Ogle County Newspapers / oglecountynews.com • Friday, August 14, 2020
| OGLE COUNTY NEWS
6
LOCAL HISTORY
Freshman year at OHS looked different in 1949 Editor’s note: Otto Dick, Oregon has researched the people, places and events important in the Oregon area’s history for the Ogle County Historical Society. The following is one of a series of the articles he has written.
BY OTTO DICK Thinking back things sure changed during our lifetime. My Freshman year (1949), I attended Oregon Community High School located at 10th and Madison Streets. This school was built in 1936 at a cost of $158,182. This is the approximate cost of building a home today. In 1935 the Works Progress Administration (WPA) was created by Franklin D. Roosevelt. This agency was a New Deal relief program to employ millions of jobless Americans to carry out projects like constructing bridges and buildings. The high school buildings at Oregon and Dixon were part of this program. In 1968, Oregon High School District #218, Oregon Elementary District #88 and the Chana School District combined into the Oregon Community High School District #218. In 1953, my Senior year, Mr. Kiest was our principal and Betty Brunner our secretary. The teaching staff consisted of 16 teachers and two custodians. Our graduating class consisted of 51 students (25 boys and 26 girls). This was of course before computers, guidance instructors, driver education, cell phones etc. My parents purchased our clothes for the school year from the Montgomery Ward’s Catalog. We purchased our school books from Fischer’s Book Store. We brought our lunch to school in paper sacks. There was no lunch room or cafeteria. Sports were limited compared to today. Of course there were no girl’s athletics and no athletic director. Sports consisted of football, basketball, track and field and golf. Our football schedule consisted of 6 games against South Beloit, Mt. Carroll, Mt. Morris, Polo, Lanark and Earlville. Our track and field course was a dirt track around the football field. Seating for football games was a wood bleacher built into a hill located on the east side of the field. No room was dedicated as a library. Mrs. Donaldson taught Latin and English and sponsored the Library Club. Library books were stored on the west wall of the study hall. We
Mr. Kiest was the principal of Oregon High School in 1949 and Betty Brunner was the secretary. Photo supplied by Otto Dick
LEFT: Lauren Wiseman Kloster taught English at Oregon High School. ABOVE: The main building of the Oregon High School is pictured on this post card. The school has since had several additions. Photos supplied by Otto Dick
checked outs books from the library in an alcove located at the front of the library manned by a student. I had study hall the last period of the day with Mrs. Kloster as our monitor. No student wanted to cross Mrs. Kloster. She was a tremendous and respected teacher. Miss Holmes was our chorus and orchestra instructor. Most students participated in one of the choruses
(Boys, Girls and mixed choruses). The Girls’ choruses consisted of 88 members. The storage room for our band instruments was a small room located beside the stage area in the gymnasium. The stage was our band practice area, in other words no band room. I mentioned above what Oregon High School was like when I attended from 1948 to 53. At that time we had no idea how Oregon High School and education would develop. We looked forward to attending High School in this new building.
We were excited about a gymnasium with a stage area, a football field and track facility. Industrial Arts and Agriculture programs were popular with those of us not interested in the academic curriculum. My interests during High School were all three sports, Industrial Arts and Typing. My interests centered on work before and after school. I delivered the Rockford Morning Star before school and worked evenings and weekends at Fischer’s book store and ushered at the theatre.
