|
1867 |
The
first known information relevant to the George Washington High
School site comes from action by the San Francisco Board of
Supervisors' Outside Lands Committee in 1867. The committee was
formed to "lay out streets, highways and public lands. "At that
time 36,000 square feet of what was then Block 253 were designated
as, "...for school purposes." Many years later this action was
hailed as, "the foresight of pioneers." One might wonder, though,
since this area is less than five per-cent of the school site and
was part of what was labeled, "Great Sand Waste" on the San
Francisco City and County Plot Map of 1873. |
| 1925 |
The Board of
Education purchases from the City the remaining portion of the
almost four square-block site to provide the 15.88 acres that form
today's site. The cost was $498,105.41. |
|
December 1933 |
School bonds in
the amount of $30,000 are approved and issued with the specific
intent of opening a high school in the Richmond District, which
received its name from Richmond, Australia, the hometown of early
San Francisco pioneer George Marsh. |
| July
1934 |
The Bureau of
Architecture of the Dept. of Public Works surveys the entire site.
Initial plans for the total project are submitted to the Board of
Education by Architect Timothy L. Pflueger. |
| November
1934 |
A
ground-breaking ceremony is held on what is now the Esplanade in
front of the Auditorium attended by officials of both city
government and the Board of Education. Also in November, the
architect and the Board of Education commission artist Victor
Arnautoff to perform, "three concrete high relief portraits, cast
in place, each 4' by 6', Edison (Invention), Washington
(statesman) and Shakespeare (Literature)." They are to be placed
over the main entrance to the school. |
| January
1935 |
Revisions for original
foundation plans and first floor plans of the Academic Unit are
accepted, and construction begins on forms for Building No. 685. |
| March
1935 |
The first cement is poured
into the North and South Wings of the Academic Unit. |
| October
1935 |
Initial plans for Shop Unit
are received by the Board of Education. |
| December
1935 |
Structure of all four
sections of the Academic Unit are completed. These are the
Southwest, Northwest, Main or Center and the Southeast sections. |
| February
1936 |
Structure of Shop Unit is
completed. |
| July
1936 |
Plans for the flagpole,
platform and North wall of the athletic field are approved. |
| August
1936 |
Superintendent J.P. Nourse
appoints Ernest J. Cummings as the first principal. Cummings'
previous position was as Galileo Night School principal after
having taught Latin and Greek at Lowell High. On August 23
Cummings joins Mayor Rossi, the Board of Education and the PTA in
an Open House dedication of the new $2,000,000 George Washington
High School, the city's eighth high school. The original
construction cost over $730,000; site acquisition and construction
were funded by city bonds and one-third by Federal Works Progress
Administration grants. Its site and ultimate enrollment of 3,000
students projected the school to be the largest west of the
Mississippi. Most of the newspaper clippings of the event
underscored the artistry of Victor Arnautoff's murals in the Main
Lobby. Done in the "Buon Fresco" technique, the murals required
that the artist work immediately behind the plasterers to apply
the earth colors while the lime plaster was still wet. The 1600
square feet of murals which depict scenes from the life and times
of George Washington often had Arnautoff working ten to twelve
hours a day to complete a nine foot section; ironically the murals
were completed almost a year before the school's opening. Students
first attended on Tuesday, August 25, 1936. |
| August
1937 |
The Board of Education
allocates $16,408 for an architectural study and plans for the
gymnasiums and athletic field. The estimated cost of completion is
$293,000. |
| December
1937 |
A PTA-sponsored dedication
and open house marks the opening of the shop unit which is the
last portion of the original academic unit to be ready for
classes. The occasion was celebrated by the first "Parents
Go-to-School Night." |
| January
1938 |
The plans submitted by
architect T.L. Pflueger for Building #702, "Gymnasium and Athletic
Field Unit" include provision for a portable scoreboard which was
to be plugged into the outlet at the southwest corner of the
field. The scoreboard, approximately three by four feet, was used
into the late 1950s. |
| March
1938 |
The Board of Education
approves plans and specifications for the $325,000 Auditorium Unit
and puts them out for bid opened, and General Construction and
Meyer Construction agree that the project will be finished in 301
days. Mayor Rossi uses a steam shovel to break ground for the
project. |
|
May 1939 |
Architect T.L. Pflueger
submits the plot plan and first floor plan for Building #712, the
Auditorium Unit. |
| April
1940 |
Work is begun on the
auditorium to be erected between and connected to, the Academic
Unit and the gymnasiums. Both the first physical education class
and the first dance are held in the new gymnasium. A picture taken
of the1939-40 PTA officers shows a level athletic field with
installed stands. |
| June
1940 |
In a controversy involving
the Federal Art project and Beniamano Bufano, the artist is fired
from his WPA project which was to design and cast a frieze for the
south wall of the athletic field. The board inspects and approves
the cast frieze done by Sargent Johnson, a former assistant to
Bufano. |
| Fall
1940 |
An outdoor Junior Day Rally
is the first event held in the new stadium. The Armistice Day
holiday is the occasion for the formal dedication of the athletic
field and bleachers. |
|
Summer 1942 |
Sargent Johnson's frieze is
put in place. Covering over 2500 square feet, it is composed of
four by six foot panels depicting both ancient and modern sports.
