Centennial Celebration

1924

On Feb. 24, 1924, the architect F.D. Madison was hired to design a new school needed to address overcrowding at Barnum School. A 7 ½ acre site, part of the Todd Farm, was selected and purchased for $2000 per acre for a total cost of $15,000. Construction of the original Pierce Street wing began later that year. 

The school was built of quality material, and furnished with up to date features like an interschool phone system, oak woodwork and panels, skylights above the staircases, terrazzo hall floors and 12 foot ceilings. The school originally had 12 classrooms, a gym, an auditorium and a lunchroom. Some taxpayers felt the school had too many frills. 

The school was officially named Pierce School for its Pierce Street location, which was originally named for Benjamin K. Pierce, one of the four original land owners in the first square mile of Birmingham. Pierce School opened the following year with 210 students in attendance. A teacher at that time earned approximately $1,300 per year.

During the early 1930’s the country was deep in an economic depression. Jobs were scarce and money was limited. Teachers were paid in “script” since the school board had no money, and in turn there were fewer teachers and class sizes were larger. 

Pierce School had become part of the community. It housed a branch of the Baldwin Library so the area children could read in the summer. 

The front part of the building was fired by coal which was kept in underground bins on the east side of the building and was brought to us from the railroad tracks at Maple and Eton Streets. The rope that rang the school bell was in the janitor’s room and students were sometimes allowed to ring the bell.

World War II had begun! All extra classes and staff were eliminated including art, music and gym as well as the school nurse. Almost every student purchased “War Stamps” which were sold to support our country and collected in books. When the books were full, they were turned in for savings bonds. 

Recycling was a national effort. Families collected metals, old cars, tin foil, and newspapers. There was a shortage of natural products so synthetics were created. 

Many new houses were built around Pierce. The Bird Street wing was added in 1949 to accommodate new students. It consisted of 6 classrooms, a cafeteria and two lavatories.

Pierce was overpopulated with almost 1,000 students! A playground addition was opened in 1950 along with four classrooms and 2 lavatories. New buildings in Birmingham were built: Beverly, Greenfield and Midvale, which helped to reduce Pierce’s population to 720 students. 

Pierce had “little cottages” for the Kindergarten classes across the street from Pierce.

In 1963, the student enrollment was 648. Many shrubs and plants were planted around the school. Classrooms had vegetable and flower gardens around the west side of the Pierce Street parking lot. 

Students were not allowed to wear jeans to school except on their “gym day”! Pierce’s school fair was a sight to see as the big event for the year. There was a “spook house”, a snakes-alive room which had real snakes and an alligator, game rooms, and live entertainment in the gym which featured a clown, a cowboy with a live horse, and a magician.