In September, 1874, by the vote of the town of Deering, our high school was born, very different from the Deering High School of today.  At that time there was one teacher and a group of about thirty boys and girls.  They used one room located in Morgan’s Hall over Cobb’s grocery store at
Morrill’s Corner.  The school year was divided into three terms:  fall, winter and spring.  Until 1881, there were two sessions daily. Even as late as 1895, pupils attended school six days a week. There was no choice of subjects.  All studies offered were necessary to graduate.  

Mr. W. H. Palmer was the teacher and by the end of the first term in 1878, the high school students were sharing the Hasaltine School, on Ocean Avenue, with the grammar grades.  (A plaque and small park stands on the corner of Ocean Ave and Irving street to commemorate the place where the school once stood.)  Both high and grammar schools increased so rapidly that a new building was planned for the corner of Pleasant Ave. and Stevens Ave. This new school was ready for use by the Spring of 1878 and was known as Longfellow School. The old Longfellow School building was moved and is now a private residence at 193 Ludlow Street.  A new building, an elementary school built in the mid-50’s, is also called Longfellow.

1899 - A NEW HIGH SCHOOL OPENS

In 1897, as the high school grades continued to grow with 130 students enrolled, the idea for a new high school was formulated. Critics called the plans for the new building, now known as Lincoln Middle School, outrageous. They declared that the city would never need a high school building of this size with a large assembly hall, a library, fourteen recitation rooms, and all the up-to-date features including a lunch counter. Little did they know that by 1912 enrollment would swell to over 400 students.

Before the school was occupied in 1898, Mr. E. H Crosby, then principal, was killed in an accident. It was under the new principal, Mr. W. H. Marvin, that Deering High School was formally dedicated on January 30, 1899. Its hall was named “Crosby Hall” after the late principal.

Thirteen years later an annex was added and opened in September 1913. The annex housed locker rooms with showers, four manual training rooms in the basement along with laboratories, two teachers’ rooms, and five additional classrooms.

1919 is estimated to be the year the first DHS band was formed. The original band rehearsed in Crosby Hall and was made up of 20 members. Since then, many of Deering’s bands and orchestras have extensively toured the eastern seaboard of the USA and Canada, appearing in such events as the Newport RI Heritage Music Festival, President John F. Kennedy’s Inaugural Parade, and the World’s Fair-Expo ‘67 in Montreal. Numerous DHS alumni have gone on to professional music careers with such organizations as the Detroit Symphony, the New York Philharmonic, the Hartford Symphony Orchestra and, of course, the Portland Symphony Orchestra. A special trophy case was built to exclusively house Band trophies from over the years. Past band directors have included Frank J. Rigby, Joseph Gaudreau, Clinton Graffam and George Bookataub.

Shortly after four on the morning of May 21, 1921, a fire broke out in the library located in the rear of the main building.  It quickly spread upward through the airshaft to the roof and upper floors.  From the ventilator the fire spread to both wings.  The roar of the flames awakened a neighbor on Crosby Street who called the fire department.  The fire was out by 8:05 a.m., but not without the tragic loss of life.  Captain James C. Kent was buried under falling timbers.  Six other firefighters were injured.  There had been four fires within a year’s time in the Portland Public school system.  The fire was believed to have been set. 

The damage was confined to the main school building leaving the annex available for holding classes.  The library, considered one of the finest school libaries in New England at the time, was a total loss.  Principal William E. Wing announced that seniors were to report to the annex for morning sessions and freshmen for afternoon sessions.  Woodfords Congregational Church, Central Square Baptist Church, and Longfellow School were also used for classrooms until the building was rebuilt.

Principal Wing was anxious for future growth and presented the idea for a structure on the 27 acres then known as Presumpscot Park on Stevens Ave.   He foresaw accommodations for 1,000 students and the development of a fine athletic field that would be equal to or surpass any in New England. 

The new Deering High School was opened in September 1924 with fanfare.  It was headlined as “one of the finest educational buildings in the country”. This beautiful example of Tudor architecture was designed by John P. Thomas, a local architect. It is 435 feet long and 65 feet wide and built of dark red, water-struck brick and stone.  The landscaping of perennial shrubs and evergreens contributes to the spirit of the building, making it look more like an English manor than an educational institution. 

