page_title: Santa Monica High School
section_title: History
hierarchical_section_title: Santa Monica High School / History
caption_attribution_description: English: From postcard captioned Santa Monica High School
context_page_description: Santa Monica High School, officially abbreviated to SAMOHI, is located in Santa Monica, California. Founded in 1891, it changed location several times in its early years before settling into its present campus at 601 Pico Boulevard. It is a part of the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District.
context_section_description: In 1891, the Union High School Law was passed in Santa Monica, thereby establishing a four-year high school for the city. The first graduating class graduated in 1894. The "new" campus opened in 1912 with one building, the current History Building, with an enrollment of 50 students. The school sits on the hilltop between 4th and 7th streets and Pico and Olympic Blvds., from which one can see the Pacific Ocean. Ten years later the campus was expanded with construction of the English building. In 1921, the Open Air Memorial Theater (now called the Greek Amphitheatre) was built to honor the Santa Monicans who served in World War I. One of the best examples of the classical Greek style in Southern California, the amphitheater was built after Santa Monica passed a $30,000 bond measure to fund its construction. Barnum Hall Theater, originally called "the Auditorium," was built in 1937 by the Works Progress Administration (WPA) to be the Civic Auditorium of Santa Monica and host school events as well. The campus also added six buildings during this period: the Language, English, Business, History, Administration and Music Buildings.
  In 1952, Santa Monica High School was finally expanded to what it is now, 33 acres (130,000 m²), and two new buildings were built, the Science and Technology D.M. Buildings. As the school aged, renovations took place in Barnum Hall and the Music Building was completely rebuilt. As of February 2015, a new Science and Technology Building — known as the Innovation Building — has been constructed along with an outdoor gathering space called Centennial Plaza. On September 10, 2015, during "Back to School Night" the Innovation Building was unveiled to the public.
caption: Postcard photo c. 1919
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