Harrisburg telegraph. [volume] (Harrisburg, Pa.) 1879-1948, 1919-09-08
Earrntug Gllat

1t is not generally known that
the Technical High school, which
is now more or less In daily con-
versation because of the plan to
ultimately turn it into a Junior high
school, occupies a site that has
probably been in continuous use for
educational purposes longer than
any other school property in Harris
burg. The building is the third
school building to stand on the site
and 1t has very interesting local
history as an educational point
Harrisburg was one of the places
where the Lancasterian school sys-
tenn, so called from an Englishman
VINO started 1t. according to educat-
ors, was tried out in PENNSYLVANIA.
This system really led to the founda-
tion of the present public school sys-
tenn of the Commonwealth and had
great vogue in the twenties. The
Legislature recognized it and made
grants for trials at various places,
Harrisburg being among the first
The Dauphin county commissioners,
who then made appropriations for
schools, also contributed and like
wise gave the use of a room in the
court house where in 1927 the frst
school was opened. 1t was a sue
cess for a time and through appro-
priations by the borough and the
county the school building knor
to older residents as the Lancas.
ian. then as the North Ward p
finally as the Dewitt school w.
built. Samuel Bryan had the con-
tract and it cost $425G which was
pretty big sum for those days,
but small in these times of half
million dollar structures for schools
1t was occupied in the fall of 1929,
Just ninety years ago. The records
of the county commissioners about
this time shed an interesting light
on the teachers salaries of those
days because William c. jerks, who
was the teacher and who made it
go, was advanced from $3.50 to $500
per year. Later on the school dis
trlct, when organized, took over the
school and called it the North Ward
school where in the forties and fifties
many Harrisburg boy and girl
learned to recite the Declaration.
BY and by the Dewitt name was
given to the school and it was en-
larged and improved, being a model
high school came into being and
the old building served for q time
as an entrance into the newer part
and then gave way to the present
fine structure. With this record the
corner has ninety years of continuous
school service = its credit.
A friend who is interested in the
development of markets in this city
suggests that the old market house
which stood in Market Square until
the late eighties were the second
pair to occupy that site. He writes
that the first buildings were merely
sheds and that they were torn down
and the market houses which many
residents of the city recall visiting
on frosty mornings were erected in
the thirties. 1t would be interesting
to ascertain the date. In early Har-
risburg times Market Square vas
little better than. swamp and there
was much complaint about the water
that used to gather after every rain
and sarcastic references to duck
boards" fill early newspapers. The
place was drained before George
Washington visited here and prob
ably about that time some sheds
were erected to shelter the farmers
who came in with their produce.
Early records tell of appropriations
by town council for their repair.
Celebration of Lafayette day in
Philadelphia on Saturday In connec-
ton with the gathering of the
Knights Templar for the conclave
recalls that the marquis visited Har-
risburg in 1925. He came here Jan
uary 80 and the newspapers of the
fnII nf s-tN
cluding receptions, banquets,, visits
to the Capitol, where the Legisla-
ture welcomed him, a parade and II
visit to Perseverance Lodge of Ma
sons.
A couple of men interested in
schools were talking about new
forms of instruction which are much
in vogue just now and one remark
ed that he was glad that safety
first" was going to be taught in
the schools under a new law. A
second man said that he thought
schools there should be included
boxing because owing to the army
training it had taken on an entirely
new form and was now out of the
professional class. well, we have
them both in our school body now
observed a third man. IT saw two
boys boxing in front of a school and
when one went after the other too
hard he fell back on safety first
and did some tall slugging."
When it comes down to the popu-
larity of the Susquehanna on Sun
day one has only to note the num-
Der of youngsters who go swimming,
the canoes and the boats that dot
its surface. 1t Is not so many years
ago that Sunday swimming meant
having guards to give warning of ap-
proach of policemen and a canoe was
a curiosity.
Just as an idea of the expense
the State Is put to holding Public
Service hearings II may be said that
an examiner was sent to Ebensburg
to hold series of hearings and it
developed that ten complained OF
as running JItneys were just taking
their friends for a ride and that in
another case a young man had bor-
rowed his fathers car and taken a
party for a ride. On the ride the
gasoline gave out and the crowd
"chucked in" to buy more On that
a complaint of running a jitney