Applicable National Register Criteria Mark "x" in one or more boxes for the criteria qualifying the propert or National Register listing B Property is associated with events that have made a significant contribution to the broad patterns of our history. Property is associated with the lives of persons significant in our past. C Property embodies the distinctive characteristics of a type, period, or method of construction or represents the work of a master, or possesses high artistic values, or represents a significant and distinguishable entity whose components lack individual distinction. Property has yielded, or is likely to yield, information important in prehistory or history.
Bristol, MA County and State Areas of Significance (Enter categories from instructions) ARCHITECTURE COMMUNITY PLANNING AND DEVELOPMENT EDUCATION Period of Significance 1900-1960 Significant Dates 1901- school opened Criteria Considerations (Mark "x" in all the boxes that apply) Property is: A owed by a religious institution or used for religious purposes. B removed from its original location. C a birthplace or grave. a cemetery. E a reconstructed building, object, or structure. F a commemorative property. G less than 50 years old or achieving significance within the past 50 years. Significant Person N/A Cultural Affiliation N/A Architect/Builder Samuel C. Hunt Period of Significance (justification) In 1900, the city of New Bedford acquired land from the Potomska Mill Corporation with the intent of constructing a new school. The city commissioned architect Samuel C.
Hunt to design that building. following year, the completed Robert C. Ingraham School opened its doors in September of 1901. The school was full to capacity upon opening and continued to function as part of the New Bedford public school system until the 1970s, when a larger school was constructed. (see continuation sheet) NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page 1 8. NARRATIVE STATEMENT OF SIGNIFICANCE Criteria Statement: The Ingraham School is a Romanesque Revival building constructed in 1901 that has retained much of its original historical significance and architectural integrity.
Built during New Bedford's prosperous industrial age, the structure was part of a community development effort to accommodate the educational needs of an exploding immigrant population in the south end of New Bedford. Named after the first librarian of the New Bedford Free Public Library, Robert C. Ingraham, the Ingraham School retains much of its original architecture and massing. as an elementary school until 1977, when it was decommissioned after a larger magnet elementary school, the Alfred E. Gomes Elementary School, was built to accommodate the educational needs of children throughout New Bedford. The Ingraham School was used as storage from 1977 to 1992, when it was reopened as the Ingraham Integrated Preschool until 2006 when it was closed. The school fulfills the National Register criteria A and C at the local level.
The period of significance is from 1901, the date of construction, to 1960, the standard fifty-year mark necessary to allow historical perspective. History of New Bedford During the early 1800s, New Bedford's vast fleet of whaling ships sailed every ocean on the charts and brought riches to and from countless foreign ports. In 1857, when New Bedford's population was about 22,000, the peak of the whaling era was reached, with 329 vessels employed representing an investment of $20 million and a yearly catch of $10 million. At this pinnacle, New Bedford was the wealthiest per capita city in the world. However, the second half of the 19t* century saw the decline of the whaling industry and the rise of the textile era. A once- lucrative business, whaling was becoming much more difficult and less profitable than ever before.
Not only were whales becoming scarcer, but the products made from them were now in serious competition with kerosene and petroleum. As a result, whaling merchants began investing their fortunes in another industry, textiles. New Bedford's first textile mill and principal producer of fine cotton cloth in the United States, the Wamsutta Mills opened in 1847 just north of the city's center. With the early success of the Wamsutta Mills, and the economic constraints of the Civil War period, the city began to experience a shift in industry from whaling to textiles. Merchants shrewdly chose to invest in the emerging textile manufacturing business rather than whaling. In 1871, with the loss of the city's Arctic fleet, merchants invested in the creation of New Bedford's second textile venture, he Potomska Mill Corporation.
Its new, four-story, 427-foot-long mill building was erected on South Water Street n the city's south end. (continued) Textile Industry History. 2007-2009. Gary Mock. 06 July 2009<http://www.textilehistory.org/newbedford.html>. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page2 lumerous factories were established in the geographic north and south ends of the city, thousands of jobs were reated, attracting a large immigrant population seeking employment. The new industry became so successful that 30,000 people, were incorporated in New Bedford.?
