Jump to content

Messick High School: Difference between revisions

Add links
Coordinates: 35°06′43″N 89°57′15″W / 35.11184°N 89.95405°W / 35.11184; -89.95405
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Browse history interactively
← Previous edit
Content deleted Content added
VisualWikitext
No edit summary
Tags: Visual edit Mobile edit Mobile web edit
 
(13 intermediate revisions by 11 users not shown)
Line 1: Line 1:
{{Use mdy dates|date=April 2024}}
'''Messick High School''' was a [[public high school]] in [[Memphis, Tennessee]], established in 1908 and operated from 1909 to 1981.<ref name=flyer>Vance Lauderdale. The Messick school mascot is the Golden Wildcats.[http://www.memphisflyer.com/AskVanceBlog/archives/2009/10/20/elizabeth-messick-and-messick-high-school Elizabeth Messick and Messick High School], ''[[Memphis Flyer]]'', October 20, 2009</ref> The main building was demolished in 1982, but [[Memphis City Schools]] uses some other former Messick facilities to house the '''Messick Adult Education Center'''.<ref name=flyer/><ref name=1969history>[http://www.messick1969.net/history.html History of Messick], Messick Class of '69 Reunion Committee website, accessed January 6, 2011</ref><ref>[http://www.mcsk12.net/admin/communications/dept_curriculum/careers_tech/adulteducation.htm Messick Adult Education Center] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080205050406/http://www.mcsk12.net/admin/communications/Dept_Curriculum/Careers_Tech/adulteducation.htm |date=2008-02-05 }}, Memphis City Schools website, accessed January 6, 2011</ref>
'''Messick High School''' was a [[public high school]] in [[Memphis, Tennessee]], established in 1908 and operated from 1909 to 1981.<ref name=flyer>Vance Lauderdale. The Messick school mascot is the Golden Wildcats.[http://www.memphisflyer.com/AskVanceBlog/archives/2009/10/20/elizabeth-messick-and-messick-high-school Elizabeth Messick and Messick High School], ''[[Memphis Flyer]]'', October 20, 2009</ref> The main building was demolished in 1982, but [[Memphis City Schools]] uses some other former Messick facilities to house the '''Messick Adult Education Center'''.<ref name=flyer/><ref name=1969history>[http://www.messick1969.net/history.html History of Messick], Messick Class of '69 Reunion Committee website, accessed January 6, 2011</ref><ref>[http://www.mcsk12.net/admin/communications/dept_curriculum/careers_tech/adulteducation.htm Messick Adult Education Center] {{webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20080205050406/http://www.mcsk12.net/admin/communications/Dept_Curriculum/Careers_Tech/adulteducation.htm |date=February 5, 2008 }}, Memphis City Schools website, accessed January 6, 2011</ref>


Messick High School was built by [[Shelby County, Tennessee|Shelby County]] to consolidate three elementary schools.<ref name=1969history/><ref name=1948annual>[http://messickhigh.org/history.html Messick History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727081134/http://messickhigh.org/history.html |date=2011-07-27 }}, Messick High Schools Classes of 1951 and 1952 website. History "compiled from 1948 annual"; retrieved January 6, 2011.</ref> It was a full 12 grade school until 1912 when the high school grades 9-12 were moved to the new and nearby West Tennessee Normal School (Now U of M) to train teachers. After that Messick School included only elementary grades, but a high school building was added in the 1920s and all 12 school grades were enrolled as of 1924.<ref name=heritage>Susan M. Mascolino, [https://web.archive.org/web/20050302224737/http://memphisheritage.org/MHIHost/HistNeigh-Messick-Buntyn.html Cultural Resources Survey of Messick-Buntyn and Orange Mound East Memphis, TN], Conducted by Memphis Heritage, Inc. for the Memphis Landmarks Commission, July 2003</ref> At the time of its construction, the school was in a rural area of Shelby County called Buntyn, Tennessee, where [[truck farm]]ing was a major economic activity.<ref name=1969history/>
Messick High School was built by [[Shelby County, Tennessee|Shelby County]] to consolidate three elementary schools.<ref name=1969history/><ref name=1948annual>[http://messickhigh.org/history.html Messick History] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20110727081134/http://messickhigh.org/history.html |date=July 27, 2011 }}, Messick High Schools Classes of 1951 and 1952 website. History "compiled from 1948 annual"; retrieved January 6, 2011.</ref> It was a full 12 grade school until 1912 when the high school grades 9-12 were moved to the new and nearby West Tennessee Normal School (Now U of M) to train teachers. After that Messick School included only elementary grades, but a high school building was added in the 1920s and all 12 school grades were enrolled as of 1924.<ref name=heritage>Susan M. Mascolino, [https://web.archive.org/web/20050302224737/http://memphisheritage.org/MHIHost/HistNeigh-Messick-Buntyn.html Cultural Resources Survey of Messick-Buntyn and Orange Mound East Memphis, TN], Conducted by Memphis Heritage, Inc. for the Memphis Landmarks Commission, July 2003</ref> At the time of its construction, the school was in a rural area of Shelby County called Buntyn, Tennessee, where [[truck farm]]ing was a major economic activity.<ref name=1969history/>


