History
The History of the Millcreek School District is unique and fascinating. Within nine years of the settling of the township, the citizens had established schools to educate their children. The following is a comprehensive timeline of the 198 year history of the Millcreek School District. A narrative history of the founding of the school district can be found here.
1805 – First school established in the southeast part of the township.
1806 – Love family provided the first Love School.
1812 – 26th & Peach Eagle Valley area school (is now part of Erie City).
*Before the year 1834 there were no public schools, they were referred to as “subscription” or paid schools. They were located in homes, taverns, and other buildings. Tuition cost was $5 per month.
1834 – Citizens of Mill Creek Township elected six citizens to serve as school directors of the “Common Schools of the District of Mill Creek.” Jonas Parker was elected the first president of Mill Creek Common Schools (September 25, 1834). Also in 1834, the first school tax was levied and it produced $300 for the entire township.
1837-1882 – Many new schools were built or moved, taxes were changed from a flat $300 divided among all citizens to a millage tax, and the township name changed from Mill Creek to Millcreek.
1854 – State legislation provided for the first county superintendent. He became the person who then examined and certified the teachers.
1858 – School directors established two four-month terms per year, a summer and a winter term. Winter was mid-November to March and summer was mid-May to early September.
1862 – Teachers’ salaries reached an all-time low of $8 per month.
1866 – the year of the first formal, legal teacher contract, naming salary, term, and building assignment.
March 19, 1870 – was the end of the two-term year and the beginning of the seven-month school year, mid-September until mid-April.
1870 – Thomas Osborn was first supervising principal of Mill Creek Schools. He made $62 a month. Teachers’ wages hit an all-time high of $40 a month.
1871 – Grammar was made mandatory part of the curriculum by school directors.
1874 – Board of directors lengthened school year to nine months for some schools and, if a school had less than 12 pupils, it was closed. Also, this was the first year globes were purchased.
1884 – Mill Creek had established a minimum of 20 schools. From the late 1800s to early 1900s, some Mill Creek Schools included: Fagen, Laird, Busick, Carter, Miller, Willis, Weigleville, Guise, Poor House, Pittsburgh Avenue, Buffalo Road, Davison, Thomas, Schluraff, Love, Zuck, Grubb, Lakeview, Parker, Walnut Creek (forerunner of Kearsarge School), Kearsarge, Glenwood, Burton, and Asbury (old Asbury school closed in 1881).
1895 – East Millcreek High School built (four-room brick building).
1899 – West Millcreek High School built at a total cost of $15,000 with land of $750.
September 8, 1902 – First term in West Millcreek H.S. and the enrollment was 75 students. Ten of these students were high school students and the remaining 65 were elementary students.
1903 – Enrollment was up to 25 students in the high school and the first extracurricular activity appeared and was called WE-MI-HI Club. It was to create interest in the school and promote school spirit.
1904 – Athletic Association formed and the fist formation of basketball team. It defeated six out of its seven opponents.
1906 – Cora Brown Love was first young woman to graduate from West Millcreek High School.
1916 – An addition was added to West Millcreek H.S. The first multi-room elementary school was erected on upper Peach Street in the community of Kearsarge (Kearsarge Elementary School).
1917 – Four rooms were added to East Millcreek High School.
1918 – The first music instructor was hired for the district.
1919 – All Millcreek High School Students were bussed to West Millcreek. Grades 9-12 were discontinued at East Millcreek.
1920 – City of Erie annexed large part of Millcreek. East Millcreek High School was consumed by the Erie School District and changed to Burton Elementary School. Also annexed were Glenwood High School and the following elementary schools: Davidson, Ferncliff, Franklin Park, Geist, Hamilton, Metric Metal, Reed, and Rilling. Also, to accommodate the additional high school students from East Millcreek and Glenwood at the West Millcreek High School, the grammar school students were moved into a portable building referred to as Westminister School. The first janitor was hired for the high school. State mandated attendance for students 12 years of age or more.
1921 – The Pennsylvania State Department of Education designated West Millcreek H.S. a high school of the first class. Mr. Penfield became part-time superintendent and administrator. He was also a part-time teacher and secretary to the school board.
1922 – An agricultural vocational program was established at the high school and an auditorium and gymnasium were added to the high school. There was a school newspaper and a yearbook. 1922 added a junior high, the cafeteria, and the library (which housed 500 books). The first kindergarten teacher was appointed. The Erie Motor Club helped the district provide safety for students with school zone signs. This enabled all citizens to exercise caution whether driving a horse and buggy or a newfangled automobile. 1922 also yielded the installation of a bell telephone and typewriter in the school board office. Also permanently closed was the Pittsburgh Avenue School alias the Geist Farm School alias Poor House School. It was to be used as a boys’ club.
1923 – This year saw the addition of an orchestra and student council. Every senior was required to deliver a commencement oration or essay before being entitled to a diploma. A rule was passed that all students must be five years of age upon entering kindergarten.
1924 – The first study hall was incorporated in 1924. The principal received an office. It was also the beginning of special education in Millcreek Schools. The new Belle Valley School on Norcross Road was built.
1925 – First actual school bus purchased and first bus garage built.
1926 – Lawrence Park became its own district and Lakewood Elementary School was erected. The employing of the first school nurse, first gymnastic equipment, and first budget for library books came into being.
1927 – The PTA was responsible for food service. They provided hot cocoa for the children in the first six grades. The trays used in the cafeteria were made in the woodshop.
1928 – Tracy School was erected on 12th and Cemetery Roads (Peninsula Drive).
