Charles Bender High School (Humble, Texas)

Charles Bender High School was the second high school built in Humble and the third school in Humble, Texas to provide high school seniors with diplomas.

The first school with high school graduates was the Humble School, which served all grades (1-11). The first students to graduate were the Inmann twins, Edith and Ethel, who graduated in 1911. Starting in 1918, students graduated from Humble High School on Higgins Street, built next door to the Humble School. When Humble High School opened, the Humble School was renamed to the Humble Grammar School. The Humble Grammar School was destroyed in a pre-dawn fire on January 26, 1929. The land occupied by the Humble Grammar School, Block 26 in Bender's First Addition was donated by the estate of Charles Bender in 1909.

After the destruction of the Humble Grammar School, the school board voted to have a new building constructed. After H. E. McKay and 53 other citizens submitted a formal petition, the school board voted to hold a bond election to fund a new junior-senior high school building of $140,000 on February 12, 1929. The bond election was held on March 12, 1929 and passed with 312 citizens voting for the bond and 36 against it.

The board had been conferring with architects; it was of a unanimous opinion that Robert E. Lee High School at Goose Creek, reduced to size, was about what was needed for Humble, and that the architect Harry D. Payne would meet with the board.

On March 28, 1929, the school board voted to name the new school Charles Bender High School in honor of the Bender family for donations and loyal support. At the same meeting, Payne presented preliminary plans for the new high school at standard scale. The plans were approved with few changes. On April 15, 1929, the children of Charles Bender send a letter to the school board thanking them for honoring their father.

A lengthy battled ensued between citizens and the school board over the location of the new school. Several citizens wanted the new school on grounds with much more land, to provide the students more opportunities. The school board eventually decided to build the school on the site of the destroyed Humble Grammar School.

On May 13, 1929, the school board accepted the drawings and specifications for Charles Bender High School by architect Harry D. Payne, along with plans for remodeling Humble High School into use as a grammar school. On June 5, 1929, the school board approved contracts for the construction of the school: C. W. Ennis was awarded te general contract for $124,350; Walker Heating and Plumbing was awarded the contract for $16,755 (plus $19,50 for work on the Humble High School renovation), Caywood Electric was awarded a contract of $6,200, and Harry D. Payne was paid architect fees of $7,492.75

A ceremony for the laying of the cornerstone was held on Saturday, September 29, 1929 at 4 PM.

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