Henderson Avenue Public School

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Henderson Avenue Public School in Thornhill, Ontario was built in 1952 and opened on October 20, 1953. From 1953-1961, the school consisted of a hall and 7 classrooms. In 1962, the school had 13 rooms added to it, bringing it to a total of 20 classrooms. The school stood until July 16, 1998. The school was being renovated when fire broke out in the South Hall and burned down the whole school with nothing left but a stained glass window and a few bricks.

The rest of the school had been left with nothing but the burnt steel frame in a few cases. Eventually, the school was rebuilt with funding from the York Region District School Board, the local newspaper and parents living near the school. The new school consisted of 15 classrooms, a gym and a library; this building was built in a U shape and opened on March 23, 2000. 500 bricks were taken from the wreckage and have been built into a wall across from the office with a commemoration to the fire and old building. The students at the school finished moving back in from Bayview Fairways P.S. and Bayview Glen P.S. the following week. Today, the school houses 18 classes in 16 classrooms and 3 portables (Music, 4/5, and 4 Gifted) from Kindergarten to Grade 8 including 5 gifted classes. The school is currently located at 66 Henderson Avenue and is served by the YRT Bus Routes 2 as well as the TTC routes 53, 60, 97, 98, Viva Blue, Viva Pink, and the YRT Routes 1, 5, 23, 77, 88, 91 and 99 all within a 15-minute walk.

1 1989 Fire
2 1994 Bomb Threat
3 1996 Fire
4 1998 Fire
5 The Gifted Program
6 School Buses
7 See also
8 External links

[edit] 1989 Fire

In 1989, a suspicious fire occurred within the school. An Investigation led to a garbage can being ignited in an act of arson.

[edit] 1994 Bomb Threat

In 1994, when Henderson celebrated it's 40th Anniversary of the school opening, 2 students dug a "time capsule" into the Ground. Days later a dog found it and the dog's owner confused the capsule for a bomb. The identities of the kids remain unknown.

[edit] 1996 Fire

Similar to the 1989 fire, this one started in the south hallway of the school.

[edit] 1998 Fire

The infamous fire which led to the destruction of the original building is still being investigated today. The fire was the largest in Thornhill's history since the forest fire in Pomona Mills of 1934. Initial investigations showed the fire to have been caused by human error but a chance of the fire having been caused because of arson is now being investigated.

[edit] The Gifted Program

Henderson Avenue Public School is the current gifted program school for the Central Thornhill/Southern Richmond Hill area of York Region. Every year in York Region, 10,000 students go through the Gifted Test and the best 1,500 move on to a second stage. Out of the second stage, 250 students are selected to enter the GSPO (Gifted Student's Program of Ontario) in one of the 10 schools that have the gifted program or the 1-day/week program (Pr.I.D.E.) at Silver Stream Public School (south) or Lake Wilcox Public School (north).