1929 – A part-time art teacher was hired. Mrs. Harvey Willis purchased uniforms for the high school orchestra. The Millcreek High School Athletic Association was created and was a forerunner of the boosters.
1930 – Hiring of a physician to examine all students wishing to participate in sports. Dr. James Kelso established a dental clinic at the high school. First 180-day term instituted and the first school dances are held in the school gym. Mr. H. H. Denison was appointed as Millcreek’s first full-time supervising principal, the forerunner of current superintendent position. He held the position until 1942.
1931 – First visitors’ day (or what we call Open House). The year Millcreek approved the PIAA rules for athletics.
1934 – Four rooms and a basement were added on to the high school to accommodate students grades 1-12, as well as central heating for the facility.
1936 – Millcreek High School began to phase out the primary grades.
1938 – Montclair Elementary School opened on what was then called Grubb Road (Sterrettania). Zuck School was sold and Weiss School was closed. Love School was the only remaining one-room school.
1940 – By 1940, eight classrooms, an auditorium, and gym were added to Millcreek High School.
1941 – Adult classes were offered for home economics and vocational agriculture. This year also yielded the addition of a new metal shop and electric shop to Millcreek High School. Millcreek became a third class district and school board members increased from five to seven. Teachers received tenure according to state law. Special arrangements were made for students to graduate early in order to join the war effort. Because the water tower behind the school was such an obvious mark from the air, air raid drills were held regularly at the high school.
1942 – The high school obtained its first sound “movie picture machine.”
1943 – Love School closed.
1946 – The Mom’s and Dad’s Club from Millcreek High purchased and installed the first lights and bleachers for the athletic field. Also, 1946 yielded the addition of a “temporary” structure which remained until 1967. It was a former army barracks and was called the Annex.
1949 – Vernondale Elementary School was completed.
1951 – Ridgefield Elementary School opened with seven rooms.
1953 – McDowell Senior High School, grades 10-12, opened. The Millcreek High School was converted into a junior high. Summer school began this year. Intramural sports were also established in 1953.
1954 – Drivers’ training was offered.
1956 – Asbury Elementary School opened.
1958 – Westlake Junior High School opened. Millcreek High was renamed Westminister Junior High.
1960 – The first school psychologist was hire: Mr. Russell Brinker. This was the year of the first student teachers who were from Edinboro College. Also, this was the first year of an exclusive language lab at McDowell.
1961 – Asbury Farm was converted to a recreational area. This was the first year college boards were given at McDowell.
1963 – The first traveling library assistants were hired to replace the classroom teacher who also served as librarians.
1964 – McDowell H.S. football field was named after Gus Anderson, longtime football coach.
1965 – Chestnut Hill opened and kindergarten became a permanent part of the curriculum. PTAs were no longer responsible for preparing menus.
1967 – Construction of James S. Wilson Junior High School occurred in 1967.
1968 – Westminister Junior High School was demolished. The Millcreek Education Center was built.
1971 – Grandview Elementary School opened.
1973 – Millcreek Intermediate High School opened. It was renamed McDowell Intermediate in 1979.
1976 – Millcreek celebrated the bicentennial with “200 Cheers for 200 Years.”
1976 – Charles LeMasters, McDowell’s principal since its opening in 1953, retired June 30, 1976.
1977 – Kearsarge Elementary School closed. Millcreek Township School District purchased its first computer in the 1977-78 school year. This computer handled payroll and accounting.
1978 – McDowell band entered a competition in Whitewater, Wisconsin. Lakewood Elementary and Montclair Elementary closed.
1979 – McDowell was honored to be the first school in Northwestern Pennsylvania to host an Air Force JROTC program.
1979 – Junior high schools were turned into middle schools which would house grades 6, 7, and 8.
1980 – George Bush visited McDowell High School while on his campaign swing through our area.
1982 – The Millcreek School Athletic Foundation announced the groundbreaking ceremony for the new McDowell High School Athletic Pavilion.
1985 – This was the year of the complete renovation of the Gus Anderson Field complex.
1988 – McDowell H.S. was completely renovated.
1990 – New Belle Valley School opened this year.
1992 – Millcreek Township School District received the highest Erie Quality Award.
1993 – Walnut Creek School opened.
1996 – Westlake Middle School renovations were completed and North Coast School, an alternative education high school, opened.
1998 – The McDowell Junior Varsity Engineering Technical Society (JETS) placed first in the nation for junior varsity, large division schools in the 1998 TEAMS competition.
1998 – New Tracy School opened.
2001 – Pennsylvania’s first-ever system of independent educational evaluation, The Standard and Poor’s report, was released. Standard and Poor’s concluded that the Millcreek Township School District achieves well above average student results with comparatively low spending.
2002 – Millcreek Schools were first in America chosen to pilot Start SMART program. StartSMART (Stop More Alcohol Related Tragedies) is an innovative program designed to combat the negative consequences relating to alcohol.
2002 – Jenna Fizel, McDowell Junior, scored a perfect 1600 on her SAT — a feat achieved by approximately only 0.046 percent of high school students who take the exam.
2003 – Students, staff, and administration held a groundbreaking ceremony for the new Asbury Elementary School on the current Walnut Creek campus (Sterrettania and Thomas Road).
Special Thanks:
Linda Sitter
Coordinator, Community Relations
Patricia Pollifrone
Author, Millcreek Schools Through the Ages
Bill Klauk
Erie County Genealogy
Jenny Traut
Millcreek Schools Alumni Association
Dr. Verel Salmon
Superintendent of Schools
Matthew Cummings
Consultant