It was during this time, that the city became one of the largest producers of cotton yarns and textiles in the country and experienced the largest growth of any mid-size city on the East Coast.* In direct correlation to the success of textile manufacturing and the population explosion that resulted in New Bedford, whole neighborhoods were created around these mills to provide housing for workers and their families. History of the South End With a new industry came new problems. During the Whaling Era, a ship's crew lived on board and only returned to New Bedford briefly between voyages. Textile workers, however, needed to live in the city permanently and relatively close to the mill where they were employed. With the city's elite living in central New Bedford, the immigrant mill workers settled in newly formed neighborhoods near the factories located in the city's North and South Ends.
As these respective geographic ends developed, they became two separate communities made up of individual ethnic neighborhoods. Prior to the inception of the Potomska Mill Corporation in 1871, most of New Bedford's South End was undeveloped land. With no available housing near the mill site, the Potomska Mill Corporation purchased adjacent land to build housing for its workers and their families. The corporation built 26 four-family tenements to house a portion of its 1,100 operatives." In addition, builders, recognizing the need for housing, took advantage of the opportunity, buying land in the area to develop on speculation. Other businesses and buildings quickly sprang up as new neighborhoods developed around the industrial site.
Many technological advances allowed the city to grow in its less developed areas, including the inception of the Municipal Water Works in 1869, installation of electric street cars in 1890, and the extension of the city's sewer system around 1900. All of these advances and city improvements made expansion to the north and south ends possible, creating new neighborhoods and further developing the city. As the textile industry flourished, large numbers of immigrant workers continued to flock to the city. By 1900, immigrants made up 40% of New Bedford's population and 75% of its mill workers.? The south end of the city (continued) 2 Wolfbein, Seymour L. The Decline of a Cotton Textile City: A Study of New Bedford. New York: Columbia UP, 1944. 3 Heath, Kingston Wm. The Patina of Place: The Cultural Weathering of a New England Industrial Landscape. New York: University ofTrath, sieg ston Wm.
The Patina of Place: The Cultural Weathering of a New England Industrial Landscape: New York: University of Tennessee P, 2001. Heath, Kingston Wm. The Patina of Place: The Cultural Weathering of a New England Industrial Landscape. New York: University Georgianna, Daniel. The Strike of '28. Ist ed. New Bedford, MA: Spinner Publications, Inc., 1993. "Georgianna, Daniel. The Strike of'28. Ist ed. New Bedford, MA: Spinner Publications, Inc., 1993. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page 3 tended to mainly attract English, French-Canadian, Portuguese, and Cape Verdean workers. These groups then ettled into their own pockets of ethnic, working-class neighborhoods.
Portuguese and French-Canadian childre re most likely those who attended the Ingraham School, as these two groups settled within walking distance of th Potomska Mills by the 1890s. Although the English also worked in the Potomska Mills, they settled farther west, The Need for Ingraham The waves of immigrants created an influx of workers so great that the population tripled between the years 1880 and 1920, and the dense working-class neighborhoods developed quickly. In just thirty years (from the founding of Potomska in 1871 to the opening of the Ingraham School in 1901) a virtually undeveloped area of New Bedford became too overgrown to handle its population's needs. This rapid growth placed a great strain on all city services, particularly the school system.
The Superintendent's Report for the year 1899-1900 expressed the city's desperate need for new school houses and described the troubling situation: "At present there are at least five hundred pupils who are attending schools in various rented quarters such as stores, churches, halls, dwelling houses and the like."10 The report went on to explain how many of these classes were located in poorly lit, badly ventilated spaces, including basements. One particular south end neighborhood, near the present site of the Ingraham School, had as many as 325 students attending class in rented buildings." The new school was commissioned to help combat these problems and accommodate the area's rapidly growing population.
In July of 1900, the City of New Bedford purchased the city block on which the school is now situated from the Potomska Mill Corporation for nearly $14,000.' At the time, Rivet Street was the main thoroughfare for the Potomska area neighborhoods, making it the perfect location for a new school. Building mover John Bordon relocated four of the mill's original six three-deckers to clear the lot. Contracted by the City of New Bedford, prominent local architect Samuel C. Hunt designed a new school that would properly serve the educational needs of the children of immigrant mill workers residing in the south end. Samuel C. Hunt A native of New Bedford, Samuel C. Hunt (1858-1908) became a prominent architect and citizen around the turn of the century. Beginning at age 16, he was apprenticed to a local carpenter for four years. He attended evening (continued) 8 Georgianna, Daniel.
