1971 Burning of Crosley Elementary

On June 9, 1971, fire broke out in the copy room of Crosley Elementary School, located at 700 Natchitoches Street. Due to the interior being of wood, the fire quickly spread. Three different fire departments were called in. Before it was over, three firefighters were hurt (one seriously) and the roof and entire second floor … Continue reading 1971 Burning of Crosley Elementary →

Yearbooks Online at the Internet Archives

Another thing I have noticed is that several Ouachita Parish High School Yearbooks have been digitized here, mainly from the 1960's - 1980's. You will find Ouachita, River Oaks, Carroll, St. Frederick, West Monroe and Neville. There is even one from St. Matthew! Here is a link to Neville's yearbooks: https://archive.org/search?query=creator%3A%22Neville+High+School%22 Just search the name … Continue reading Yearbooks Online at the Internet Archives →

Ouachita Parish Rosenwald Schools

Just after the Civil War, the Freedmen's Bureau, along with local African American churches, established the first schools in the south for the formerly enslaved. After Reconstruction ended, education for African Americans in the south was woefully underfunded. Julius Rosenwald, a Jewish-American part owner of Sears Roebuck saw the need for more schools in the … Continue reading Ouachita Parish Rosenwald Schools →

Schools of Ouachita Parish in 1969

I found this map: https://www.louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A136 on the Louisiana Digital Library, which shows the sites of Ouachita Parish schools that were here in 1969. This was about when desegregation was beginning. A lot of thes schools don't exist anymore!

West Ouachita High School Almost Called Something Else

Back in 1987, a new school was being built to replace Calhoun High School. Instead of at Calhoun, it was being built in Cadeville. Some wanted to keep the name, but Cadeville residents said that wouldn't make sense. It wasn't in Calhoun anymore. A lot of Cadeville residents wanted to name it William Fenner High … Continue reading West Ouachita High School Almost Called Something Else →

A History of Swartz School – Part 3

And here are the final pages about the history of the Swartz schools from the 1966 Swartz Elementary Gator yearbook.

A History of Swartz School – Part 2

Swartz Elementary Gator Yearbook, 1966.

A History of Swartz School – Part 1

Here are the 1966 Swartz Gator yearbook pages about Swartz Schools. There are so many pages, I will have to make three posts to cover it all! Enjoy!

A History of Loch Arbor School and Colony School

You never know where you might find random bits of genealogy and history information. Who would ever think of researching the history of an area's schools in the yearbooks of a different school? I happened to randomly pull a 1966 Gator yearbook off of our shelves. It is the yearbook of Swartz Elementary School. Upon … Continue reading A History of Loch Arbor School and Colony School →

Ouachita Parish High School

This is a photograph of the original OPHS building at an angle I have never seen before! This building became the Junior High before being torn down to make way for the I 20 bridge.