Cathedral High School (Hamilton, Ontario)

Cathedral High School is an inner city public Roman Catholic high school in Hamilton, Ontario, under the jurisdiction of the Hamilton-Wentworth Catholic District School Board. Cathedral High School dates back to 1912, when high school classes where offered to the youth of Hamilton by the Hamilton Separate School Board.^[1] Classes were held in two rooms at St. Mary’s School, located on Mulberry Street. By 1921, enrollment had increased significantly and the two rooms could no longer hold the amount of people. The boys were soon moved to the upper floor of St. Patrick’s School on East Avenue and Main Street. While the girls remained at St. Mary’s.^[2] In 1925, the Separate School Board authorized the building of a new and larger building.

People of Catholic faith were asked to donate money to help build the new school by the Holy Name Men of various parishes.^[3] In 1928 Cathedral Boys’ High School was officially opened on Emerald and Main Street, where it still stands today. In the same year the Girls’ School took over the space on the top floor of St. Patrick’s School. The gym and the labs at Cathedral Boys’ had to be shared between the boys and the girls.^[4]

In 1951, the memorial Wing was added on to Cathedral Boys’. In 1955, the girls moved into their new building on Main Street two blocks east of the boys’ school. It was not until 1992 that the two separate high schools were amalgamated into one Cathedral High School.^[5]

In 1995, the new state-of-the-art facility on Wentworth Street was open, merging both the boys and girls into one school, instead of sharing the old two sites together. The Wentworth Street site is still in use to this day.^[6]

Notable alumni

• Mike Cornell, CFL player, currently playing for the Edmonton Eskimos
• Dwayne Harvey, Alabama State University basketball player, participated in the 2011 NCAA March Madness ^[7]
• Brian Melo, winner of Canadian Idol season 5 ^[8]
• Bishop Reding, former Bishop of the Roman Catholic Diocese of Hamilton, Ontario and patron of Bishop Reding Catholic Secondary School in Milton, Ontario ^[9]
• Rocco Romano, CFL Hall of Fame Player ^[10]
• Dave Stala, CFL player, currently playing for the Hamilton Tiger-Cats ^[11]
• Tomi Swick, critically acclaimed musician and Juno Award winner ^[12]
• Melissa Tancredi, soccer player for the Canada women's national soccer team ^[13]
• Pat Quinn, former NHL player and coach ^[14]
• Tyrone Watson, New Mexico State University basketball player, participated in the 2010 NCAA March Madness ^[15]

School song

Waking to the morning,
Smelling the Dew, fresh dawn,
We listen to the quiet--
To your Whispering Call;

And in the hour of the day when we
Will sit in wonderment;
Your eyes dear Lord will Light the Path,
Your hands will lead the way.

We Will Walk with Courtesy,
Sincerely do we care;
With Honour we'll defend your word.
Dear Lord please hear our prayer.

It is here in old Cathedral
That we will share your smiles,
And in the halls we have learned to love,
Though we're here just for a while.
And in these halls we have learned to love,
Though we're here just for a while.

Blue and White

Oh, See the blue and White
Way down the field:
They're fighters all with hearts
that never yield.
Across that line they'll
...Crash to victory!
For they must do or die
For old Cathedral High.

Get in there...fight,
you stalwart boys in blue,
For you must not disgrace
this good old school.

Get in there...fight,
You boys of Cathedral High.
Get in there...
Fight, fight, fight!

References