#tbt - A beloved old school building, a new Catholic high school, and the fire that changed local history

It was September 1952 -- around the start of the academic year -- when the twin towers of a grand old school building in downtown Middletown, Ohio, welcomed a new generation of students. 

Legendary “Middletown Journal” Reporter Alice Lawler chronicled the occasion: 

 “It’s late, at 70, to be known by a new name,” Lawler wrote in a front-page story in the September 7, 1952, Middletown Journal. “But Old South School made the switch last week to Fenwick Catholic High School and didn’t feel it a bit. In fact, it took on new vigor under its new lease on life...” (1)  

Headlined “Veteran Middletonians Smile As South School, Cradle of Education Here, Takes On New Life,” Lawler’s article continued:  

“...if the old school could speak, the christening was just what it would have liked – bustling activity of teenagers moving through its long halls and studying in its high-ceilinged rooms... (1) 

“Most important of all, Fenwick (or Old South, if you please) was needed and wanted. It had not been discarded to the junk heap and another of Middletown’s landmarks wiped out...” (1) 

She continued:  “...As Fenwick went about the business of making an impression on Middletown’s educational scene...oldsters who virtually shed tears a few months ago at the thought of losing the 70-year-old building sighed with relief that its halls would once again serve a young population...” (1) 

The old edifice had been vacated a few months before, when public school students were moved to classes in another building. That’s when devotees of the old structure became anxious about its fate. (1) 

Old South School’s admirers knew that if its walls could talk, it would produce volumes of local history.  

Built in the early 1870s, the storied structure was originally called “the Union School.” Described at the time as a “gorgeous modern building” with “three floors and twelve rooms,” it contained “a room for each grade through high school...the entire third floor...was devoted to high school use for students [of] Middletown, Madison Township, and Lemon Township...” (2) 

 “...The Union School was later named ‘Old South’ which brings fond memories to many Middletown area people. It was indeed a grand building...’” (2) 

According to MidPointe Library’s “Digital Archives:”   

“When it finally closed as a grade school, the [Old South] building was remodeled for high school use, and served ten years, 1952-1962, as the home of Fenwick High School...” (3) 

http://www.midpointedigitalarchives.org/digital/collection/Crout/id/848/rec/1 

In 1962 Fenwick students bade farewell to the old structure and moved to a new school complex in Middletown between Manchester Road and Stevens Avenue (today’s University Boulevard). The site was formerly a portion of Armco Park. Today it’s the location of St. John XXIII Catholic School.

http://www.midpointedigitalarchives.org/digital/collection/p16488coll4/id/1021/rec/3 

Three years later, Fenwick’s previous home met a tragic end. On April 23, 1965, “Old South School” became engulfed in flames and was completely destroyed.  

According to a front page article in the Middletown Journal the following day, the horrific spectacle attracted attention “for miles as flames roared from its two towers.” (4) 

City Editor Jim Mills, who wrote the article, reported that “four boys told police … they started the fire. The youths, 4, 6, 10, and 13, said they were carrying torches to light their way in the west tower and accidentally set it on fire...There were no injuries as firemen tried only to keep the fire under reasonable control...” (4) 

Interestingly, the destruction of Old South School wasn’t the only fire-related catastrophe in the news. (4) 

Sharing a front-page headline was the  “$100,000 Fire At Plant In Trenton.” The accompanying article reported that a lightning bolt had struck a storage building at Magnode Products on East State Street in Trenton. No injuries were reported.  (4) 

Today Fenwick High students attend classes and enjoy outdoor events at a spacious complex on Ohio 122, Franklin. 

What was once the location of “Old South School” is now a park on South Main Street in historic downtown Middletown.  

 

Sources: 

(1) “Veteran Middletonians Smile As South School, Cradle of Education Here, Takes On New Life” by Alice Lawler. Appears in The Sunday News Journal, September 7, 1952. Available for viewing on microfilm at MidPointe Library-Middletown or online : 

www.midpointelibrary.org > eLibrary > Resarch Databases > Newspaper Archive > Middletown Journal. 

(2) “A Brief History of the Middletown City School District – 1800 to 1987” by Norman M. Hayes. Located in the Local History and Genealogy Gallery at MidPointe Library-Middletown. Available for checkout. 

 (3) Images of Old South School and Fenwick High School (Manchester Road location) are from the MidPointe Library Digital Archives. Available for viewing at  

www.midpointelibrary.org > eLibrary > Digital Archives > Old South School (or) Fenwick High School 

(4) April 24, 1965, Middletown Journal article titled “$100,000 Fire At Plant In Trenton ; Old South School Swept By Flames.”  Available for viewing on microfilm at MidPointe Library-Middletown or via MidPointe’s eLibrary: 

www.midpointelibrary.org > eLibrary > Research Databases > Newspaper Archive > Middletown Journal 

If you’re a local history buff, you can dig the past at MidPointe Library!  

*Attend free, local history programs featuring interesting guest speakers and topics! For info, go to: 

www.midpointelibrary.org > Events 

*Use your free MidPointe Library card to check out items in the “Local History and Genealogy Gallery” at its Middletown location. (To find the Gallery, look for a replica of a popular Aeronca-made airplane suspended above). 

*Enjoy extra-special history collections in the “Ohio Room” at MidPointe-Middletown (adjacent to the Local History and Genealogy Gallery). Its items may be enjoyed on-site, but cannot be checked out. 

*Peruse MidPointe’s “Digital Archives” offering a wealth of local historical information and photos! Find the “Archives” at: 

www.midpointelibrary.org > eLibrary > Digital Archives 

For other historical items and so much more check out www.midpointelibrary.org > Catalog Search 

And... 
 
MidPointe’s voluminous eLibrary at: www.midpointelibrary.org > eLibrary