San
Joaquin County
Biographies
WEST SIDE UNION HIGH SCHOOL
Renamed
TRACY UNION HIGH SCHOOL
Few institutions of learning have
done more to help shape the destiny of the younger and fast growing communities
than has the West Side Union High School.
The excellent standing of this institution as an accredited high school
admitting students to colleges and universities without further examinations
meets the entire satisfaction of all concerned.
The high standard of this school is partly due to the scholarly and
untiring work of its former principal, George Wadsworth.
The grounds include ten acres facing
the recently completed Lincoln Highway.
A group of fine concrete buildings have been erected at a cost of $200,000
and are an excellent monument to the energetic citizens of Tracy and the West
Side. There are excellent facilities for
athletics, including a new gymnasium, concrete tennis courts together with
football gridiron, baseball ground and field for track and all other
events. The gymnasium that has just been
completed represents a financial outlay of $45,000, the equipment of this
department being modern and complete in every sense.
The high school course includes four
years’ work, beginning with the ninth and extending through the twelfth
grade. There is also an opportunity for
a year’s post-graduate work and it is expected that this will be extended as
the opportunity offers itself. As a
modern high school the program includes in addition to the regular academic
courses, a commercial department, a department of home economics, music
department, and manual arts, including machine shop, auto mechanics, woodwork
and mechanical drawing. The physical
education and athletics department is under the supervision of a man employed
especially for that work.
All student affairs are in charge of
a representative body known as the executive committee; with the approval of
the administration their decision is final.
The high school at present is under the administration of H. O. Williams
as principal and the remainder of the faculty is as follows: vice-principal, L. E. Richards; Mr. Richards
has charge of the science department; Miss Leila Sloan, History; Miss Ruth
Templeton, home economics; Miss Elizabeth Wetmore, commercial department; Miss
Minerva Turner, English; Miss Alice Sharp, Spanish; Mr. W. F. Drew, manual
arts; Mr. A. J. Fagin, physical education department; and Mr. A. A. Graham has
charge of the instrumental music and is the conductor of an orchestra of
twenty-five pieces. Each one in the
faculty is a specialist in his department and the citizens of the West Side
have every reason to feel proud of the continued advancement that has been and
is being made by the school.
Vocationalized ideas of education
are growing in high schools through the country and the West Side Union High School
is not lacking along this line in the opportunities it has to offer
students. The most excellent
opportunities in all departments are being offered not only in the day school
but in the evening classes as well. In
addition to the regular day school courses that are offered, courses in
Americanization are taught in the evening school. Gymnasium classes for the business men and
women are proving very attractive. From
the present indications the West Side Union High School promises to keep
abreast with the modern ideas of education.
Transcribed by Gerald Iaquinta.
Source: Tinkham, George
H., History of San Joaquin County, California , Page
1020. Los Angeles, Calif.: Historic
Record Co., 1923.
© 2011 Gerald Iaquinta.
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