G.A.R. Memorial Junior/Senior High School (commonly known throughout the area simply as 'G.A.R.') was a high school located on 250 South Grant Street, in

Wilkes-Barre Wilkes-Barre ( or ) is a city in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania and the county seat of Luzerne County. Located at the center of the Wyoming Valley in Northeastern Pennsylvania, it had a population of 44,328 in the 2020 census. It is the secon ...

, located in

Luzerne County Luzerne County is a county in the U.S. state of Pennsylvania. According to the U.S. Census Bureau, the county has a total area of , of which is land and is water. It is Northeastern Pennsylvania's second-largest county by total area. As of ...

Pennsylvania Pennsylvania (; ( Pennsylvania Dutch: )), officially the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, is a state spanning the Mid-Atlantic, Northeastern, Appalachian, and Great Lakes regions of the United States. It borders Delaware to its southeast, ...

United States The United States of America (U.S.A. or USA), commonly known as the United States (U.S. or US) or America, is a country primarily located in North America. It consists of 50 states, a federal district, five major unincorporated territorie ...

. G.A.R. was both a

junior Junior or Juniors may refer to: Arts and entertainment Music * ''Junior'' (Junior Mance album), 1959 * ''Junior'' (Röyksopp album), 2009 * ''Junior'' (Kaki King album), 2010 * ''Junior'' (LaFontaines album), 2019 Films * ''Junior'' (1994 ...

and

senior Senior (shortened as Sr.) means "the elder" in Latin and is often used as a suffix for the elder of two or more people in the same family with the same given name, usually a parent or grandparent. It may also refer to: * Senior (name), a surname ...

public high school State schools (in England, Wales, Australia and New Zealand) or public schools (Scottish English and North American English) are generally primary or secondary schools that educate all students without charge. They are funded in whole or in pa ...

, offering education to students in grades 7–12. It was named for the

Grand Army of the Republic The Grand Army of the Republic (GAR) was a fraternal organization composed of veterans of the Union Army (United States Army), Union Navy (U.S. Navy), and the Marines who served in the American Civil War. It was founded in 1866 in Decatur, Il ...

. In 2021, it was consolidated with other high schools in the area to form Wilkes-Barre Area High School.

History

The school was built in 1925 after construction started in 1921, four years earlier. In 1978, the school district decided to make extensions to the school; this construction was completed in October 1979. The extension included a new cafeteria, gym, chorus room, and band room. The original cafeteria was demolished and turned into the faculty parking, the Girls Gym was changed into the Library and Girls Gym changing room was remodeled into the Home Ec rooms, the Boys Gym was remodeled into the Tech Ed room, the Boys Gym changing room was changed into the Woodshop room, and the chorus and band rooms were bricked off. In 2005, a weight room was added, where all students and faculty are allowed to work out from 7:30 am to 4:00 pm, Monday to Friday. In 2013, the school installed a new turf field in front of the building, replacing the old turf which was worn and damaged after years of use. The school was consolidated into Wilkes-Barre Area High School prior to the 2021–2022 school year. It is being renovated to be used as a

middle school A middle school (also known as intermediate school, junior high school, junior secondary school, or lower secondary school) is an educational stage which exists in some countries, providing education between primary school and secondary school. ...

Notable alumni

David Bohm David Joseph Bohm (; 20 December 1917 – 27 October 1992) was an American-Brazilian-British scientist who has been described as one of the most significant theoretical physicists of the 20th centuryPeat 1997, pp. 316-317 and who contributed u ...

- Quantum physicist who was involved in the Manhattan Project. * Mark James Klepaski- Bass player for the rock band

Breaking Benjamin Breaking Benjamin is an American Rock music, rock band from Wilkes-Barre, Pennsylvania, formed in 1999 by lead singer and guitarist Benjamin Burnley and drummer Jeremy Hummel. The first lineup of the band also included guitarist Aaron Fink an ...

. *

Greg Skrepenak Gregory Andrew Skrepenak (born January 31, 1970) is an American former county commissioner in Pennsylvania and retired professional football player. He was an offensive lineman in the National Football League (NFL) for the Los Angeles/Oakland R ...

- Former NFL player and former Luzerne County Commissioner. *

Sam Savitt Sam Savitt (March 22, 1917 – December 25, 2000) was an equine artist, author, and teacher, as well as an illustrator of over 130 books, in addition to his own. He was designated the official illustrator of the United States Equestrian Team, and ...

- Author and illustrator, official artist of the U.S. Equestrian Team. *

Bob Sura Robert Sura Jr. (born March 25, 1973) is an American former professional basketball player who played ten seasons for five different teams in the National Basketball Association (NBA). At , , he played as a shooting guard and point guard. Earl ...

- NBA player who last played for the

Houston Rockets The Houston Rockets are an American professional basketball team based in Houston. The Rockets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member team of the league's Western Conference Southwest Division. The team plays its ho ...

* Robert Williams - Quarterback for Notre Dame, 1956–1958 *

Maurice Peoples Maurice Peoples (born December 17, 1950) is an American former Sprint (running), sprinter. Biography He was two time American champion in the 400 metres. He also had the dubious distinction of being selected to the United States at the 1972 Su ...

- Olympic sprinter, 1972 *

Mark Glowinski Mark Glowinski II (born May 3, 1992) is an American football guard for the New York Giants of the National Football League (NFL). He played college football at West Virginia. He also played football at Lackawanna College before attending West Vi ...

- NFL player for the

New York Giants The New York Giants are a professional American football team based in the New York metropolitan area. The Giants compete in the National Football League (NFL) as a member club of the league's National Football Conference (NFC) East division. ...

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:G. A. R. Memorial Junior Senior High School 1925 establishments in Pennsylvania 2021 disestablishments in Pennsylvania Educational institutions established in 1925 Educational institutions disestablished in 2021 Public middle schools in Pennsylvania Public high schools in Pennsylvania Grand Army of the Republic Schools in Luzerne County, Pennsylvania