Few years ago, I was given a homemade Wissahickon High School shirt that inscribed as the school was established in 1929. When I wore it in public, I was called out by a Wissahickon alumnus who said that Wissahickon High School was not established in 1929. I decided to use this opportunity to do research on Ambler High School, and understand its true founding.
In this post, I will discuss the early history of Ambler High School, and how it transitioned to Wissahickon High School.
The Independent School District of Ambler
The mill town opened its first public school in 1881 after the establishment of the Independent School District. The idea of having a school in the borough came from the residents who felt the inconvenience to travel to schools located in Whitpain, Lower Gwynedd, Upper Dublin, and Whitemarsh as well as the overcrowding of those schools. As a result, an Independent School District was granted on May 2, 1881 by the Court. The building contract was awarded to Albert Beck, a well-known builder in Ambler, for $2,683, and selected the site on Spring Garden Street and Forest Avenue.
Fun Fact #1: The first Board of Directors took the oath before the Justice of Peace, saying,
"Did solemnly swear that they would support the constitution of the United States and the constitution of the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania and the laws thereof; and that they had used no unlawful means to procure their election to the said office of school director, and that they would discharge the duties of said office faithfully and impartially, and to the best of their understanding."
Few years after its opening, Ambler was officially incorporated in 1888. Then there was a question regarding who owned the Forest Avenue School: the newly established Borough or the Independent School District.
"The Borough refused to admit these children to its school for several reasons. The controversy between the two could have been settled at once if the District could have been dissolved or discontinued, but this could not be done; it was in existence and had to be recognized until it was dissolved by law. There was a law to create it but as yet there was none enacted to discontinue it. They therefore appealed to the Court for a decision. This took time, and in the meantime, the controversy continued in regard to the ways and means of educating the children residing in the District which was outside the Borough. The latter district claimed that legally they belonged to the school in the Townships from which the area was taken, or otherwise, the District should erect its own building. The residents of the area were unwilling to do this because of the expense for such a small locality, and favored the convenience and facilities of the Borough school. The Borough claimed that it did not have the power to admit these children until they could make satisfactory arrangements with the citizens of the area in regard to the rate of tuition, etc. The Independent District was not in a position to do this because it had no directors. It had no treasurer to collect taxes; all the former ones were residents of the Borough. Not one resided in the area which the Boro left out."
- Mary P.H. Hough, Early History of Ambler
In the end, the Court decided to have the District discontinue at a certain time, and have the Borough allow students from the former District admitted to its school.
On January 30, 1911, the legislature passed a bill to officially dissolve the Independent School Districts in the State.
Fun Fact #2: The first high school graduation ceremony took place on June 21, 1895 at the Ambler Opera House, consisted of 4 graduates: Jennie Turner, Katie Lutton, Lena Beck, and William Faust.
In the 1920s, the Forest Avenue School made renovations and expansions with a new wing and a second floor. Even though the Independent School Districts in the State was dissolved, the school continued to serve its students until a fire broke out at the school in 1926.
A New High School
Fast forward to the early 1920s, the Ambler school board decided to erect a new high school, and selected the site on Tennis Avenue and Hendricks Street.
Fun Fact #3: A representative was sent from Harrisburg to select a site for the new Ambler High School. Instead of choosing the selected sites chosen by the school board, he wanted to select the Lindenwold Field owned by Dr. Richard V. Mattison.
The design and construction behind the new high school was Samuel S. Conver of Lansdale and Barnes & McLaughlin of Philadelphia.
Expanding the High School
As the population in Ambler continued to grow, the school board made the decision to expand the school to accommodate the growing population.
A two-story brick building was added on the east end of the present school. On the first floor, it contained an auditorium that can hold 850 students and a gymnasium. On the second floor, it contained a large biology laboratory, the auditorium balcony, and a large music room for instrumental and vocal.
In terms of the present building, the classrooms were expanded to accommodate all subjects like chemistry, physics, biology, typewriting, shop, art, and homemaking. The cafeteria, shower rooms, auditorium, and gymnasium were also expanded.
The cost of these renovations was about $298,727.
The Establishment of Wissahickon Senior High School
During the 1950s, Ambler High School enrolled students from grade 7 to 12, including those who live outside the community. After the Ambler Joint School Board was created to oversee the 7-12 grade students from Ambler, Whitpain, and Lower Gywnedd, the Shady Grove Junior High School was built to house secondary students in grades 7 to 9. Ambler High School was used for grades 10 to 12 as a senior high school.
"For the school years 1956-57 and 1957-58 the school would have been so crowded that the district instituted a split schedule. The 10th through 12th grades attended school in the morning. The 7th through 9th grades attended school in the afternoon. There were five teaching periods each day, and there were no study halls. The teachers had five straight teaching periods in a row; their prep time was scheduled before or after their teaching time when the other group of students had instruction. Extracurricular activities also took place at that time. If a substitute teacher was needed, one of the teachers from the senior or junior high, as needed, would often be called on to fill the day's vacancy by pulling double duty."
- Frances Treisbach, Ambler High School, '62
In 1962, Wissahickon Senior High School was built on Houston Road to house 10-12th graders, resulting in Ambler High School becoming a junior high school with Shady Grove. Ambler Junior High School was discontinued at the end of the school year in 1973 by the Pennsylvania Department of Labor and Industry.
The Class of 1962 was the last graduating class of Ambler Senior High School. There were 151 students who graduated that year.
Five years later, Ambler Junior High School was demolished in 1978 in favor of housing development.
Bibliography
"Ambler Public Schools. First Commencement Exercises a Grand Success--The Opera House Crowded with an Appreciative Audience." Ambler Gazette. June 27, 1895. Page 1. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/11740/rec/1.
Clement, Deana. "Throwback Thursday | Ambler High School." Around Ambler. Last modified November 30, 2017. https://aroundambler.com/throwback-thursday-ambler-high-school/.
"Favorable Vote On July 19 Will Make Expansion Possible." Ambler Gazette. July 7, 1938. Page 1 & 6. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/23014/rec/41.
Franklin Survey Company. Montgomery County 1949 Vol D, Plate 14, 1949.
Herman, Andrew Mark. Eastern Montgomery County Revisited. (Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2005): 66.
Hough, Mary P. H. "Early history of Ambler 1682-1888." A Celebration of Women Writers. Accessed December 12, 2021. https://digital.library.upenn.edu/women/hough/ambler/ambler.html.
Klinge, Frank H. M. Montgomery County 1927 Reading Main Line Vol 1, Plate 31, 1927.
McKenna, John J. "A Brief History of the Wissahickon School District." The 1984 Bicentennial Book of Montgomery County History (April 1980).
Mueller, A. H. Atlas of the North Penn Section of Montgomery County, Pa., Plate 26, 1916.
Philadelphia Real Estate Record and Builders' Guide, v. 37 (1922): 272, 385, 401, 467, 497, 513, 544.
Quattrone, Frank D. Ambler. (Charleston: Arcadia Publishing, 2004): 64, 66.
Scott, J.D. North Pennsylvania Railroad 1886 Philadelphia - Bucks - Montgomery Counties, Ambler, 1886.
"State Owes Ambler $12,000." Ambler Gazette. March 9, 1922. Page 1. http://digitalcollections.powerlibrary.org/cdm/compoundobject/collection/wivp-gazett/id/6506/rec/1.