The Strike of '28. Ist ed. New Bedford, MA: Spinner Publications, Inc., 1993. ' Heath, Kingston Wm. The Patina of Place: The Cultural Weathering of a New England Industrial Landscape. New York: University of Tennessee P, 2001. ° New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1900. "New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1900. 12 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1900. 13 Heath, Kingston Wm. The Patina of Place: The Cultural Weathering of a New England Industrial Landscape. New York: NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Robert C.
Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page 4 drawing school and eventually studied architecture in Boston. As a construction foreman in the 1870s, he guided the construction of several well-known buildings, and by 1880 he established a New Bedford office as a contractor and builder. In 1891, his success as a contractor led him to open a new office as an architect. It was the period from this time until his death that coincided perfectly with the city's desperate need for larger and more modern school facilities. Hunt did not specialize in school buildings, but between 1901 and 1908, the city built six new grammar schools, five of which he was commissioned to design." In addition to the Ingraham School, the identical John H. Clifford School (1901), the National Register listed Thomas Donaghy School (MHC #2028) (1905), the Hosea M.
Knowlton School (1906), and the James B. Congdon School (1908), can all be attributed to Hunt.' All but the Knowlton School survive. He also designed plans for many other well-known buildings of the era, including several firehouses, the Dawson Building (NR, MHC #480), Bristol County Registry of Deeds (NRDIS, MHC #731), and the restoration/renovation of the "new" City Hall (formerly the New Bedford Free Public Library) (NRDIS, MHC #220).! Hunt became a well-known citizen during the last two decades of his life, partly due to his interest in local politics. He served as a Ward Two Aldermen on the 1895 and 1896 City Councils and attempted a run for the office of County Commissioner in 1897. During his work on the Registry of Deeds building and City Hall, Hunt became ill and passed away in September of 1908.
Although he was not able to see either project through to completion, the plans he designed were still carried out. Robert C. Ingraham Originally referred to as the Blackmer Street School (for its southern border) during the conceptual phase of the project, the Ingraham School was named in honor of Robert C. Ingraham who died shortly before the building was dedicated. Robert C. Ingraham was the first librarian of the New Bedford Free Public Library, one of the oldest public libraries in the country. He held the position for nearly 50 years, beginning with its inception in 1852. Mr. Ingraham not only handled all of the library's administrative duties on his own, but also any custodial needs. He had a great enthusiasm for knowledge and learning, which enabled him to know the title and contents of every book under his care.
He was also responsible for collecting many early records, documents, and books of local historic significance. Despite his failing health in his later years, Mr. Ingraham did not retire but instead remained dedicated to the library until his death on March 3, 1901. Unfortunately, little is known about the official opening of the school and its dedication ceremony. Any coverage it may have received was eclipsed in the newspapers because it coincided with the assassination of President William McKinley. (continued) 14 "Obituary: Death of Samuel C. Hunt." Republican Standard 10 Sept. 1908. 15 "Obituary: Death of Samuel C. Hunt." Republican Standard 10 Sept. 1908. 16 "Obituary: Death of Samuel C. Hunt." Republican Standard 10 Sept. 1908. 17 "Obituary: Death of Librarian Robert C. Ingraham." The Evening Standard Times 4 Mar. 1901. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page5 With its three-story brick exterior, slate roof, twelve classrooms and one assembly hall, the Ingraham School was one of the "modern" schools of its day and was praised in a 1909 issue of the South End Souvenir: "The Schools of thesnguth lad est ad some ofphetansaie the tiyr haith sehool an moderamed BiCongidon sihog,, Prominent The Ingraham School was filled to capacity during its first year of operation.l Its 614 new students had been previously enrolled in the smaller and overcrowded Thompson Street (1885) and Fifth Street (1860) Schools.
Prior to the building of the Ingraham School, the South End was so ill-equipped to meet its educational needs that some students traveled as many as ten blocks or more to these facilities each day. Despite the relief brought by Ingraham's opening, the South End remained desperate for more classroom space. Even the new school could not accommodate enough of the area's increasing population; consequently, one class was left behind at the Thompson Street site. Despite its location, the class was still considered part of the Ingraham School and was referred to by the School Department as the "Robert C. Ingraham Annex."20 Ingraham ran on the same schedule as the city's other grammar schools.
