Washington High School (Oregon)

Last updated

Washington High School
Former Washington HS (Portland, Oregon) in 2013 - entablature showing school name.jpg
Front of the former school building in 2013
Location
Washington High School (Oregon)
1300 SE Stark Street,
Portland, Oregon 97214

United States
Information
Type Public
Opened1906
StatusSchool closed;
1924 building still standing
Closed1981
School district Portland Public Schools
Grades9–12
Enrollment1,557 (1922); [1] 1,826 (1924); [2] 1,500 (1969); [3] 883 (1981) [4]
Color(s)maroon and gold   
MascotGeorge Washington
Nickname Colonials
Washington High School
Location Portland, Oregon
Coordinates 45°31′8.3″N122°39′7.2″W / 45.518972°N 122.652000°W / 45.518972; -122.652000
Built1924
Architect Houghtaling & Dougan
Architectural style Classical Revival
NRHP reference No. 15000779 [5]
Added to NRHPNovember 9, 2015

Washington High School was a high school in Portland, Oregon, United States, from 1906 to 1981. After fire destroyed the original building, a new building was completed in 1924. The school merged with Monroe High School in 1978 to become Washington-Monroe High School. The school closed shortly after in 1981. A few years later it was used as the Children's Services Center, a multipurpose social service facility that also provided day care and other programs for at risk youth. After that the building was vacant for many years. It was also used for a time as a location for administrative offices for the Portland Public Schools.

Contents

During a brief time around 2005, Washington High School was used as a temporary site for the relocation of some of the newly arrived survivors from Hurricane Katrina. In 2009, it was used as the site for the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art's Time-Based Arts Festival or TBA. In October 2013, plans to renovate the building for commercial use were advancing, with a mix of retail and office use planned. [6] New Seasons Market relocated its offices to the building in 2015 and is the largest tenant. [7] The former auditorium was repurposed as a music venue called Revolution Hall, which opened in February 2015. [8] [9] The building was listed on the National Register of Historic Places in November 2015. [10] [5]

School history

The first Washington High School was originally named East Side High School. It opened in September 1906, with classes temporarily held in an elementary school while its permanent building was being constructed [11] and moved into its permanent building in February 1907, [12] located at SE 14th and Stark. The East Side High School was renamed Washington in 1909. [13] The original building was destroyed by fire on October 25, 1922. [14] [15] A replacement was constructed on the same site, made of reinforced concrete with a brick surface. [1] Designed by the Portland architectural firm of Houghtaling & Dougan, the new building also featured terra cotta trim. [16] It opened for students on September 2, 1924. [2]

Due to the baby boom and passing of a $25 million building levy by the school district in 1947, a new gymnasium was slated to be built. [14]

In fall 1978, Washington High School merged with Monroe High School and became Washington-Monroe High School. Monroe H.S. was an all-girls vocational sister school to Benson Polytechnic High School. After the merge, the old Monroe High School building housed a number of programs until 1994, when it became da Vinci Arts Middle School. [17] [18] It was established in 1917 at Southwest 14th and Morrison and was named Girls Polytechnic High School until fall 1967, when it was renamed James Monroe High School. [19] Monroe High School had only 470 students in fall 1977, the smallest enrollment of any public high school in Portland. [19] Washington's enrollment had declined sharply in the 1970s, from 1,504 in the 1968–69 school year to 773 in the 1977–78 school year, [3] leading to the decision to merge the two schools, on the Washington H.S. campus.

In the late 1970s and early 1980s, Portland Public Schools (PPS) was faced with declining enrollment overall, as well, and targeted Cleveland High School (originally Clinton Kelly High School of Commerce) for closure. The Cleveland High School property was divided into two parcels: The site of the school building and the site of the athletic field, originally the site of the Clinton Kelly mansion. Clinton Kelly, an early Portland settler and minister, specified that the property was to be used solely for a public school. If the property was used for any other purpose, or put up for sale, the property would revert to the Kelly estate, and to the living heirs of Clinton Kelly. [20] [21] PPS ultimately decided to close Washington H.S. ("Washington-Monroe" by then), and keep Cleveland H.S. open.

Washington-Monroe High School closed in May 1981. [22] Enrollment at the end was 883 students. [4]

Post-school use

After its 1981 closure as a school, the building was used for school district administrative purposes until around 2003. During that time a portion of it was also used for a public performance space, hosting events that included Lily Tomlin's "The Search for Signs of Intelligent Life in the Universe" as a "work in process". Subsequently, the building was vacant, although it was prepared to house Hurricane Katrina evacuees in fall 2005.

