Washington High School was a public high school in

East Chicago East Chicago is a city in Lake County, Indiana, United States. The population was 29,698 at the 2010 census. The city is home of the Indiana Harbor and Ship Canal, an artificial freshwater harbor characterized by industrial and manufacturing act ...

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

, which opened in 1898 but closed in 1986. Washington High School merged with Roosevelt High School to become East Chicago Central High School, known in the area as "Central."

History

Athletics

The Washington High School Senators athletic teams competed in the Indiana Lake Shore conference from 1969 until the school closed in 1986. Prior to 1969, the school was a member of the Northern Indiana conference (1927-1962), the Northwestern conference (1963-1967) and the Tri-City conference (1968). The school was also a member of the

Indiana High School Athletic Association The Indiana High School Athletic Association (IHSAA) is the arbiter of interscholastic competition among public and private high schools in the U.S. state of Indiana. It monitors a system that divides athletically-competing high schools in Indiana ...

(IHSAA), the organization which governs athletic activities in Indiana. The school sponsored various interscholastic athletics teams. The Senators won state championships in basketball (1960, 1971). The 1971 "Dream Team" was ranked No.1 in the state for the entire season, and went undefeated (29-0) and won the Indiana state high school basketball championship. The team featured Tim Stoddard (who played baseball and basketball at

N.C. State North Carolina State University (NC State) is a public university, public Land-grant university, land-grant research university in Raleigh, North Carolina. Founded in 1887 and part of the University of North Carolina system, it is the largest u ...

and spent 15 year in

Major League Baseball Major League Baseball (MLB) is a professional baseball organization and the oldest major professional sports league in the world. MLB is composed of 30 total teams, divided equally between the National League (NL) and the American League (AL), ...

, Pete Trgovich (who played at

UCLA The University of California, Los Angeles (UCLA) is a public land-grant research university in Los Angeles, California. UCLA's academic roots were established in 1881 as a teachers college then known as the southern branch of the California St ...

), and Junior Bridgeman (who played at

Louisville Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border. ...

and in the

NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...

). The three would all go on to reach the Final Four.

Kenny Lofton Kenneth Lofton (born May 31, 1967) is an American former Major League Baseball (MLB) center fielder. Lofton was a six-time All-Star (1994–1999), four-time Gold Glove Award winner (1993–1996), and at retirement, was ranked 15th amon ...

an MLB All-Star center fielder for several teams in the 1990s and 2000s, also went to East Chicago Washington. He played in an NCAA Men's Basketball Final Four in 1987 with Arizona, and joins Stoddard (who played in the 1983 World Series with the Baltimore Orioles) as the only two athletes to play in a World Series and a Final Four when he led off the 1995 World Series for the Cleveland Indians.

Notable alumni

Vince Boryla Vincent Joseph Boryla (March 11, 1927 – March 27, 2016) was an American basketball player, coach and executive. His nickname was "Moose". He graduated from East Chicago Washington High School in 1944. He played basketball at the University of N ...

, professional basketball player, coach, and executive *

Junior Bridgeman Ulysses Lee "Junior" Bridgeman (born September 17, 1953) is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Bridgeman played in the National Basketball League (NBA) for twelve years from 1975 until 1987, beginning with the Milw ...

, professional basketball player and businessman * Emilio A. De La Garza, posthumous winner of the

Medal of Honor The Medal of Honor (MOH) is the United States Armed Forces' highest military decoration and is awarded to recognize American soldiers, sailors, marines, airmen, guardians and coast guardsmen who have distinguished themselves by acts of valor. ...

Leslie Edgley Leslie John Edgley (October 14, 1912 – August 9, 2002) was a mystery fiction writer, radio drama, radio dramatist screenwriter and playwright. Among the works for which he became known are the scripts for many episodes of ''Perry Mason (1957 TV ...

, novelist, playwright, radio dramatist and screenwriter *

Katherine Jackson Katherine Esther Jackson (née Scruse, born Kattie B. Screws; May 4, 1930) is the matriarch of the Jackson family of entertainers that includes her children Michael and Janet Jackson. Early life Jackson was born as Kattie B. Scruse on May 4, ...

, matriarch of the

Jackson family The Jackson family is an American family of musicians and entertainers from Gary, Indiana. Many of the children of Joseph Walter (or Joe) and Katherine Esther Jackson were successful musicians, notably the brothers that formed the Motown boy b ...

, professional baseball player * Nick Mantis, professional basketball player *

Art Murakowski Arthur Raymond Murakowski (March 15, 1925 – September 13, 1985) was an American football player. He played fullback for the Northwestern University football team from 1946 to 1949. He was selected as a first-team All-American and won the Ch ...

, professional football player and legislator * Vincent Mroz,

United States Secret Service The United States Secret Service (USSS or Secret Service) is a federal law enforcement agency under the Department of Homeland Security charged with conducting criminal investigations and protecting U.S. political leaders, their families, and ...

agent involved in the 1950 shootout at Blair House * Ray Ragelis, professional basketball player and coach * Quentin P. Smith, Tuskegee Airman *

Tim Stoddard Timothy Paul Stoddard (born January 24, 1953) is a former Major League Baseball pitcher. He is one of only two men to have played in both a World Series and a Final Four of the NCAA Men's Division I Basketball Championship, along with fellow Eas ...

, professional baseball player and coach *

Pete Trgovich Pete Trgovich is an American former college basketball player. He played for the UCLA Bruins, and won two national championships during his career. Trgovich was a member of the 1971 East Chicago Washington High School Senators basketball team, wh ...

, college basketball player and coach * Warren W. Wiersbe, Christian clergyman and author

References

{{coord, 41.6403, N, 87.4517, W, source:wikidata, display=title Schools in Indiana 1898 establishments in Indiana 1986 disestablishments in Indiana Educational institutions established in 1898 Educational institutions disestablished in 1986