Evening star. [volume] (Washington, D.C.) 1854-1972, 1908-03-12
SUMMARY OF REPORTS
Superintendent Points Out
Conditions at Schools.
DANGER IN EVENT .oF@FlRE
,ome Buildings Have Only Single
- :, Stairway ~. !: e..
STRUCTURES STOVE, HEATED
Deficiencies Of Rented Quarters:
willing Spirit Of Cooperation
of Officers and Teachers.
STRUCTURES STOVE, HEATED


cation. report in reference to the con-
ditions at school buildings in the event
of fire.
Supt. Stuart explains that conditions at
the Cranch. Garfield. Mccormick, Ben
nlnc. Potomac. Burrvile and High Street
buildings. are especially dangerous. He
also names other structures in which, ne
thinks. changes are desirable.
The report points out that the attention
of, the District authorities was called in
1904 TO the existence Of wooden stairways
IN many buildings and recommendation
was then made that they be replaced
with iron or stone. Many of these stair
ways>remain as before. it is added.
Statement of Superintendent.
The statement of Supt. Stuart is as
follows: II have the honor to transmit
TO YOU for the information of the board
of education a summary OF the reports
OF the supervising principals and princi-
pals of high schools. in response to certain
inquiries relative to the safety OF school
buildings in the event ct fire. The foi-
lowing facts are shown in regard 10
school buildings owned by the District:
'Two-story Frame Buildings WIN Wooo-
en- Stairways.-Six-room building. Garneid.
Four-room buildings, Chevy Chase. Resef-
vor. Birney annex. Langdon and Keno
THo-room building, Burrville Used Dy
grade classes and for manual training.
Johnson annex. four rooms. Used lot
manual training only. four rooms, High
Street and Hillsdale.
One-story Frame Buildngs.-Two rooms
Benning Road Ivy City, Congress
Heights annex. Military Road. One ROOM
conduit Road. Good Hope. Tenley annex,
Fort Slocum and Chain Bridge Road
With Two Wooden Stairways.
Brick Buildings with Two wooden
Stairways-Eight-room buildings, Banne-
ker. Logan. Ambush. Giddings, Phelps,
Powers, Ainidon, Jackson, Madison, Blair.
f:-ishtwood. Monroe. Takoma. Tenley,
B,ake. Carbery, Magruder. Phillips,
Wormley. Van Buren,. The Brookland. a
iwelve-room building, has wooden stair
ways in the old part and slate stairs IN
the new part. The Mott, ten-room
building is part wood and part brick. with
wooden stairways. The Cranch, although
having fireproof stairs In the new part.
had left in it an old, steep and dangerous
wooden stairway.
Tho Thompson and Van Buren, Annex
areathree-story buildings. with two classes
on each floor, aud heated by furnaces.
The stairs are fireproof. The Dent. new
eisht-roon building. has but one stair tai,
way leading to the second floor This
stairway, while fireproof. Jig steep and
slippery. with narrow treads and high
risers. The. Potomac. Threlkeld. Hamit-
ton. Mccormick WOODBURY.. Benning.
Iangdon. Reservoir, Chevy Chase. Birney
Annex. B. B. French. Garfield, Burvilie
and Hillsdale have each single wooden
stairway.
Regarded as Especially Bad.
Those of Garfield. Mccormick. Benning.
Potomac and Burrville are especially bad
r6alA 10 al fra
ture. with only one stairway and front
door opening inward. This is very
dangerous condition.
- The Berret is a three-story, nine-room
building, with only one stairway. which.
however. il fireproof.
The Johnson Annex is a frame building
with two wooden stairways. The doors
leading from the schoolroOms to the
stairways open inward. The rooms are
heated by stoves. A cooking school, a
manual training shop, kindergarten and
a sixth grade class occupy this building.
Arrangements are being made to rent
s,orerooms in the neighhorhood for the
manual training and cooking schools, SO
as to place the two remaining classes
on the first floor.
High Street building is four-room
frame structure. used foG manual train
ing only. 1t is old, out of repair and
dangerous.
Heated by Stoves.
Buildings heated by stoves: Johnson
Annex. Potomac. High Street, Threlkeld,
Benning. Van Buren, Annex, Benning
Road. Bunker Hill Road. Military Road.
Hillsdale, Conduit Road: Good Hope, old
building on Langdon site, Chain Bridge
Road. Hamilton. Burrville, Ivy City, Fort
Slocum. Garfield and Mott.
Under date of January 49, 1904. I re-
ported to the board of education. through
inEs. all the conditions recited above and
certain others. My report. copy of
which append was duly received by the
board of education and January Is, 1904
transmitted to the Commissioners, with
certain recommendations. among them
the necessity of replacing all wooden
stairways as soon as possible with iron
ar stone and calling attention TO the
Importance OF the estimate OF 5000 for
extending the telephone service to every
scFoolhouse as an additional protection
against fire.
-. Results Of Action.
AS a result Of this action Of the board
OF education. the Commissioners succeed
ed in securing an appropriation for replac-
ing the wooden stairways in the Thomson.
Cook. Randall and Van Buren, annex, with
fireproof stairways. and obtained appro-
priations from time to time which have
made It possible to connect all our school
buildings with satisfactory telephone
service.
With the exceptions noted however
none OF the wooden stairways has been
removed and none OF the frame buildings
abandoned, for lack Of necessary appro-
priations.
Il have recited briefly the chief condi-
: lions in our schools which constitute eie-
ments of danger to the pupils in at
tendance upon the buildings named. These
conditions should be remedied at the ear
lest possible moment.
Desire to Be Fair.
I'm justice to the boards of education
ard tie District Commissioners. past and
present vino have been responsible for
tie material conditions of the schools. it
5 oniy fair that the public should know.
First. That the buildings insufficientIy
protected from fire are few compared
WITT the whole number of school build
if2s. and have been continued in use
lily because OF sheer inability to secure
eiier quarters.
Second. All the buildings IN wnic', ara
;.s.enblsd large numbers of pupils III
>t;:d.lg tie high schools. are provided
W :, s.fsproof stairways and ample exits.
s IS ne of all OF the eiPht-room
buildings. except those noted, and ali OF
the larger ones. The high schools. In
which are housed the greater number OF
pupils are each provided with several
ron or slate stairways and numerous
exits.
.Tri-d Few of our buildings are o.