Historic Old Central High School
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The Historic Old Central High School of
Duluth, Minnesota , settlement_type = City , nicknames = Twin Ports (with Superior), Zenith City , motto = , image_skyline = , image_caption = Clockwise from top: urban Duluth skyline; Minnesota ...
, United States, is a local landmark dating to 1892. One of Minnesota's leading examples of
Richardsonian Romanesque Richardsonian Romanesque is a style of Romanesque Revival architecture named after the American architect Henry Hobson Richardson (1838–1886). The revival style incorporates 11th and 12th century southern French, Spanish, and Italian Romanesque ...
architecture, it occupies an entire city block and sports a clock tower. With It was listed on the
National Register of Historic Places The National Register of Historic Places (NRHP) is the United States federal government's official list of districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects deemed worthy of preservation for their historical significance or "great artistic v ...
as Duluth Central High School in 1972 for its state-level significance in the theme of architecture.


Description

The Historic Old Central High School is a massive, three-story building of
Lake Superior Brownstone Brownstone is a brown Triassic–Jurassic sandstone that was historically a popular building material. The term is also used in the United States and Canada to refer to a townhouse clad in this or any other aesthetically similar material. Type ...
. Its footprint is an inverted "T" shape. The clock tower is centrally placed, with the main entrance through a massive arch at its base. The clock faces are in diameter. Two small turrets flank the clock tower. The entrance arches are echoed by arched window openings on the second floor, the
dormer A dormer is a roofed structure, often containing a window, that projects vertically beyond the plane of a pitched roof. A dormer window (also called ''dormer'') is a form of roof window. Dormers are commonly used to increase the usable space ...
s, and the around the clock faces. The interior originally contained 11 classrooms on the ground floor and 10 on the second floor, a library with a large fireplace, offices, and a two-story auditorium. Large double staircases of slate and iron led to the upper floors. The third floor contained laboratories, shop classrooms, a gymnasium, a music room, and a teaching museum. Much of the interior has been altered over the years due to changing needs and safety standards. A wing containing an updated gymnasium and chemistry classrooms was later added to the north.


History

The Historic Old Central High School was designed by the prominent East Coast architectural firm of Palmer, Hall, & Hunt, with local assistance from Duluth-based architects
Oliver G. Traphagen Oliver Green Traphagen (3 September 1854 – 21 October 1932) was an American architect who designed many notable buildings in Duluth, Minnesota, during the late 19th century and in the Territory of Hawaii during the early 20th century. Among h ...
and Francis W. Fitzpatrick. The
cornerstone The cornerstone (or foundation stone or setting stone) is the first stone set in the construction of a masonry foundation. All other stones will be set in reference to this stone, thus determining the position of the entire structure. Over time ...
was laid in 1891 at a ceremony attended by roughly 7,000 people. The clock was manufactured by E. Howard & Co. of Boston and installed in 1893. Two years later, five bells, cast by the Buckeye Bell Foundry of
Cincinnati, Ohio Cincinnati ( ) is a city in the U.S. state of Ohio and the county seat of Hamilton County. Settled in 1788, the city is located at the northern side of the confluence of the Licking and Ohio rivers, the latter of which marks the state line wit ...
,. In this video, the inscription can clearly be seen indicating the Buckeye foundry. were added to the clock to chime the
Westminster Quarters The Westminster Quarters, from its use at the Palace of Westminster, is a melody used by a set of four quarter bells to mark each quarter-hour. It is also known as the Westminster Chimes, Cambridge Quarters or Cambridge Chimes from its place of ...
. From 1898 to 1942 a cannon stood on the high school's steps, a prize captured from the Spanish warship ''Oquendo'' during the
Spanish–American War , partof = the Philippine Revolution, the decolonization of the Americas, and the Cuban War of Independence , image = Collage infobox for Spanish-American War.jpg , image_size = 300px , caption = (clock ...
. As America entered World War II the cannon was donated to a scrap metal drive and melted down.


Recent use

Upon the completion of a new Central High School in 1971,
Duluth Public Schools Duluth Public Schools is a school district based in Duluth, Minnesota. It is also known as Independent School District (ISD) #709. Schools High schools * Denfeld High School * Duluth East High School East High School is a public secondary scho ...
ceased using the old high school building for classroom instruction. The Central Preservation Committee and other interested citizens worked to save it from demolition. It was officially renamed the Historic Old Central High School on October 19, 2004. Today the Old Central High School houses offices for the school district, Education Equity, Indian Education, and the St. Louis County Soil & Water District. It also contains an 1890s classroom museum. Instruction has resumed in the building via community education and Unity High School
alternative education Alternative education encompasses many pedagogical approaches differing from mainstream pedagogy. Such alternative learning environments may be found within state, charter, and independent schools as well as home-based learning environments. ...
programs.


See also

*
National Register of Historic Places listings in St. Louis County, Minnesota This is a list of the National Register of Historic Places listings in Saint Louis County, Minnesota. It is intended to be a complete list of the properties and districts on the National Register of Historic Places in Saint Louis County, Minnes ...


References


External links


Historic Old Central High School
{{authority control 1892 establishments in Minnesota Buildings and structures in Duluth, Minnesota Clock towers in Minnesota Defunct schools in Minnesota High schools in Duluth, Minnesota National Register of Historic Places in St. Louis County, Minnesota Richardsonian Romanesque architecture in Minnesota School buildings completed in 1892 School buildings on the National Register of Historic Places in Minnesota Duluth, Minnesota