1900
1900ish
JANUARY 16, 1900
Cases of scarlet fever, a leading cause of death among children in this time period, are reported to be decreasing.
SEPTEMBER 5, 1900
Teachers for the 1900-01 school year.
OCTOBER 7, 1900
Principal Unthank rails against the new school books, saying:
“It is an outrage to think that such matters as the selection of books for the children should be placed in the hands of a corrupt political ring. Cities of 10,000 and over ought to be free to select their own schools books, and I hope an act of this kind may be passed by the next legislature.
“We are simply expected to make bricks without straw, when we are given such a book as the new geography, from which to do work creditable to the Tacoma public schools and to ourselves. The children have a right to the best that can be obtained. There have always been text books adopted which were inferior, but these are the worst.”
OCTOBER 24, 1900
The proposal to add an addition to Lowell is brought up with the school board once again. In addition to the need for more classroom space, the sanitary facilities at the school are also inadequate for the number of students.
OCTOBER 25, 1900
Funding for Lowell’s addition is discussed among the school board members.
1901
JANUARY 23, 1901
Trees are cut down around Lowell in order to increase the amount of natural light in the classrooms inside.
MARCH 21, 1901
School board secretary Whitty reports that the sidewalk in front of Lowell is in bad repair.
JUNE 23, 1901
Mrs. Campbell takes her students on a field trip to Silver Lake.
JUNE 27, 1901
Big increases in the student population lead to Lowell’s pupil count now totaling 965.
JULY 13, 1901
Lowell’s annex building receives the old furnace from the high school, which will be used to heat the building instead of stoves.
SEPTEMBER 3, 1901
Teacher list for the 1901-02 school year.
1902
SEPTEMBER 4, 1902
Teacher list for the 1902-03 school year.
SEPTEMBER 17, 1902
The district’s student population continues to grow, although the population at Lowell decreases to 478.
It is interesting to note that in the 1902/1901 population comparison for Lowell, the 1901 numbers do not match with the previous figure given in the article from June 27, 1901, which was 965.
DECEMBER 22, 1902
Lowell students put on a Christmas program.
1903
JULY 8, 1903
It was reported to the school board that the school’s tower was in poor condition, due to low quality bricks having been used in its construction. It is advised that it will need to be repaired.
Principal Unthank, having been elected to the district’s text book commission in 1901, helps select new text books.
SEPTEMBER 3, 1903
A bid for the tower repairs is submitted.
SEPTEMBER 8, 1903
Crowded conditions in the schools continue to be a concern.
“At the Lowell school the library room has been converted into a recitation room, in the hope that it might be possible to abandon the use of one of the attic rooms, but it now appears that all of the rooms must be used.”
SEPTEMBER 10, 1903
Lowell’s student population is now 491. There are 12 classrooms.
“The Lowell school, [Superintendent Warner] said, had about forty-one pupils to the teacher, requiring heavy work, but that the classes were badly distributed, and would probably require an additional teacher in that school.”
OCTOBER 8, 1903
These two articles discuss the appearance of cases of diphtheria in the area. Several members of the public urged the closure of the school, but Principal Unthank and the district decided to instead take measures to fumigate and disinfect the school instead of closing it.
1904
APRIL 13, 1904
Miss Cone, a teacher at Lowell, receives severe burns in an accident at the school.
APRIL 14, 1904
Another article about Miss Cone
MAY 12, 1904
Miss Unthank will be replaced as principal of Lowell, but there is no successor named yet.
JUNE 2, 1904
Henry B. Dewey is elected as Lowell’s new principal, effective in September. He was previously the county superintendent of schools.
NOVEMBER 20, 1904
Another proposal for the completion/addition of Lowell is made.
1905
JANUARY 8, 1905
Street and sidewalk improvements are proposed to the school board.
MARCH 11, 1905
Principal Dewey gets a new job as the Deputy State Superintendent of schools.
MARCH 15, 1905
The school board discusses potential candidates for principal of Lowell.