The school was named for Elizabeth Messick (1876-1951), a [[University of Chicago]] graduate who was [[school superintendent|superintendent]] of [[Shelby County Schools (Tennessee)|Shelby County Schools]] from 1904 to 1908<ref name=flyer/><ref name=1948annual/> and who had been criticized for spending $30,000 to build the new high school.<ref name=1969history/> Messick later married ''[[Memphis Commercial Appeal]]'' journalist Elmer E. Houck and used the name Elizabeth Messick Houck.<ref name=flyer/><ref name=1969history/><ref name=1948annual/>
The school was named for Elizabeth Messick (1876-1951), a [[University of Chicago]] graduate who was [[school superintendent|superintendent]] of [[Shelby County Schools (Tennessee)|Shelby County Schools]] from 1904 to 1908<ref name=flyer/><ref name=1948annual/> and who had been criticized for spending $30,000 to build the new high school.<ref name=1969history/> Messick later married ''[[Memphis Commercial Appeal]]'' journalist Elmer E. Houck and used the name Elizabeth Messick Houck.<ref name=flyer/><ref name=1969history/><ref name=1948annual/>
Line 7: Line 8:
In its rural location, some early students lived too far from the school to walk there, so they were transported to school in [[horse]]- or [[mule]]-drawn [[wagon]]s.<ref name=1969history/> Initially, lunches were provided by students' mothers who brought hot meals to the school at mid-day. With time, Messick became the first school in [[West Tennessee]] to have a school [[cafeteria]].<ref name=1969history/>
In its rural location, some early students lived too far from the school to walk there, so they were transported to school in [[horse]]- or [[mule]]-drawn [[wagon]]s.<ref name=1969history/> Initially, lunches were provided by students' mothers who brought hot meals to the school at mid-day. With time, Messick became the first school in [[West Tennessee]] to have a school [[cafeteria]].<ref name=1969history/>


Residential subdivisions grew up in the surrounding area in the 1920s.<ref name=heritage/> In 1930 Messick left the county school system, and became part of the Memphis City Schools system.<ref name=1948annual/> Much additional residential development occurred in the area in the late 1940s, after [[World War II]] ended. By the 1970s, however, the neighborhood was losing population and Messick's enrollment declined. In the 1970s Messick high school also had kindergarten classes. The city school board voted to close the school.<ref name=heritage/> The graduating class of 1981 was Messick's last, and the school's main building was demolished in 1982.<ref name=1969history/><ref name=heritage/>
Residential subdivisions grew up in the surrounding area in the 1920s.<ref name=heritage/> In the 1930s, Messick became part of the [[Memphis City Schools|Memphis City Schools system]].<ref name=1948annual/><ref>{{Cite web|first=Cole |last=Bradley |date=January 31, 2019|title=The past and possibility of old Messick High|url=https://www.highgroundnews.com/features/MessickHigh.aspx|access-date=May 24, 2021|website=High Ground|language=en}}</ref> Much additional residential development occurred in the area in the late 1940s, after [[World War II]] ended. By the 1970s, however, the neighborhood was losing population and Messick's enrollment declined. In the 1970s, Messick high school also had kindergarten classes.{{Citation needed|date=February 2021}} The city school board voted to close the school.<ref name=heritage/> The graduating class of 1981 was Messick's last, and the school's main building was demolished in 1982.<ref name=1969history/><ref name=heritage/>


==Notable alumni==
==Notable alumni==
*[[Packy Axton]], American musician<ref>{{Cite news |url=https://www.newspapers.com/clip/110736726/charles-axton-dies-at-age-32-21-jan/ |title=Charles Axton Dies at Age 32 |date=January 21, 1974 |newspaper=The Memphis Press-Scimitar |page=21 |via=[[Newspapers.com]] |access-date=October 4, 2022}}{{Open access}}</ref>