The frieze carries the theme of the Olympics and overall style of
Bufano's original concept. |
|
May 1946 |
The student body, led by the
class of '46 dedicated the clock hanging in the Main Hall outside
the office "To Memorialize George Washington High School Boys Who
Gave Their Lives in World War II That We Might Live. December 7,
1941 - August 15, 1945." |
|
June 1949 |
As required by Department of
Public Works regulations, a fireproof Canvas and Asbestos
Emergency Curtain is installed between the stage and the audience. |
|
February 1951 |
Plans for the Music Unit
Addition are submitted by architect Milton T. Pflueger to the City
and Board of Education. Upon acceptance work will begin on the
final segment of the original plan for George Washington High,
Project No. 35. |
| June
1956 |
Major interior painting is
begun in the Academic and Shop Units, and the stadium bleachers
are to be stripped and covered with three coats of paint. |
| August
1958 |
Plans for the "Improvement to
the Athletic Field, Track and Storage Shed" are submitted and
finally approved in December of '58. The title of this
undertaking, Project No. 119, is misleading since prior to 1959
there was no field, no track, no goal posts and no shed on the
south field. Mr. Bill Magner, former track coach and then chairman
of the Industrial Arts Department, was the on-site liaison for the
project and on more than a few occasions noted errors on the plans
regarding curbing, header boards and the retaining wall in the
south-west corner which were corrected before actual construction.
he track was used for the 1960 Track Season. |
|
October 1960 |
Bleachers were installed
south of Veterans' Court and overlooking the western end of
track's north straightway. |
| 1962 |
During the summer two
portable classrooms were moved from West Portal Elementary to
Veterans' Court probably ending forever hopes for the swimming
pool that had been located there in early planning. |
| January
1963 |
As the school population
swelled, three more portable classrooms were placed between the
faculty parking lot and track field. These are the three
easternmost which are now numbered T3, T4, and T5. |
| 1964 |
In April the Homemaking
Facilities in Room 114 are rehabilitated, and during the summer
the floors of both Gyms are re-marked and re-finished. Plans are
completed and accepted for complete exterior painting of all
buildings. As part of the first district-planned maintenance
program, most west-facing windows are replaced, plumbing in the
Academic Unit is provided with series E-8 automatic sprinklers. |
| 1965 |
In April the western-most
portable is moved to the Faculty Parking lot from Ulloa School. It
is now T6. |
| 1966 |
Plans for rehabilitation of
the Electric Shop (Sh.3) are accepted. |
| 1967 |
Plans for rehabilitation of
ROTC facility, at this time Rooms 8 and 9, are accepted. |
| 1968 |
A portable classroom is moved
from Diamond Heights and installed East of the Gym near the back
gate. It is now T1. |
| January
1969 |
Incidental exterior repairs
and painting are approved. |
| 1970 |
Remodeling of Shop 6 for use
in the Pre-Tech program is begun. |
| January
1971 |
The original lighting board
on stage is replaced along with the original large cement dimmers
in the basement. |
| April
1972 |
The main boilers in the
basement of the Academic Unit are converted to gas-firing boilers.
