"Old Main"

The first high school classes in Mesa began in September, 1899 on the second floor of the red brick north Elementary School, later rebuilt and known as Irving School. The first Mesa Union High School district was organized on December 26, 1907 with John D. Loper as Superintendent. The Town Council had leased all of Block 20 to the University of Arizona for 99 years to use as experimental farm. This was the land bounded by Center and Macdonald, Second and Third Avenues. It didn't take long to discover that the block was not large enough, and so, on January 4, 1908, they sold it to the school district for $75. Construction began immediately on the gorgeous old building we all knew as "Old Main". The 1909 graduating class got to graduate from that original twelve room building. The school had a main floor auditorium with a swimming pool in the basement. The auditorium was used for assemblies, with folding chairs for the early comers and standing room only for the rest. Ten years later, eight more rooms were added plus a small auditorium-gymnasium. For basketball games spectators sat either in the balcony (above the freshman section) or on the stage. The gym was not wide enough for sideline bleachers. In 1936 the WPA and PWA provided funds for new construction and the New Building was constructed west of the Main Building with and arcade in between. The land for this was purchased from Harvey Bush, who lived in the big house at the end of Macdonald, for $4000 (He had housed a zoo on the spot previously, but the neighbors probably didn't notice the difference). A new gymnasium was also built south of the Main Building-the site of all our high school dances and basketball games. Also in the gym building were the agriculture shop and auto shop. And presiding over it all, Harvey L. Taylor! How many of us can go back mentally now and walk down the halls of Old Main or the New Building remembering who was in every room, taking the stairs two at a time, in wonderment and awe as a freshman, in triumph as a senior.

On October 1, 1967, a disastrous fire completely destroyed the sixty-year-old "Old Main" and the irreplaceable mementos of its sixty year reign. Classes continued to graduate from the old high school until 1972 when the new Mesa High was built.

Thanks to Don Anderson for sending a copy of the original photo that was printed in the Mesa Tribune.

"Thanks for sharing this with me. I tried to interest our committee in doing something like this, but no one wanted to do it. I especially like your picture of our long gone "Old Main"! Brings back lots of memories. Thanks again, and good luck."

Adrian Flynn remembers:

"I was in a 727 coming into Sky Harbor the night of the fire and we passed right over the fire on the way into Sky Harbor.  I was returning from LA from proposing to my first wife "Coral deWitt" a fellow classmate."
"I still remember how HOT the fire looked from above like it was last night, and for some reason I completely blocked it out and didn't buy or read any of the newspapers for the next few days. I wish now that I had as I would like to know more about the fire."
"Did they ever find out how the fire started?"

Charlie Aldinger

I remember the day Old Main burned. I was there, watching it all.  A group of teachers and students were afraid the fire would spread.  We started carrying out all the gym equipment across the street to the playing fields to safety.  We carried all types of equipment while the
fire raged on and on.  I remember the smoke and the heat.  It was very intense. People gathered and wept in the streets. I was in the first graduating class in the new Mesa High.

Nadine Arney, class of 65

I was in El Charro eating Mexican food with a classmate from 1966 when we
heard smoke was coming from the vicinity of the school. We raced down to the
school and couldn't believe our eyes.  We just sat down on the curb and
cried.  We stayed until it was finally out.