In the 2002–2003 school year, Portland Public Schools identified a number of properties that it considered "surplus" based on the recommendation of Innovation Partnerships and the Real Estate Investment Trust. [23] [ failed verification ]

Central portion of building's front (west side) in 2015, after renovation Former Washington HS (Portland, Oregon) in 2015 - full height of building at main entrance.jpg
Central portion of building's front (west side) in 2015, after renovation

In 2005, the City of Portland purchased 5.4 acres (22,000 m2) of the school property for $4.5 million. [24] That parcel included the gym, a three-story addition, a one-story outbuilding and the track and field. At that time, the city was intending to use the land for a community center and athletic fields when funding became available. [24] The remaining 2.6 acres (11,000 m2) comprises two parcels in the northeast and southeast corners of the site, one largely vacant, and the other housing the multi-story brick high school building. [25] Beam Development was planning on developing the space into condos and commercial buildings. [24]

In 2009, Portland Parks & Recreation received funds as a result of the support of Senators Ron Wyden and Gordon H. Smith. This money was received as a United States Department of Housing and Urban Development grant for $665,000. In April 2009, an advisory committee was appointed by Portland Commissioner Nick Fish to develop the scope and program for the facility.

From 2009 to 2012 the Washington High School site was used each September by the Portland Institute for Contemporary Art for their Time-Based Art Festival Dubbed "The Works", the site displayed many of the visual arts pieces. [26] Though it was opened and cleaned out, in part, due to the TBA Festival, in 2009 the site was still slated to be turned into a community center. Preservation talks about the planned center were still under way. [27]

Concurrently, PPS commissioned an update of an appraisal on the building, which was due to be finished in January 2010. The district also plans to issue a "request for information" to see if any other developers are interested in buying the long-vacant high school. Doug Capps, a PPS facilities manager, told an advisory committee on December 1, 2009, that an offer on the building could be submitted to the school board as soon as March or April 2010. [27]

In 2011, the site hosted the City Repair Project's Earth Day event, Earth Day Incorporated. [28] In April 2011, local volunteers began the process of creating the Buckman Historic District which, if approved, would have included Washington High School. [29] However, the proposal to create such a district was dropped in 2013 after failing to attract sufficient support from property owners in the affected area. [30]

Renovation and repurposing

Seen from the northeast, at 14th & Stark, with small corner marquee for Revolution Hall, the new music venue Former Washington HS (Portland, Oregon) in 2015 - east and north sides.jpg
Seen from the northeast, at 14th & Stark, with small corner marquee for Revolution Hall, the new music venue

In October 2013, plans for a private firm to acquire the building and begin renovation were advancing. The developer planned to use the ground floor for retail use and the upper floors as office space. [6] In September 2014, New Seasons Market signed a lease to move its headquarters to the building, occupying over a third of the office space; [31] as of January 2015, the move was scheduled for March 2015. [7]

The Washington High School building was reopened in early 2015. Classrooms had been converted into office space (with 55,000 sq ft (5,100 m2)), [32] and the auditorium was converted into a music venue called Revolution Hall (run and operated by Mississippi Studios). In addition to the auditorium, Revolution Hall operates a smaller venue called Show Bar on the first floor, and several other bars in the building including Marthas, Assembly Lounge, and the Roof Deck. The second largest tenant is New Seasons Market, which leases the top floor of the building for its corporate offices, while creative agencies including Struck, Copious, and Murmur Creative leased offices on the first two floors.[ citation needed ]

Notable alumni

See also

Related Research Articles

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Hillsboro, Oregon</span> City in Oregon, United States

Hillsboro is a city in the U.S. state of Oregon and is the county seat of Washington County. Situated in the Tualatin Valley on the west side of the Portland metropolitan area, the city hosts many high-technology companies, such as Intel, locally known as the Silicon Forest. The population was 106,447 at the 2020 census, making Hillsboro the 5th most populous city in Oregon.