MARCH 16, 1905
The school board discusses the possibility of Charles M. Sherman as the successor of Professor H. B. Dewey as principal of Lowell
MARCH 31, 1905
Professor Charles M. Sherman is announced as the new principal of Lowell.
APRIL 14, 1905
An illustration of Principal Charles M. Sherman.
JUNE 24, 1905
Eighth grade graduation exercises were celebrated at Lowell.
SEPTEMBER 7, 1905
Teacher list for the 1905-1906 school year.
OCTOBER 11, 1905
Budgets, taxes, levies, and the Lowell building costs are discussed.
NOVEMBER 27, 1905
Eighth grade Lowell students perform part of the Shakespeare play “Merchant of Venice.”
DECEMBER 21, 1905
Lowell closes for a day due to the heating system being broken.
DECEMBER 22, 1905
Lowell students put on a Christmas program.
1906
JANUARY 23, 1906
School board director Mr. Coffee tours the Lowell annex and declares it unsafe, saying:
“While we were on the upper floor, the building swayed and I thought that the wind would blow it away before we could get out. I tell you that building is dangerous. And yet it is to such structures at that we send our children. The present Washington building is no doubt in bad shape, but the annex to the Lowell is the worst that I ever saw.”
MARCH 12, 1906
A small fire breaks out at Lowell.
APRIL 1, 1906
Principal Sherman praises the Lowell Chorus Club, 5th grade student Agnes Wren writes an essay about St. Patrick, and seventh grader Harriet Smith writes a composition called “King John and the Magna Carta.”
APRIL 25, 1906
Lowell students contribute to a fundraiser in support of the 1906 California earthquake relief efforts. The 7.9 (modern estimate) magnitude earthquake occurred on April 16, 1906.
MAY 30, 1906
Judge Linck shows off some artifacts from his collection to Lowell students.
JULY 4, 1906
Lowell’s parade float for the Rose Carnival gets a mention.
AUGUST 17, 1906
Former Lowell Principal Emma Unthank is elected temporary principal of Willard school, though the decision was not unanimous.
The article also sheds some light on the reasons Principal Unthank was replaced at Lowell two years previously.
School board Director W. B. Coffee was against the appointment, saying, “It is nothing more or less than paying political debts. For twenty years Miss Unthank was a disturbing element in the schools, and two years ago she was discharged for insubordination. Under these conditions I could not vote for her. She was not recommended by the superintendent, who favored Miss Elizabeth Shane of the Lowell school for the position. Simply the same tactics were employed in this case as when the board recently elected a superintendent.”
On the other side, board president Charles Drury said, “I will admit that there was a difference in opinion in the board in regard to the matter. Miss Unthank was recommended by Superintendent Yoder, and she appears to be acceptable to him. Miss Shane was not recommended for this particular position, and Mr. Coffee is mistaken when he makes that statement. As to Miss Unthank being discharged two years ago, that was because of trouble with Superintendent Warner. I am sorry that trouble of this kind should arise in the board. I know that I have made many personal sacrifices to insure peace.”
SEPTEMBER 6, 1906
School boundaries between Grant and Lowell are discussed.
SEPTEMBER 9, 1906
The teacher list for the 1906-07 school year.
OCTOBER 2, 1906
Lowell students participate in a musical program.
OCTOBER 3, 1906
Lowell students learn about Beethoven.
NOVEMBER 28, 1906
Lowell students sell candy in order to raise money for a statue. They raise $37.60, which adjusted for inflation, would be $1,318.06 in 2025.
DECEMBER 10, 1906
Lowell eighth graders stage a debate.
1907
FEBRUARY 15, 1907
The school board, having approved plans for an eight-room addition to Lowell, opens up bidding for the job.
FEBRUARY 28, 1907
A $26,400 bid for construction of the new addition to Lowell is accepted by the school board. Contract stipulations specify that the building must be completed by September 1, 1907.
JUNE 2, 1907
Lowell boys do well in sports.
JUNE 3, 1907
JUNE 13, 1907
The school board allows the sale of the old Lowell and Washington school buildings, which must be moved from school property over the summer.