Students attended two sessions a day - a on oit aith oes hei tay sairede ie o os inse rinionyeau was comprised of two terms that ran from September to February, and then from February to the start of July. Students and teachers enjoyed three vacations, with time off at Christmas, April, and a full two- month summer vacation in July and August. Schools were closed on Saturdays, and four additional holidays were celebrated: Washington's Birthday, Patriot's Day, Memorial Day and Thanksgiving. Alice C. Munsey was the principal for the first twenty years the school was in operation. She made on average $2,000 a year, and was responsible for twelve teachers, one janitor, and roughly 600 students. In 1901, the teacher's salaries ranged mainly from $600-$900 per year, most remaining on the lower end of this range.
Exceeding the earnings of the majority of the teachers, janitor Dennis McAuliffe made $900 that year. During the early years, students at the Ingraham School tended to range between 11 and 14 years of age. As a grammar school, it provided an education for children in the 5" through the 9" grade levels. New Bedford's grammar level curriculum consisted of basic textbooks for each subject as well as classic literature. The book lists included everything from Greek Mythology to Shakespeare and from Dickens to Longfellow.? Those who completed all five years at the grammar level were eligible to enter high school the following fall. (continued) 18 Burgess, J. H. "Schools of the South End." South End Souvenir 1909: 4-5 19 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1902 20 New Bedford, MA. School Department.
Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1902 21 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1902 22 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1902 23 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1902 24 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1902 NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Section number 8 Page_6 OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA parts of the country. In 1908, children in the United States averaged only 4.3 years of education, while those in Massachusetts averaged 7 full years.?
New Bedford's grammar schools, including the Ingraham School, typically experienced a lower enrollment as teenagers left school to work in the booming cotton manufacturing industry and help support their families. It was not uncommon for several generations to work in the same factory. Evening classes, often referred to as "Evening Industrial Schools," were instituted throughout the city in an attempt to accommodate those who needed to work but wanted an education. Evening classes at the Ingraham School were run by a completely separate staff. Joseph P. Kennedy was principal in 1901, and made far less than Principal Munsey. His salary was only $3.50 per night, despite having almost the same number of students and more teachers. Of the twenty teachers in the evening school, nineteen were making only $1.50 per night.?
Although a great advantage for many residents, evening school was clearly kept on a much tighter budget. According to the Superintendent's Annual Report for the school year 1909-1910, of the 570 students enrolled in Ingraham's day classes that year, each student missed an average of two weeks of school.? Diseases spread quickly in the cramped living quarters and poor working conditions of the South End and these statistics may be reflective of such problems. Due to the pace at which the South End developed and its population of newly arrived working class immigrants, it is likely that most families in the area did not have access to medical care.
The Annual Report further states that Ingraham students were absent a total of 8,386 sessions (on a two session a day school calendar), while evening students missed 2,012 nights of class.3° The growing number of absences must have caught the city's attention because the New Bedford Medical Inspector paid 482 visits to the Ingraham School that year. 31 Maintaining a healthy student body was clearly an issue, locally and across the Commonwealth. In 1911, Massachusetts passed new legislation requiring all public schools in the state to have a physician on hand. The mandatory presence of a physician at school brought health care to Ingraham students who otherwise might not have received this service. Along the same vein, the New Bedford Dental Association examined all of the city's primary school students in 1910.
This action resulted in the establishment of two dental clinics: one at the Clifford School to serve the North End students and one at the Ingraham School for the South End. The purpose of these clinics was to provide care (continued) 25 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1909. 26 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1909. 21 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1909. 28 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1902. 29 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1911. 30 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1911. 3" New Bedford, MA.
School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1911. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number _8 Page _7 or any enrolled student under the age of 12 that a school nurse or doctor recommended for treatment. Studen ho went to the clinic were asked to pay, but those who could not afford this service received it free of charg Bedford schools selected to receive swings, seesaws, slides, sandboxes, baseballs, bats, volleyballs, sand pails, small shovels, and beanbags.