The Beaverton School District is a school district in and around Beaverton, Oregon, United States. It serves students throughout Beaverton, Hillsboro, Aloha, and unincorporated neighborhoods of Portland, OR. The Beaverton Elementary School District 48 was established in 1876, with other elementary districts later merged into the district. The elementary district was later merged with the high school district (10J) to create a unified school district. It is the third-largest school district in the state, with an enrollment of 39,180 students as of 2022. For the 2022–2023 school year, the district had a total budget of $622.8 million.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Lincoln High School (Portland, Oregon)</span> Public high school in Portland, Oregon

Lincoln High School is a public high school located in the Goose Hollow neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, United States. It was established in 1869 as Portland High School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Benson Polytechnic High School</span> Technical, public school in Portland, , Oregon, United States

Benson Polytechnic High School is a technical public high school in the Portland Public Schools district. It is temporarily located in Portland's Lents neighborhood while a renovation project is underway at its 9-acre (3.6 ha) campus in the Central Eastside commercial area of Portland, Oregon, United States. Students are given a special emphasis in a technical area. The school is a member of SkillsUSA and Health Occupations Students of America.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Jefferson High School (Portland, Oregon)</span> Public school in Portland, Oregon, United States

Thomas Jefferson High School is a public high school in Portland, Oregon, United States, founded in 1908.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Portland Public Schools (Oregon)</span> School district in Portland, Oregon, United States

Portland Public Schools (PPS) is a public school district located in Portland, Oregon, United States. It is the largest school district in the state of Oregon. It is a PK–12 district with an enrollment of more than 49,000 students. It comprises more than 100 locations, including 79 schools and other sites that are maintained within the district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cleveland High School (Portland, Oregon)</span> Public school in Portland, Oregon, United States

Cleveland High School is a public high school in inner southeast Portland, Oregon, United States. It is part of the Portland Public Schools district.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Franklin High School (Portland, Oregon)</span> Public school in Portland, Oregon, United States

Franklin High School is a public high school in Portland, Oregon, United States. It is located in central southeast Portland in the South Tabor neighborhood.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Laurelwood, Oregon</span> Unincorporated community in the state of Oregon, United States

Laurelwood is an unincorporated community in Washington County, Oregon, United States. The community is located southwest of the Portland metropolitan area near Oregon Route 47 along Laurelwood Road, to the east of the city of Gaston and Wapato Lake. Laurelwood, a farming community, has a population of approximately 500 people. Settled in the 1860s, the community was home to Laurelwood Academy from 1904 until 2007. A large portion of the community is of the Seventh-day Adventist faith.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Ida B. Wells-Barnett High School</span> Public school in Portland, Oregon, United States

Ida B. Wells-Barnett High School, formerly known as Woodrow Wilson High School, is a public high school in Portland, Oregon, United States.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Marshall High School (Portland, Oregon)</span> Public school in Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, United States

Marshall High School is a former public high school in Portland, Oregon, United States. The school opened on September 6, 1960, and is named after John Marshall, the fourth Chief Justice of the United States. The school was closed in 2011 as the Portland Public Schools district moved to consolidate students and resources into fewer high schools.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Roosevelt High School (Oregon)</span> Public school in Portland, Oregon, United States

Roosevelt High School is a public high school in Portland, Oregon, United States.

John Adams High School was a public high school in Portland, Oregon, United States, managed by Portland Public Schools (PPS). Located at 5700 N.E. 39th Avenue, Portland, Oregon, the school opened in 1969. Its curriculum, based on ES-70 and further developed by students and faculty at Harvard Graduate School of Education, had a unique and sometimes controversial approach to secondary education.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Cornelius Hotel</span> Historic building in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The Cornelius Hotel is a historic hotel building in downtown Portland, Oregon, United States that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. It was designed by John V. Bennes's firm, and constructed in 1907–08. It ceased to be used as a hotel by the 1950s. A fire in 1985 left the top three floors of the structure uninhabitable. By the early 1990s, the building had been vacated, and it remained vacant for more than two decades. In 2016–2018, it was joined to the adjacent Woodlark Building, extensively renovated, and converted into a hotel. The Woodlark Hotel opened on December 15, 2018.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Beverly Cleary School</span> School in Portland, Multnomah County, Oregon, United States

The Beverly Cleary School (BCS) is a public school in Portland, Oregon, United States. The school educates children in kindergarten through eighth-grade and is part of the Portland Public School District (PPS). Formed in 2007 as Hollyrood-Fernwood School, it was renamed for children's author and Fernwood alumna Beverly Cleary in 2008. The school uses two buildings located on the north and west edges of Grant Park which is home to the local feeder high school, Grant High School.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">First Presbyterian Church (Portland, Oregon)</span> Historic church in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

The First Presbyterian Church is a church building located in downtown Portland, Oregon, that is listed on the National Register of Historic Places. Construction began in 1886 and was completed in 1890. The building has been called "one of the finest examples" of High Victorian Gothic architecture in the state of Oregon. It includes stained-glass windows made by Portland's Povey Brothers Art Glass Works and a church bell cast with bronze from captured Civil War cannons.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Houghtaling & Dougan</span>

Houghtaling & Dougan was an American architectural firm based in Oregon. It was a partnership of Chester A. Houghtaling and Luther Lee Dougan. A number of their works are listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places (NRHP).