The tennis courts are resurfaced. |
| 1974 |
The Dewey Crumpler murals are
installed at the west end of the Main Hall. These murals result
from objection to Artnautoff's murals in the Main Lobby and
represent a "mutually acceptable" end to the lengthy protests of
the late '60's. The murals consist of a Latin and Native American
panel, the Asian panel and the Black panel. |
| 1980 |
Both gym floors are
reconfigured according to the specifications of Job No. 80.15,
Joseph Chow, Architect. |
| 1981 |
Entire Cafeteria reconfigured
and retrofitted. Faculty lunchroom moved to the south end. Job No.
81-2, Roger Chinn, Architect. |
| Spring
1982 |
Art teacher Carol Gadas has
senior art students design the first "Class of" murals to cover
the East Wing of the main building (Room 138 to 141). Each
succeeding class has followed the tradition by designing a mural
to represent their years at Washington. The first mural by the
Class of '82 has been moved to the west balcony of the Gyms. |
| March
1983 |
On St. Patrick's Day a group
of faculty and administration gathered at a reception in what had
been Room 236 to dedicate the Edward Gorham Computer Center. Prior
to his death Ed Gorham had been a physics teacher and one of the
committee which had worked for two years to get computers at
Washington. The later-to-be expanded facility was funded by the
first of the site-initiated "Computer Walks" in the Spring of
1982. The committee, which did all the painting, most of the
lobbying and some of the carpentry consisted of Principal Vidal,
Vice-Principals Armendia and McKenna and faculty members Gorham,
Freethy, Ferrero, Raab, Lai and Mo. |
| April
1984 |
A Committee of Faculty,
Administration, Alumni and PTA gathered with friends and family
for the dedication of the A.E. Lubamersky Industrial Arts Center a
year after his death. "Lube" had been a machine shop teacher,
football coach and vice-principal at Washington from 1954 to 1981
and at the time of his death in April, 1983 was vice-principal at
Wilson High. Industrial Arts Department Head Jim Yates, with
Alumni and PTA support, led the cause for Board approval of the
naming of the Shop Building. In a fashion that would make the
honoree happy, the letters were purchased and actually mounted by
a group of former students, colleagues and family. (See video in
Principal's Office) |
| June
1984 |
The second two portable
classrooms are moved into Veteran's Court. They are now B3 and B4.
The Gorham Computer Center is expanded and refurbished by the
District to provide further security, more grounded plugs, rugs
and a central control room. The center then covered what had been
Rooms 236 and 237. |
| July
1984 |
As a result of advocacy by
PTA President Carol Feminia, the tennis courts were re-done with a
multi-colored artificial surface and added bleachers. Since the
previous resurfacing had lasted only briefly, safety was a
consideration in having the District fund the $50,000 cost of the
new surface. |
| May
1989 |
The Bid for Proposition One
major reconstruction is set. |
| Spring
1990 |
Major reconstruction begins.
Since portions of the building must be vacated, a dozen new
portables are moved onto the upper and lower courts to conduct
classes. Large sections of the campus are fenced off. Barnes
Construction are the contractors with Hardison, Komatsu, Ivelich
and Tucker the Architects. The major effort is in Handicapped
Ramps and Bathrooms and in Asbestos Abatement. Partitions are
placed for individual counselors' officers in a refitting of the
entire counseling office. The Food Services facility in Room 114
is remodeled. New offices are built between the Boys and Girls
Gyms, and both offices are connected. The original large partition
between gyms is removed and replaced by a retractable canvas
partition to allow full court basketball games running east and
west. The $16 million project began in Spring of '90 and finished
in Spring of '92. |
| 1992 |
On May 1 a groundbreaking
ceremony was held to dedicate a new artificial surface track on
the South Field as "The Don Barksdale Track." The school provided
$43,000 for the track, Save School Sports $60,000, and with the
remainder to the District. (See video in Principal's Office) The
track installation was finished by November of 1992. |
|
Fall 1995 |
Mr. Donald Mitchell appointed
principal of George Washington High School. |
|
Fall 1998 |
Ms. Camile Morishige
appointed principal of George Washington High School. |
|
Fall 1999 |
George Washington High School
receives 6 year accreditation by the Western Association of
Secondary Schools (WASC). School receives Digital High School
Grant from the California State Department of Education. |
|
Fall 2000 |
Mr. Andrew W. Ishibashi
appointed principal of George Washington High School. |
|
Fall 2007 |
Mrs. Ericka Lovrin appointed
principal of George Washington High School. |