At this time, the first floor housed nineteen classrooms, the principal’s offices, several supply rooms, an auditorium and a gymnasium. The basement contained the domestic science department (a kitchen, two sewing rooms, a laundry room, and a modern housekeeping suite), the cafeteria, and the boys’ vocational department (a mechanical drawing room, the lathe room, mill room and two training rooms).  The second floor had nine classrooms, two double-size study halls, the library with a conference room, five laboratories with an adjoining conservatory, a science lecture room, offices for department heads, and a running track as part of the gymnasium.  The central section was the only section to have three floors.  The music room, the art room and a balcony for craft work were all located on the top floor.

The Class of 1925 had the honor of being the first graduating class from the new high school.  Pupils planned and coordinated the entire dedication ceremony. The old school was repaired and renamed Deering Junior High, later changed to Lincoln Junior High School.  1925 was also the year the “D” Club was formed. 

The “D” Club began with an ideal – school spirit to promote athletics. The first “D” Club Show, a variety of acts performed mostly by students, was presented in 1931.  Douglas Steele, who went on to become a Portland police chief, was club president at the time.  Other past presidents included Mary Polito, the club’s first woman president (1974-75).

The “D” Club has a colorful past.  More powerful in its early days, the club lent money to teams and often had strong input on athletic policies.  It purchased bonds during World War II, chose the cheerleaders (who were always men in the early days) and were first to sell programs at football games.  In the 1930’s the club bought a goat which it named “Billy Deering”.  At games the goat was paraded past the opposing team’s bleachers wearing a sign that said “Has Billy got your goat?”  (What happened to the Ram?  Sometime prior to 1935, the Deering teams were known as the Panics, not the Rams.)

 The “D” Club Show survived the decades and held their 50^th show on November 24, 1981. 

The early 1980’s were exciting times for Deering High School.  Portland citizens approved a
$5 million dollar bond to renovate the original 1924 building and erect a new addition.  A new three story brick structure, opened in 1983, was connected to the back of the old building by two glassed-in walkways.  It contains a gymnasium that has seen crowds of up to 2,000 for home games, a state-of-the art cafeteria that serves over 1,000 students a day, a library and eight classrooms. 

The ground level entrance into the gymnasium houses trophy cases filled with memorabilia of past championships.  A winding staircase leads up to the second floor cafeteria and faculty area.  The third level is where the library with a computer lab and eight classrooms are located.

The renovation of the old building was extensive and included eighteen new classrooms and fifteen renovated classrooms  new floor tiles, lowered ceilings, double-paned windows, new furniture, improved blackboards, and a two-way communication system.  It also included new science and computer laboratories, a music suite, a drama area, business education rooms, a suite for all guidance offices, a new special education complex and a handicapped accessible elevator.  (Yes, seniors do try to sell freshmen tickets to use the elevator.)  Improvements were made to the administrative offices, home economic and industrial arts areas, as well.

In 1983 Deering High School became the first school in Portland to win the Excellence in Education Award.  This prestigious award recognized the school for its curriculum, well-prepared faculty, wide range of extracurricular activities, commitment to academics, and supportive community.  It is a strong testimony to the fact that Deering High School provides quality education.

Historical information was gathered from old yearbooks and local newspaper articles.  A list of resources can be obtained from the Alumni Association.  Please forward any corrections or additions to this information to the Alumni Association.  Any photos, memorabilia or documents from the past will be stored in the Deering High School archives for future reference.

Check out our web site periodically for future additions to school history.
 

Archives

Graduation Program from 1919
Thank you to Earle Trickey for sending a copy of the Graduating Exercises program from the year 1919.  The program indicates an Alumni Scholarship presentation by the D.H.S. Alumni Association! 

Playbills from 1922 and 1923
The Alumni Association would like to thank Kathy DiDonato Knowles for the recent addition to the school archives of two playbills:  one dated May 1922 and one dated April 1923.  Apparently DHS Senior Class tradition was to present a play.  We can read that the 1922 play “Mrs. Bumpstead-Leigh” was presented at the old Frye Hall.  In 1923 the play “The Charm School” was presented at Portland High auditorium.  Remember that the building we know today did not exist, so other venues were used for this type of event.

 Deering High School has a secure area where items of historical importance are stored.  If you have an item representing school history that you would like to see saved for its historic significance, please contact us to make donation arrangements.