A List of Past Principals of Ouachita Parish High School

I got curious last week and decided to compile a list of all the Principals who have served OPHS. I started all the way back in 1894 when the Original High School was being built and worked my way to the current day. I am unsure of the modern principals' tenure years, but I am … Continue reading A List of Past Principals of Ouachita Parish High School →

Ouachita Parish High School’s First Principal

Meet Mr. Henry E. Chambers, OPHS' very first principal! I was shocked when his photo came up associated with the school. Henry Chambers is well known in my department for writing a classic set of books on the history of Louisiana. We have a set. The above etching is what he looked like when he … Continue reading Ouachita Parish High School’s First Principal →

The First Graduating Class of Ouachita Parish High School

So I told you yesterday about the first class of the Monroe City High School, which is the forerunner of Neville. Lets go back about six years, to when the Parish High School was built. Who were the members of OPHS class of 1895? This comes from the New Orleans Times-Democrat (June 7, 1895, Page … Continue reading The First Graduating Class of Ouachita Parish High School →

Ouachita Parish High School Graduation Programs

I didn't know we had a small collection of them in our files. How about 1916: https://louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A67 1923: https://louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A66 and 1933: https://louisianadigitallibrary.org/islandora/object/oplib-orv%3A65

Louisiana Teacher’s Convention, 1932

This one is awesome! It is a souvenir program for the 40th Annual Louisiana Teacher's Convention, held at the Francis Hotel in November, 1932. There are some great photos of the city and parish schools. If you are interested in education, take a look at the lecture topics. I noticed that they were giving tours … Continue reading Louisiana Teacher’s Convention, 1932 →

The Camp School Collection

Over the next several weeks, I will be pointing out the things that my boss has been uploading to the Louisiana Digital Library database. Some you may recognize, because I have posted bits and pieces of them along the way, such as brochures and magazines. She has uploaded the whole thing. Enjoy! Sometime in the … Continue reading The Camp School Collection →

An Update to “An Early Graduating Class” Post.

Back on March 24th, I posted a photo from Dr. Williams' collection showing a group of high school graduates which I could not identify. During the hiatus, I was contacted by a reader of the blog, Mr. Lee Carbrey who informed me he had a newspaper clipping that dates the photo. Yep. Right there in … Continue reading An Update to “An Early Graduating Class” Post. →

An Early Ouachita Parish Graduating Class

Oh this one is super frustrating. A label on the photo states it was the photo of Maude Rogers, Parish School Graduation. There is where the trail runs cold. I've tried imputing Maude's name in the Newspapers.com search to see if there are any graduation announcements, but no luck. The Ouachita Parish High School (original … Continue reading An Early Ouachita Parish Graduating Class →

Calhoun High School

Interesting view of the students and building that housed the old Calhoun High School. I don't know exactly when it was taken, but from the dress, it looks really close to that date above the door!

African-American Schools in Ouachita Parish Before 1970.

City and Parish schools were not integrated until 1971. Before then, the races were educated separately. Schools such as Wisner, Myles, Terzia, Boley, Monroe Colored High, etc. were all created to educate African-American students. A patron last week, brought to my attention a website which has compiled a history of African-American schools across the state … Continue reading African-American Schools in Ouachita Parish Before 1970. →