Cleveland High School (Mississippi)

Cleveland High School
Information
Established	1906
School district	Cleveland School District
Mascot	Wildcats

Cleveland Central High school formerly known as Cleveland High School a public high school that served students in grades 9-12, located in Cleveland, Mississippi. It is a part of the Cleveland School District.

This high school was historically white though by 2015 its student body was more than half black. In 2016 a federal court ordered it to consolidate with East Side High School. In 2017 it consolidated with East Side, forming Cleveland Central High School.

Cleveland High School opened its doors October 15, 1906, with A. K. Eckles as principal. The original building, a two-story colonial design with four classrooms, was located where the present building now stands. The school’s first athletic event was a baseball game in April 1907. The CHS band was first organized in 1909 [there is strong evidence that suggests CHS had the first high school band in Mississippi]. The first graduation was held in June 1910; there were four graduates. An addition with an auditorium was added to the original structure in 1916. Fire destroyed this building in 1918.

A new, three-story brick building, designed to be the “largest and handsomest” school in Mississippi, was completed at the same location in 1921. On this campus in 1922, the movement that led to the creation of Delta State University began. CHS was the sponsor of Cleveland’s first Boy Scout troop, and, at various times, served as the meeting place of the First Methodist Church, the local Jewish community, the Rotary Club, the Exchange Club, and the Delta Medical Association. Also in 1922, CHS was accredited by the Southern Association of Colleges and Schools. The school’s first of 30 state championships was won in 1935 in Debate. During World War II, some 600 CHS alumni and students served in the U.S. military; sixteen died in the war. The epicenter of patriotic activity in Cleveland during World War II, Cleveland High School’s second building was destroyed by fire Christmas Eve, 1945.

The present high school building and cafeteria were completed in 1950, the band hall in 1963.

Integrated in 1965, CHS was the first public school in the Mississippi Delta to admit black students. Integration came as a result of a racial discrimination lawsuit first filed in 1965.

...
Wikipedia