*[[Dick Davis (defensive end)|Dick Davis]], American football player
*[[Dick Davis (defensive end)|Dick Davis]], American football player
*[[Ted Davis (American football)|Ted Davis]], American football player
*[[Ted Davis (American football)|Ted Davis]], American football player
*[[Donald "Duck" Dunn]], bass guitarist and song writer
*[[Donald "Duck" Dunn]], bass guitarist and song writer
*[[William Fones]], Tennessee Supreme Court Justice
*[[William Fones]], Tennessee Supreme Court Justice
*[[Steve Owens (Arizona politician)|Steve Owens]], chair of the Tennessee Democratic Party
*[[Michael Pearl]], minister
*[[Michael Pearl]], minister
*[[Ruth Welting]], operatic soprano
*[[Ruth Welting]], operatic soprano
Line 23: Line 25:
{{reflist}}
{{reflist}}


{{coord|35.11184|-89.95405|type:edu_globe:earth_region:US-TN|display=title}}
{{coord missing|Tennessee}}


[[Category:Schools in Memphis, Tennessee]]
[[Category:High schools in Memphis, Tennessee]]
[[Category:Educational institutions established in 1908]]
[[Category:Educational institutions established in 1908]]
[[Category:Educational institutions disestablished in 1981]]
[[Category:Educational institutions disestablished in 1981]]

Latest revision as of 20:12, 20 November 2024

Messick High School was a public high school in Memphis, Tennessee, established in 1908 and operated from 1909 to 1981.[1] The main building was demolished in 1982, but Memphis City Schools uses some other former Messick facilities to house the Messick Adult Education Center.[1][2][3]

Messick High School was built by Shelby County to consolidate three elementary schools.[2][4] It was a full 12 grade school until 1912 when the high school grades 9-12 were moved to the new and nearby West Tennessee Normal School (Now U of M) to train teachers. After that Messick School included only elementary grades, but a high school building was added in the 1920s and all 12 school grades were enrolled as of 1924.[5] At the time of its construction, the school was in a rural area of Shelby County called Buntyn, Tennessee, where truck farming was a major economic activity.[2]

The school was named for Elizabeth Messick (1876-1951), a University of Chicago graduate who was superintendent of Shelby County Schools from 1904 to 1908[1][4] and who had been criticized for spending $30,000 to build the new high school.[2] Messick later married Memphis Commercial Appeal journalist Elmer E. Houck and used the name Elizabeth Messick Houck.[1][2][4]

In its rural location, some early students lived too far from the school to walk there, so they were transported to school in horse- or mule-drawn wagons.[2] Initially, lunches were provided by students' mothers who brought hot meals to the school at mid-day. With time, Messick became the first school in West Tennessee to have a school cafeteria.[2]

Residential subdivisions grew up in the surrounding area in the 1920s.[5] In the 1930s, Messick became part of the Memphis City Schools system.[4][6] Much additional residential development occurred in the area in the late 1940s, after World War II ended. By the 1970s, however, the neighborhood was losing population and Messick's enrollment declined. In the 1970s, Messick high school also had kindergarten classes.[citation needed] The city school board voted to close the school.[5] The graduating class of 1981 was Messick's last, and the school's main building was demolished in 1982.[2][5]

Notable alumni

[edit]

References

[edit]
  1. ^ a b c d Vance Lauderdale. The Messick school mascot is the Golden Wildcats.Elizabeth Messick and Messick High School, Memphis Flyer, October 20, 2009
  2. ^ a b c d e f g h History of Messick, Messick Class of '69 Reunion Committee website, accessed January 6, 2011
  3. ^ Messick Adult Education Center Archived February 5, 2008, at the Wayback Machine, Memphis City Schools website, accessed January 6, 2011
  4. ^ a b c d Messick History Archived July 27, 2011, at the Wayback Machine, Messick High Schools Classes of 1951 and 1952 website. History "compiled from 1948 annual"; retrieved January 6, 2011.
  5. ^ a b c d Susan M. Mascolino, Cultural Resources Survey of Messick-Buntyn and Orange Mound East Memphis, TN, Conducted by Memphis Heritage, Inc. for the Memphis Landmarks Commission, July 2003
  6. ^ Bradley, Cole (January 31, 2019). "The past and possibility of old Messick High". High Ground. Retrieved May 24, 2021.
  7. ^ "Charles Axton Dies at Age 32". The Memphis Press-Scimitar. January 21, 1974. p. 21. Retrieved October 4, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.Open access icon

35°06′43″N 89°57′15″W / 35.11184°N 89.95405°W / 35.11184; -89.95405

Retrieved from "https://en.wikipedia.org/enwiki/w/index.php?title=Messick_High_School&oldid=1258637299"