Portland High School, Portland, Maine

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

Portland High School is a public high school in Portland, Maine (Cumberland County) which educates grades 9–12. The school is part of the Portland Public Schools district.

Portland High School

Established	1821
Type	Public secondary
Principal	Michael Johnson
Students	1,100
Grades	9–12
Location	Portland, Maine USA
District	Portland Public Schools
Accreditation	New England Association of Schools and Colleges
Mascot	Bulldog
Website	portland.portlandschools.org

Established in 1821 as a boys' school, Portland is the second oldest public high school still operating in the United States, having been the third public high school to be established in the U.S. Joseph Libbey was its first principal. A separate school for girls was added in 1850, and in 1863 the school moved to Cumberland Avenue, its present location. The original school building on that site, which is now the middle wing of the modern school was originally divided into two by a brick wall running from top to bottom of the building to divide the girls from the boys. Much of the wall has been removed, but its remains can still be seen in the basement. [1]

In 1989 a new annex was opened containing an athletic facility, cafeteria, classrooms, and a theater/auditorium.

As of 2006, the school principal is Mr. Michael Johnson, and his assistants are Kimberly Wike and Steven Rogers. Approximately 1100 students are enrolled each year.

[edit] Notable Alumni

Harold Taylor Andrews, killed in action, Battle of Cambrai, 1917; the first Portland native to die in World War I
Rear Admiral Albert Cleaves, WWII commander of Cruiser-Transport Force
John Ford (John Martin Feeney), film director
Admiral Robert Edwin Peary, explorer, first to reach the North Pole
Quinton Porter, professional football quarterback for the Houston Texans
Thomas B. Reed, Speaker of the United States House of Representatives
John Calvin Stevens, architect, pioneer of Shingle Style
Sewall C. Strout, US federal court judge