East Orange High School was a comprehensive community

public In public relations and communication science, publics are groups of individual people, and the public (a.k.a. the general public) is the totality of such groupings. This is a different concept to the sociological concept of the ''Öffentlichk ...

high school A secondary school describes an institution that provides secondary education and also usually includes the building where this takes place. Some secondary schools provide both '' lower secondary education'' (ages 11 to 14) and ''upper seconda ...

serving students in ninth through

twelfth grade Twelfth grade, 12th grade, senior year, or grade 12 is the final year of secondary school in most of North America. In other regions, it may also be referred to as class 12 or Year 13. In most countries, students are usually between the ages of 17 ...

s from 1891 to 2002 in

East Orange East Orange is a city in Essex County, in the U.S. state of New Jersey. As of the 2020 U.S. census, the city's population was 69,612. The city was the state's 20th most-populous municipality in 2010, after having been the state's 14th most-po ...

, in Essex County, in the U.S. state of

New Jersey New Jersey is a state in the Mid-Atlantic and Northeastern regions of the United States. It is bordered on the north and east by the state of New York; on the east, southeast, and south by the Atlantic Ocean; on the west by the Delaware ...

. For most of its existence, the school operated as one of the two secondary schools of the

East Orange School District East Orange School District is a comprehensive community public school district serving students in pre-Kindergarten through twelfth grade from the city of East Orange, in Essex County, New Jersey, United States. The district is one of 31 form ...

History

The original building of East Orange High School, facing Winans Street, opened to students in 1891. An addition on Walnut Street was added in 1953. The school was closed when

East Orange Campus High School East Orange Campus High School is a comprehensive high school, comprehensive community state school, public Secondary education in the United States, high school serving students in ninth grade, ninth through twelfth grades in the city of East O ...

opened in 2002, combining both East Orange High School and Clifford Scott High School. Demolition of the old high school began in 2005. In 1933, African American student and future civil rights activist Robert L. Carter staged a protest against an official school policy that restricted black students to using the school's pool on Fridays after the school had closed, with male and female students segregated by gender, after which the pool would be emptied, cleaned out and refilled with water before the start of the next school week. Having read that the New Jersey Supreme Court banned the practice of racial segregation, and despite threats of expulsion from teachers and his inability to swim, Carter entered the pool with fellow white students during times when access to the pool was forbidden to black students, ultimately leading the district to close the pool. While serving in

New Jersey General Assembly The New Jersey General Assembly is the lower house of the New Jersey Legislature. Since the election of 1967 (1968 Session), the Assembly has consisted of 80 members. Two members are elected from each of New Jersey's 40 legislative districts f ...

from 1964 to 1972, Kenneth T. Wilson was also employed as a teacher at East Orange High School, where he taught civics and American history. In September 2009, a new $143 million, facility opened on the site of the former East Orange High School. Consisting of an elementary school and middle/high school, the new

Cicely Tyson School of Performing and Fine Arts Cicely L. Tyson Community School of Performing and Fine Arts is a specialty magnet public middle school / high school that serves students in sixth through twelfth grades in the city of East Orange in Essex County, New Jersey, United States, a ...

was among the largest and most technologically advanced schools ever built in the state of New Jersey, with extensive performing arts facilities which meet or exceed the highest professional standards.

Athletics

In 1896, East Orange was one of the founding member schools of the New Jersey Interscholastic Athletic Association, the state's first athletic conference; created and operated by students, the conference consisted of nine public and private high schools located across the state, competing in track and field, football and tennis. Begun in 1897, East Orange had an annual Thanksgiving Day football rivalry with Barringer High School that had been the nation's longest-running continuous rivalry, played for 91 consecutive years until 2006, when scheduling conflicts interfered with the annual tradition; traditionally, the Left-Footed Kicker trophy is awarded to the winning team, with games attracting as many as 13,000 fans until the 1970s, when both teams saw their football programs deteriorate. In March 1930, Gordon Chalmers won the title in the 100-yard backstroke at the national interscholastic aquatic champions at

Columbia University Columbia University (also known as Columbia, and officially as Columbia University in the City of New York) is a private research university in New York City. Established in 1754 as King's College on the grounds of Trinity Church in Manhatt ...