JULY 3, 1907
The University of Puget Sound is reported to have purchased the old Washington and Lowell buildings. The Lowell building is planned to be used for the girls’ dormitory.
AUGUST 3, 1907
A building update mentions that the plastering in the new Lowell addition is nearly complete, and the building is on schedule to be ready for the first day of school in September.
AUGUST 25, 1907
Rather than becoming a dormitory for the University of Puget Sound, the old Lowell annex building is instead moved down the hill by the Dominican Sisters to be used as a boys’ school. It later becomes part of the Aquinas Academy.
AUGUST 30, 1907
An update on the state of the schools and student population prior to the beginning of the school year.
1907
Lowell school, with the new addition as seen circa 1907.
SEPTEMBER 27, 1907
The school board tightens up boundary restrictions, and decides to make no exceptions moving forward. Students must attend the school in their district.
With the new Lowell addition, the boundaries of Lowell were expanded:
“The board voted to extend the end of the boundaries of the school district tributary to the Lowell school to North Fifth street on the east, M street on the south and Cedar street on the west. This was done following a report from Principal C. M. Sherman of the Lowell school, stating that several of his new school rooms are empty and that only 493 pupils are enrolled, while he can accommodate 725.”
SEPTEMBER 29, 1907
13-year-old Lowell student Gertrude Zelinsky writes a letter to the newspaper’s “Aunt Peppers” and describes how much she likes school and her teacher.
OCTOBER 4, 1907
The school board went back on their decision to change the school boundaries after backlash from parents and the principals of other schools.
“At the last regular meeting of the board the boundaries of Emerson and Washington districts were changed to fill up the Lowell building with the result that the Emerson was left with some vacant rooms, the attendance at the Washington was affected and the salary of the principal of the Lowell was in a fair way to be materially boosted, while the pay of the two women principals of the Emerson and Washington stood for a reduction. The salaries of principals are fixed on the attendance at their schools at the end of the first month, being $900 with $45 additional for each 45 pupils. Consequently it stood to the interest of every principal to have as big an enrollment as possible. The change in boundaries was of material financial advantage at the Lowell, as was told in The Ledger the other day.”
Additionally, parents near the Emerson and Washington schools complained about having to send their children to Lowell even though Lowell was much further away.
1908
MARCH 8, 1908
13-year-old student Hazel Zimmerman submits a poem about Lowell to the newspaper.
MARCH 9, 1908
A planned, realistic fire drill at Lowell complete with manufactured smoke was cancelled due to fears that it would have caused a panic, which could have been dangerous.
SEPTEMBER 7, 1908
The teacher list for the 1908-09 school year.
OCTOBER 28, 1908
Principal C.M. Sherman guarantees that Lowell will contribute $100 to the stadium fund at Stadium High School.
NOVEMBER 21, 1908
The public library decides to establish a library branch at Lowell.
NOVEMBER 25, 1908
F. L . Stocking, assistant postmaster, spoke to Lowell students about the post office in order to teach them about how the postal service works, as well as why it is important to correctly address letters.
1909
JANUARY 14, 1909
Guest speaker Van Voris, a Humane Officer, spoke to students at Lowell about treating animals with kindness.
MAY 13, 1909
A male intruder described to be in his early 20s snuck into the girls’ bathroom at Lowell and confronted a 12-year-old student when she entered the lavatory. Her screams alerted staff and the police were summoned, but the intruder was able to escape.
MAY 14, 1909
Police make an arrest in the intruder case at Lowell.
MAY 19, 1909
An entertaining program by students at Lowell earns them $75, going toward their $100 Stadium fund subscription.
JULY 9, 1909
Bids open for suppliers of “cookery tables and other furniture required for the Lowell school and McKinley school buildings.”
SEPTEMBER 2, 1909
Teacher list for the 1909-10 school year.
NOVEMBER 6, 1909
The school board purchases two of the lots (lots 6 & 7) across the alley behind the school, on N. I street. This will allow Lowell to expand its playground area. The school board considers the purchase of more lots on the block to further increase the playground size.
NOVEMBER 7, 1909
Two more articles about the playground expansion.
Lowell Elementary School History Project 