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Merchant Hotel (Portland, Oregon)</span> Hotel in Portland, Oregon

The Merchant Hotel, also known as the Merchants' Hotel, is a historic former hotel building in Portland, Oregon, United States. It is located at 121 N.W. Second Avenue in Old Town Chinatown. It is a contributing property in the Portland Skidmore/Old Town Historic District, which was listed on the U.S. National Register of Historic Places in 1975 and designated a National Historic Landmark District in 1977. It is one of the few remaining examples of Victorian Italianate, cast iron architecture on the West Coast. It occupies half of a city block, specifically along the south side of N.W. Davis Street from Second to Third Avenues.

<span class="mw-page-title-main">Revolution Hall</span> Music venue in Portland, Oregon, U.S.

Revolution Hall is a music venue in the Buckman neighborhood of Portland, Oregon. It is located within the former Washington High School, and was originally constructed as the school's auditorium. The auditorium was in use from the school's opening in 1924 to its closure in 1981, and was unused until February 2015. As part of a larger redevelopment that saw the school converted into office and retail space, the auditorium was renovated into a music venue. During construction, two bars and a roof deck were added, but the original wooden seats were preserved.

da Vinci Arts Middle School

da Vinci Arts Middle School, also known as da Vinci Middle School, is a public middle school in the Kerns neighborhood of Portland, Oregon, in the United States. It is an arts-focused school in the Portland Public School District. The building was originally used as a high school called Girls Polytechnic High School, then renamed James Monroe High School in 1967. The school closed in fall 1978 when its student body was merged into Washington High School.

