortress and part cathedral, was designed by Philadelphia architect Frank Furness (1839–1912).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Horace Jayne House</span> Historic house in Pennsylvania, United States

Horace Jayne House (1895) is an architecturally significant building designed by architect Frank Furness in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is located at the southwest corner of 19th and Delancey Streets, about a block south of Rittenhouse Square.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roberts Vaux Junior High School</span> United States historic place

The Promise Academy at Roberts Vaux High School is an historic, American high school building that is located in the North Central neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">John L. Kinsey School</span> United States historic place

The John L. Kinsey School is a former K-8 school that is located in the West Oak Lane neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It was a part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Samuel W. Pennypacker School</span> United States historic place

The Samuel W. Pennypacker School is an historic, American elementary school that is located in the West Oak Lane neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is a part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Thomas K. Finletter School</span> United States historic place

The Thomas K. Finletter Academics Plus School is an historic, American school that is located in the Olney neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Francis Hopkinson School</span> United States historic place

Francis Hopkinson School is a historic elementary school located in the Juniata neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia. The building was designed by Irwin T. Catharine and built in 1926–1927. It is a three-story, eight-bay, yellow brick building on a raised basement in the Art Deco style. It features an arched entryway with terra cotta trim and pilasters, a terra cotta cornice, and brick parapet. The school is named for Francis Hopkinson.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edwin Forrest School</span> United States historic place

Edwin Forrest School is a public elementary school located in the Mayfair neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is within the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ethan Allen School</span> United States historic place

Ethan Allen School is a K–8 school which is located in the Mayfair neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George W. Nebinger School</span> United States historic place

George W. Nebinger Elementary School is a K–8 school located in the Bella Vista neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is a part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Academy at Palumbo</span> United States historic place

The Academy at Palumbo, formerly known as Bartlett School and Frank C. Palumbo Junior High School, is a historic school building located in the Bella Vista neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia. The building was designed by Irwin T. Catharine and built in 1930. It is a brick building with terra cotta ornament in the Art Deco-style.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Eliza Butler Kirkbride School</span> United States historic place

Eliza Butler Kirkbride School is a K–8 school located in the Passyunk Square neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is a part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Vare-Washington School</span> United States historic place

Vare-Washington School, is a K-8 school in South Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is a part of the School District of Philadelphia. It occupies the former George Washington School building in the Dickinson Narrows neighborhood, in proximity to Southwark.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">George Sharswood School</span> United States historic place

George W. Sharswood School is a K-8 school located in the Whitman neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is a part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Edwin M. Stanton School (Philadelphia)</span> United States historic place

Edwin M. Stanton School is an historic K-8 school located in the Southwest Center City neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, within the Christian Street Historic District. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Universal Vare Charter School</span> United States historic place

The Universal Vare Charter School, formerly the Edwin H. Vare Junior High School, and Edwin H. Vare Middle School, is a historic junior high school building located in the Wilson Park neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, United States. It is currently a charter school run by Universal Family of Schools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">S. Weir Mitchell School</span> United States historic place

The S. Weir Mitchell Elementary School is an historic, American elementary school that is located in the Kingsessing neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is part of the School District of Philadelphia.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Abigail Vare School</span> United States historic place

Abigail Vare School is a former school building located in the Pennsport neighborhood of Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. It is located across from Dickinson Square Park.

References

  1. 1 2 "National Register Information System". National Register of Historic Places . National Park Service. July 9, 2010.
  2. ↑ "SCHOOL'S FINALLY OUT FOR SUMMER STUDENTS." Philadelphia Inquirer . August 8, 1986. B01.
  3. 1 2 Horace Furness High School Geographic Boundaries (Archive). School District of Philadelphia. Retrieved on October 4, 2011.
  4. ↑ Where the Graduates Go Archived 2009-06-21 at the Wayback Machine ." McCall School. Retrieved on November 9, 2008.
  5. 1 2 "Furness fosters a diverse story". South Philly Review. 2014-06-09. Retrieved 2016-12-31.
  6. ↑ Myers, Joseph. "Peou returns to head Furness" (Archive). September 13, 2012. Retrieved on December 1, 2015.
  7. ↑ "National Historic Landmarks & National Register of Historic Places in Pennsylvania". CRGIS: Cultural Resources Geographic Information System. Archived from the original (Searchable database) on 2005-09-14. Retrieved 2012-07-07.Note: This includes unknown (n.d.). "Pennsylvania Historic Resource Survey Form: Horace Furness Junior High School" (PDF). Retrieved 2012-07-03.
  8. ↑ Hill, Chanel (2015-01-20). "Furness prepares students to be ambassadors of community". Philadelphia Tribune . p. A4.
  9. 1 2 3 Herold, Benjamin (2011-10-14). "At Furness High, a tough choice looms". The Philadelphia Public School Notebook . Retrieved 2016-12-31.
  10. 1 2 "A Directory of High Schools for 2009 Admissions" (Archive). School District of Philadelphia . p. 15 (PDF p/ 17/40). Accessed November 6, 2008.
  11. ↑ "School Uniform Requirements Archived 2009-04-05 at the Wayback Machine ." School District of Philadelphia .
  12. ↑ "High School Directory Fall 2017 Admissions" (Archive). School District of Philadelphia. p. 32/70. Retrieved on November 16, 2016.
  13. ↑ "School Finder." School District of Philadelphia. Retrieved on November 30, 2015.
This page is based on this Wikipedia article
Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.