, leading East Orange High School to a second-place team finish. The boys' basketball team won the Group IV state championship in 1940 vs. West New York Memorial High School, in 1969 vs.

Perth Amboy High School Perth Amboy High School (or PAHS) is a four-year comprehensive community public high school which serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Perth Amboy in Middlesex County, New Jersey, United States, operating as the lone secondary ...

and in 1974 vs.

Neptune High School Neptune High School is a comprehensive four-year community public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from Neptune Township, in Monmouth County, New Jersey, United States, operating as part of the Neptune Townsh ...

, and won the Group III title in 1972 vs. Lakewood High School, in 1973 vs.

Northern Burlington County Regional High School Northern Burlington County Regional High School is a four-year comprehensive public high school that serves students in ninth through twelfth grades from four communities in Burlington County, New Jersey, United States, as part of the Northern ...

and in 1976 vs. Woodrow Wilson High School. The girls' basketball team won the Group IV state championship in 1980 vs.

Atlantic City High School Atlantic City High School (ACHS) is a comprehensive public high school in Atlantic City, in Atlantic County, New Jersey, United States. It is the lone secondary school of the Atlantic City School District. The current school building opened ...

. The 1968 team won the Group IV state title with a 74–56 victory against a

team led by future NBA player Brian Taylor.

Notable alumni

John Amos John Allen Amos Jr. (born December 27, 1939) is an American actor known for his role as James Evans Sr. on the CBS television series ''Good Times''. Amos's other television work includes ''The Mary Tyler Moore Show'', a recurring role as Admi ...

(born 1939, class of 1958), actor who played James Evans Sr. on the 1970s television series '' Good Times''. *

Betty Bronson Elizabeth Ada Bronson (November 17, 1906 – October 19, 1971) was an American film and television actress who began her career during the silent film era. Early years Bronson was born in Trenton, New Jersey, to Frank and Nellie Smith Bronso ...

(1906–1971), television and film actress who began her career during the

silent film A silent film is a film with no synchronized Sound recording and reproduction, recorded sound (or more generally, no audible dialogue). Though silent films convey narrative and emotion visually, various plot elements (such as a setting or era) ...

era after leaving school to benefit her film career. * Tyrone Brown (born 1942, class of 1960), attorney, Commissioner of the

Federal Communications Commission The Federal Communications Commission (FCC) is an independent agency of the United States federal government that regulates communications by radio, television, wire, satellite, and cable across the United States. The FCC maintains jurisdicti ...

. *

Herbert Brucker Herbert Brucker (1898–1977) was a journalist, teacher, and national advocate for the freedom of the press. Brucker served as editor-in-chief of the '' Hartford Courant'', a newspaper published in Hartford, Connecticut, for 19 years (1947–196 ...

(1898–1977), journalist, teacher, and national advocate for the freedom of the press, who served as editor-in-chief of the '' Hartford Courant''. * Stephanie R. Bush (born 1953), attorney and politician who served in the

representing the 27th district from 1988 to 1992. * Robert L. Carter (1917–2012, class of 1933), lawyer, civil rights activist and a

United States district judge The United States district courts are the trial courts of the U.S. federal judiciary. There is one district court for each federal judicial district, which each cover one U.S. state or, in some cases, a portion of a state. Each district cou ...

.Jackson, Janice Harris

''

The Star-Ledger ''The Star-Ledger'' is the largest circulated newspaper in the U.S. state of New Jersey and is based in Newark. It is a sister paper to '' The Jersey Journal'' of Jersey City, ''The Times'' of Trenton and the '' Staten Island Advance'', all of ...

'', January 20, 2012. Accessed September 11, 2016. "Robert L. Carter died on Jan. 3 at 94. He was raised in Newark and East Orange, attending Barringer High School for two years and graduating from East Orange High in 1933." * Gordon Chalmers (1911–2000), swimmer who competed in the men's 100 metre backstroke at the 1932 Summer Olympics.Staff
"Philadelphia Wins School Title Swim; Catholic High School First With 14 Points in National Meet in Columbia Pool. East Orange Next With 10"
''

The New York Times ''The New York Times'' (''the Times'', ''NYT'', or the Gray Lady) is a daily newspaper based in New York City with a worldwide readership reported in 2020 to comprise a declining 840,000 paid print subscribers, and a growing 6 million paid d ...

