Directly across the street from my last post, this is Yates Elementary School at 1839 N Richmond. This wonderfully designed turn of the century school was opened in 1897 and has a rich and long history of doing what every school does, teaching kids the basic skills of reading, writing and arithmetic. Neighborhood schools like this seem to be disappearing at a rapid pace. Many in old neighborhoods like this have closed or consolidated over the years and the city plans to restructure its schools by the year 2010. This has caused the swallowing up of a lot of little schools in favor of performance arts type Charter schools that don't always have use for old and beautiful buildings like these.The beautiful detailed architecture seen in my photos shows off the great craftsmanship the city was once proud of in building for their public and city entities. A fancy Fiftieth Anniversary party at the school was described quite lavishly in a 1947 Chicago Tribune article "Mrs. F.T. Toft, program chairman, has arranged a gay 90s program which will include barber shop quartet singing, Floradora dancing girls and vocal solos." Gay 90s? Something tells me they are not talking about the TV show Will and Grace. After the barbershop quartet and the Floradora stuff, who would have time to listen to some boring solos?
4 comments:
This building reminds of many in the Highland Park, St. Elmo and East Chattanooga neighborhoods of Chattanooga. Despite being in the South, Chattanooga was an industrial city and riverport in the interior of the country undergoing tremendous expansion during the same era. I doubt many of the modern schools constructed since WWII will still be standing after 100 years, these buildings were built to last.
And the Floradora dancing girls. Did you ever watch "The Little Rascles/Our Gang" shorts? I remember Spanky, Alfalfa and the gang having a stage show as the "florydory" girls.
LOL! Actually I don't think I have ever seen the Our Gang shorts. I have seen plenty of others but unfortunately not Our Gang. Florydory that's so cute and something that was probably quite common back in those days when people knew the art of actual dancing unlike today.
Even though I have never been to the South (as far south as I have been was northern Kentucky), Chattanooga sounds fascinating. I have always wanted to visit South Caroline and Georgia as well. Thanks, Ken for gently nudging me to check it out. It sounds like my kind of place.
Really fantastic brownstone work, Didi! I love it when buildings of this age still being used for their original purpose.
I love it as well, Dave. Schools jus aren't built like this anymore.
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