Campbell High School (Campbell, California)

Campbell High School was the first high school to open in the Campbell Union High School District. The school was established on September 14, 1900, in Campbell, California. It is also sometimes called Campbell Union High School, and the abbreviation can be found both as CHS or CUHS.

After 80 years, the school was closed in June 1980 due to declining enrollment at the school and within the district. [http://www.svcn.com/archives/campbellreporter/12.19.01/campus-0151.html] The campus was purchased by the city of Campbell on August 1, 1985, and is now used as a community center. [http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us/heritagetheatre/history.htm]

History

Campbell Union High School opened its doors as part of the district in 1900, with a registration of 35 students, consisting of 23 girls and 12 boys. Two teachers were hired to educate the students: Professor E. A. Powers and Miss J. M. Newton. It was on the second floor of Campbell's Grammar School. The first graduating class was one student, Charles Beardsley, who went on to Stanford and became a lawyer, thus proving Campbell Union High School's academic merit. [http://www.campbell.net/history/index.shtml]

By 1904, Principal Fred Smith had gotten the school moved to a new (bigger) building on the southeast corner of Winchester and Campbell Avenues. In 1936, they built again, on the northwest corner of the same intersection, where the buildings still are today. [http://www.campbell.net/history/index.shtml]

In 1938, the auditorium of the Campbell Union High School was built, with Work Project Administration funds and the design of William H. Weeks. It is now commonly known as the Heritage Theater. Over the course of its forty years as part of the school, it is estimated that 20,000 students performed there. [http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us/heritagetheatre/history.htm]

Larry Hill, (a.k.a. Laurance J. Hill), Campbell's principal beginning in 1946, and a superintendent of the Campbell Union High School District until 1969, is credited with much of the district's growth and planning in his years in office. An award in his name is given out every year at each high school in the district.

Campbell High School, although the namesake school of the district, was closed in 1982, because of declining enrollment in the area and in the district. Westmont and Del Mar's attendance boundaries subsequently expanded to pick up the slack. On August 1, 1985, after some negotiating, the city of Campbell purchased the campus, including the historic Heritage Theater, and it became the Campbell Community Center. [http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us/heritagetheatre/history.htm]

Principals

* Professor J. Fred Smith (1900-1912)
* Irving W. Snow (1912-1920)
* D. H. Cramer (1920-1934)
* Lloyd K. Wood (1934-1938)
* Willard H. Van Dyke (1938-1944)
* James W. Dent (1944-1946)
* Laurance J. Hill (1946-1969) Principal and Superintendent
* Sam Reed (1955-1961)
* Robert Culp (1961-1969)
* Robert Peck (1969-1974)
* Roland Baldwin (1974-1980)

Notable alumni

Notable alumni of Campbell High School include:
* Donald D. Chamberlin, Ph.D., Computer scientist, one of the principal designers of the SQL database query language.
* Don Hahn, former major league outfielder from 1969 to 1975; played for the Montreal Expos, New York Mets, Philadelphia Phillies, St. Louis Cardinals and San Diego Padres
* Dudley R. Herschbach Ph.D., Nobel Prize winning chemist
* Craig Morton, professional football player
* Emil M. Mrak, Ph.D., Chancellor, University of California at Davis

Current Use

The Campbell Community Center

The Heritage Theater, formerly the high school's auditorium, was reopened after renovations in 2004. Many local performance groups, including high schools in the CUHSD, rent the Heritage for various noteworty performances. The list of upcoming events being held there can be found [http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us/heritagetheatre/events.htm here] . The rest of the Community Center holds classes, and portions are available to be rented for various purposes, including large meeting halls, office space, and outdoor facilities. [http://www.ci.campbell.ca.us/Recreation/communitycenter/index.htm]

References

* Miskulin, George F. "A History of The Campbell Union High School District (1900-1988)". pp. 25-26.
* [http://www.campbell.net/history/index.shtml Campbell's High Schools Pass the Century Mark] , Campbell.net, reprint from the Campbell Reporter newspaper (October 25, 2000)