'', March 16, 1930. Accessed September 11, 2016. "Gordon Chalmers of East Orange achieved the outstanding performance in capturing the 100-yard backstroke title." *

Margaret Clapp Margaret Antoinette Clapp (April 10, 1910 – May 3, 1974) was an American scholar, educator and Pulitzer Prize winner. She was the president of Wellesley College from 1949-1966. During her presidency, she was able to make many improvements to the ...

(1910–1974, class of 1926), scholar and educator, who served as eighth president of Wellesley College. * Chris Fletcher (born 1948),

safety Safety is the state of being "safe", the condition of being protected from harm or other danger. Safety can also refer to the control of recognized hazards in order to achieve an acceptable level of risk. Meanings There are two slightly dif ...

who played for the San Diego Chargers during his seven-year NFL career. *

Harold Geiger Major Harold Geiger (October 7, 1884 – May 17, 1927) was US military aviator number 6, who was killed in an airplane crash in 1927. He was also a balloonist. Spokane International Airport is designated with the International Air Transport Ass ...

(1884–1927), US military aviator number 6, who was killed in an airplane crash in 1927. *

Ann Harding Ann Harding (born Dorothy Walton Gatley; August 7, 1902 – September 1, 1981) was an American theatre, motion picture, radio, and television actress. A regular player on Broadway and in regional theater in the 1920s, in the 1930s Harding was ...

(1902–1981), actress who was nominated for an

Academy Award The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

for the film '' Holiday''. * Balozi Harvey (1940-2016, class of 1957). diplomat and community organizer. * Chris Jones (born 1964),

American football American football (referred to simply as football in the United States and Canada), also known as gridiron, is a team sport played by two teams of eleven players on a rectangular field with goalposts at each end. The offense, the team wi ...

center Center or centre may refer to: Mathematics *Center (geometry), the middle of an object * Center (algebra), used in various contexts ** Center (group theory) ** Center (ring theory) * Graph center, the set of all vertices of minimum eccentrici ...

who played one season in the NFL with the New York Giants. * Naomi Long Madgett (1923–2020), poet. * C. Milford Orben (1895–1975), politician who served five terms in the

. * C. Thomas Schettino (1907–1983), Associate Justice of the

New Jersey Supreme Court The Supreme Court of New Jersey is the highest court in the U.S. state of New Jersey. In its current form, the Supreme Court of New Jersey is the final judicial authority on all cases in the state court system, including cases challenging th ...

from 1959 to 1972. * George Tully (1904–1980),

end End, END, Ending, or variation, may refer to: End *In mathematics: ** End (category theory) ** End (topology) **End (graph theory) ** End (group theory) (a subcase of the previous) **End (endomorphism) *In sports and games **End (gridiron footbal ...

who played one season in the NFL with the

Frankford Yellow Jackets The Frankford Yellow Jackets were a professional American football team, part of the National Football League from 1924 to 1931, although its origin dates back to as early as 1899 with the Frankford Athletic Association. The Yellow Jackets won ...

. * Dionne Warwick (born 1940, class of 1959), singer, actress and TV-show host, who became a

United Nations The United Nations (UN) is an intergovernmental organization whose stated purposes are to maintain international peace and security, develop friendly relations among nations, achieve international cooperation, and be a centre for harmoniz ...

Global Ambassador for the

Food and Agriculture Organization The Food and Agriculture Organization of the United Nations (FAO)french: link=no, Organisation des Nations unies pour l'alimentation et l'agriculture; it, Organizzazione delle Nazioni Unite per l'Alimentazione e l'Agricoltura is an intern ...

. Warwick, Dionne
"We All Walked Together; East Orange native Dionne Warwick reminisces about growing up in New Jersey, and how the music of the streets that surrounded her helped propel her to super-stardom."
'' New Jersey Monthly'', November 15, 2010. Accessed September 11, 2016. "Dionne Warwick's East Orange High School yearbook, 1959, when she was Marie Dionne Warrick."

References

{{Authority control 1891 establishments in New Jersey 2002 disestablishments in New Jersey East Orange, New Jersey Educational institutions disestablished in 2002 Educational institutions established in 1891 Public high schools in Essex County, New Jersey