Jbg. school building's centennial fest this Friday

NORTH CREEK | Perched atop a hill on Main Street for nearly a century in North Creek, the town of Johnsburg's public school building has been an icon for generations of area residents. On Friday, June 13, northern Warren County residents will be celebrating the 100th anniversary of the Johnsburg Central School building's groundbreaking with a party on the school grounds at 165 Main St. in North Creek. "Anyone with a connection with the town of Johnsburg or Johnsburg Central School is welcome to attend this special event," the school district's principal Heather Flanagan said June 6, noting that the weather forecast for June 13 was favorable. This Centennial Celebration will begin at 4 p.m. and extend into the early evening hours. Guided tours of the school building will be conducted between 4 p.m. and 6 p.m., and a historical display will be on site for a half-hour longer. Activities for children — including a bounce house, an inflated slide, and yard games — will be entertaining children from 4 p.m. to 6:30 p.m., the same hours that live music is to be performed. A chorus of Johnsburg Central School alumni will be singing one or more selections at about 6:30 p.m., according to a Facebook post by Sara Pierson, who is recruiting chorus members. She can be reached at spierson@johnsburgcsd.org or 518-321-9098. Complimentary food will be available from 4:30 p.m. until 6 p.m., when a commemorative cake is to be shared with the public. A historical marker is to be dedicated at 6:30 p.m. This ceremony is to be conducted by officials of the Johnsburg Historical Society, with Johnsburg Town Historian Deana Wood and Society president Sterling Goodspeed presiding. State Assemblyman Matt Simpson is scheduled to speak during the dedication event, along with Flanagan and JCS District Superintendent Michael Markwia. The historical Marker was obtained with a grant provided by the William G. Pomeroy Foundation. TIMELINE: JOHNSBURG'S SCHOOLS The groundbreaking for the "North Creek High School" — now known as Johnsburg Central School — was held during the week of June 18, 1925, following a decision to build the structure due to overcrowded conditions at the North Creek Union School, constructed in 1898, which was located slightly south and behind the present school building. The construction firm Loth & White of Albany was awarded the contract to build the new school for a price of $140,000. At this 1925 ceremony, a cornerstone was laid for the new school, and it contained a copper container that held two copies of the local North Creek Enterprise newspaper, a summary of North Creek's history, several photographs, and a few historic items, according to a news report that year. The first graduation ceremony in the new North Creek High School was held for the 10 members of the Class of 1926. The North Creek Union School had taught students from three small districts. This older building contained only four large classrooms, which accommodated primary, intermediate, 7th and 8th graders, and high school students respectively. About two years after the new high school was built, the union school building was torn down. Over the last 80 or so years, several additions to the "new school" were made: one on the north end of the building in 1952, and the south end addition was constructed in 1996. The school's gymnasium and music facilities were built in 1963, and the shop/technology facilities were added in 1973. Science and Art classrooms and the cafetorium were constructed in 2007. According to Deana Wood, the Union Free School was a consolidation of some of the 21 common school districts existing in the 1800s in the town of Johnsburg. Johnsburg Central School District was formed in 1946, combining nearly all of the 21 districts. "It wasn't until 1955 that the last common school joined Johnsburg Central School District," Wood said, noting that two of the older schools are still standing, including the "No. 13 Putnam School" building that is located beside the Garnet Lake firehall.

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Jbg. school building's centennial fest this Friday

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