References

  1. 1 2 "New Schools Finished" (August 24, 1924). The Sunday Oregonian, p. 11
  2. 1 2 "High School Too Small; New Washington Building Already Has Student Surplus" (September 17, 1924). The Morning Oregonian, p. 8.
  3. 1 2 Collins, Huntly (October 9, 1977). "Reorganization of schools may spell end of Monroe". The Sunday Oregonian. p. B6.
  4. 1 2 Durbin, Kathy (May 16, 1981). "Mood at school quiet, somber". The Oregonian. p. A12.
  5. 1 2 Jessica Engeman; Brandon J. Grilc (September 2015). "National Register of Historic Places Registration Form: Washington High School" (PDF). National Park Service. Retrieved December 18, 2015.{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: multiple names: authors list (link)
  6. 1 2 Binder, Melissa (October 17, 2013). "Washington High School redevelopment excites neighbors, shouldn't affect dog park". The Oregonian. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  7. 1 2 Njus, Elliot (January 29, 2015). "Washington High School overhaul unveiled as new office tenants move in". The Oregonian/OregonLive. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
  8. ↑ DeNies, Ramona (November 13, 2014). "New Music Venue to Open at Washington High School: Revolution Hall". Portland Monthly. Retrieved February 1, 2015.
  9. ↑ Greewald, David (February 12, 2015). "Revolution Hall Opens Tonight with First Concert". The Oregonian. Retrieved March 10, 2015.
  10. ↑ Pamplin Media Group staff (December 2, 2015). "Old Washington High School lands on national history list". Portland Tribune. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
  11. ↑ "Vacation is Over: City Schools Will Open Today With Big Attendance". The Morning Oregonian. September 17, 1906. p. 7. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
  12. ↑ "New High School Opens". The Morning Oregonian. February 11, 1907. p. 8. Retrieved August 24, 2015.
  13. ↑ "Change in Names of High Schools; West Side is Lincoln, East Side is Washington and Albina to Be Jefferson". The Morning Oregonian. February 9, 1909. p. 10. Retrieved March 2, 2015.
  14. 1 2 Polich, Edward L. (1950). A history of Portland's secondary school system with emphasis on the superintendents and the curriculum (PDF) (M.A.). University of Portland. pp. 66, 97, 160. OCLC   232551057.
  15. ↑ "Morning Oregonian. (Portland, Or.) 1861-1937, October 26, 1922, Image 1 « Historic Oregon Newspapers". oregonnews.uoregon.edu. Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  16. ↑ "School Plans Are Ready; Washington Designs To Be Taken Up Wednesday" (April 22, 1923). The Sunday Oregonian, p. 15.
  17. ↑ "Da Vinci Arts School (Portland, Oregon)". Oregon Digital. University of Oregon. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
  18. ↑ "About Us". da Vinci Arts Middle School. Portland Public Schools. Archived from the original on June 12, 2016. Retrieved November 9, 2015.
  19. 1 2 Collins, Huntly (October 9, 1977). "School's identity feared threatened". The Sunday Oregonian. p. B6.
  20. ↑ "Cleveland's History". Portland Public Schools - Cleveland High School. January 8, 2024. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  21. ↑ Hudnut, Vernon (January 8, 2024). "Washington High School - More History". Washington High School. Retrieved January 8, 2024.
  22. ↑ Melton, Kimberly (February 18, 2010). "School closures involve more than enrollment". The Oregonian . Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  23. ↑ "Washington-Monroe Site". Archived from the original on February 27, 2009.
  24. 1 2 3 Leeson, Fred (February 21, 2008). "Neighborhood News Updates". The Oregonian.
  25. ↑ "Docs" . Retrieved February 9, 2024.
  26. ↑ "TBA Festival Box Office - PICA". www.pica.org. Archived from the original on June 20, 2009.
  27. 1 2 "Update on Washington High School – Proposed Community Center". December 7, 2009.
  28. ↑ Earth Day Incorporated: We Need You! April 23, 2011 10 am – 7PM | Washington High School (SE 12th & Stark) Field
  29. ↑ Buxton, Matt (April 22, 2011). "Buckman volunteers work to make turn-of-the-century neighborhood a historic district". The Oregonian. Retrieved November 3, 2013.
  30. ↑ Beaven, Steve (May 22, 2013). "Buckman Historic District proposal gets a thumbs-down from the state". The Oregonian. Retrieved October 18, 2013.
  31. ↑ Njus, Elliot (September 29, 2014). "New Seasons offices will anchor Washington High School redevelopment". The Oregonian . Retrieved October 5, 2014.
  32. ↑ Rendleman, Raymond (April 22, 2015). "From resistance to renovation of Concord Elementary School?". Portland Tribune. Retrieved December 18, 2015.
  33. ↑ Karson, Burton L. (1976). Festival essays for Pauline Alderman: A Musicological Tribute. Provo, Utah: Brigham Young University Press. p. viii. ISBN   978-0-842-50101-9.
  34. ↑ Mapes, Jeff (July 20, 2014). "Republican Vic Atiyeh, who guided Oregon through economic upheaval, dies at 91". The Oregonian . Retrieved July 21, 2014.
  35. ↑ Lillie, Mitch (January 9, 2013). "The Portland Beard". Willamette Week . Retrieved October 26, 2014.
  36. ↑ "Richard "Dick" Bogle (1930–2010)". The Oregon Encyclopedia . November 15, 2019. Retrieved June 1, 2020.
  37. ↑ "Kathryn Hall Bogle (1906–2003)". The Oregon Encyclopedia . Retrieved February 14, 2022.
  38. ↑ Duin, Steve (April 24, 2008). "Once upon a time at WaHi". The Oregonian . Archived from the original on June 8, 2011. Retrieved March 24, 2010.
  39. ↑ Boule, Margie (July 29, 2001). "If The Afterlife Has Rules, Leah Hing's Breaking Them". The Oregonian.
  40. ↑ "28 Jul 1912, Page 41 – The Oregon Daily Journal at". Newspapers.com. July 28, 1912. Retrieved March 11, 2021.
  41. ↑ "Leading Teams in State Tournament to be Evenly Matched," Oregon Statesman, vol. 78, no. 303 (March 5, 1929), p. 8.
  42. ↑ Oliver, Gordon (May 9, 1996). "Bill Naito, 1925–1996: Portland loses a civic treasure". The Oregonian , p. A14.
  43. ↑ "The Nobel Peace Prize 1962". NobelPrize.org.
  44. ↑ Friedman, Ralph (September 6, 1962). "Nobel prize winner finally receives high school diploma". Index-Journal. Greenwood, SC. p. 13 – via Newspapers.com.
  45. ↑ "Architect Richard Sundeleaf dies". The Oregonian . March 11, 1987. p. C8.
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.