Like it or not, school will soon begin a new year. For the next few weeks, we’ll dedicate our Timmins history feature to Central School, built on the land where the 101 Business Complex now sits.
In 1915, as the town continued to grow rapidly, local historian Karen Bachmann says the public school board wanted one bigger school to centralize the handful spread out around the town.
Council gave the board $9,000. The board said it needed at least $18,000.
“Finally, yes, we did make it happen,” says Bachmann. “The Hollinger Mine stepped in and said what we’re going to do is we’re going to give you some lots that you can build this schoolhouse on, and those lots were located right on Fourth Ave., which is now Algonquin, which is that square now that has the 101 Mall.”
Even before the school was built, the board decided it wanted eight classrooms intetad of only four. So town council issued more debentures to cover the extra cost.
“Actually, by 1918, they had a school,” Bachmann states. “They hired a new principal who came up from the Muskoka area, a gentleman. They hired a woman who was the vice-principal and things started to flow and things were going really, really well.”
Next week: Adding kindergarten to Central School.