This was part of an effort to encourage "organized play" to "eliminate rowdyism and develop a spirit of fair play."32 The school department expressed an interest in their Annual Report to purchase more equipment in the future. Ten years later, responsibility for all school playgrounds was transferred to the Park Department, which moved the equipment from schoolyards to parks throughout the city. Also in 1910, the school department began to notice a strong correlation between pupils who had difficulty in school and those from immigrant families. Steps were taken by both the school department and the state to address these issues. It was noted in the Superintendent's Report for 1910-1911 that many students who were of grammar- school age had remained in primary school due to a language barrier, thus overcrowding the lower grades.
As a solution, the school department created evening school programs for "illiterate pupils." The goal of these classes was to provide the students with the special attention needed for them to advance to higher grade levels and eventually on to grammar school. These classes would have greatly benefited the Ingraham School, providing its teachers with incoming students who were better prepared for age-appropriate lessons, which may have prevented some premature dropouts. Now that the public schools provided children of immigrants with the opportunity to properly learn English, it became clear that more needed to be done. Those beyond school age had no instruction from which to learn the language and thus many continued to speak in their native tongue.
In 1919, the Americanization Law was passed by Massachusetts, which required cities and towns to provide an educational program for immigrants. The Ingraham School soon became one of the South End locations to offer this service. Different from the evening classes for illiterate pupils, Americanization classes were open to immigrants of all ages and were not limited to language lessons. These classes promoted American ideals and culture in an attempt to assimilate immigrants into the country. New Bedford offered the program's classes in various locations throughout the city, including evening schools, day classes, factories, and centers. By the school year of 1929-1930, the city of New Bedford had 4,000 people enrolled in Americanization classes, more than any other city or town in the state.34 The Ingraham School offered this service both day and night.
In 1930, it had 175 students taking day classes and 39 enrolled in the evenings.3S The Portuguese were the most widely represented ethnic group taking Americanization classes in New Bedford, with 1,974 citywide. Other prevalent groups included 525 French Canadians, 353 Polish, and 288 Cape (continued) 32 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1911. 33 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1911. 34 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1930. 35 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1930. 36 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1930. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev.
10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page 8 The school system continued to lose its students to the mills, despite the array of specialized classes and programs. Similar problems throughout the state resulted in the creation of two new state laws in 1920. The first mandated that all students 16 and under must first complete the sixth grade before leaving school for work.3? The second required all minors under the age of 16, who worked, to attend a minimum of four hours of school per week on their employer's time.38 Decline of Textile Era The economic success of the textile industry reached the height of prosperity during the WW Iera.
Profits initially increased as the automobile began to rise in popularity and the city helped meet a growing need for tire yarn. As the United States entered WW I, coarse textiles for products such as uniforms, gas masks, and bandages were in high demand. Until this time, New Bedford and other New England mills specialized in fine cotton goods, while coarse goods were manufactured down south. The New Bedford mills then switched to coarse goods production to capitalize on wartime supply and demand. At this time, the city had a total of 28 cotton manufacturing corporations owning 70 mills, and more were yet to come. Profits skyrocketed, as the mills employed 5,000 more people and doubled their wages.39 Great War was soon overshadowed by the Depression that followed. When the war ended, so did the profits, as coarse textile products.
New Bedford's single-industry economy suffered throughout the 1920s for these reasons. The industry's downturn grew so severe that between 1927 and 1928 the number of mill workers employed in New Bedford was cut in half.*° To offset losses, many mill owners decided to institute a 10% wage cut in 1928." This resulted in the longest labor strike in New Bedford history, lasting six months and adding one more problem to an already depressed industry. Between 1919 and 1937, 21,000 jobs were lost in New Bedford because of the decline Progress Administration (WPA) project, ironically employing 493 South End workers.* Decline of the Ingraham School Several factors contributed to the decline and eventual closure of the Ingraham School. When the textile industry first began to decline in the 1920s, families who could not find work attempted to migrate elsewhere.
Some (continued) 37 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1920. 38 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1920. 39 Wolfbein, Seymour L. The Decline of a Cotton Textile City: A Study of New Bedford. New York: Columbia UP, 1944. 40 Wolfbein, Seymour L. The Decline of a Cotton Textile City: A Study of New Bedford. New York: Columbia UP, 1944. 4! Georgianna, Daniel. The Strike of'28. Ist ed. New Bedford, MA: Spinner Publications, Inc., 1993. 42 Spinner: People And Culture In Southeastern Massachusetts. Vol. IV. New Bedford: Spinner Publications, 1988. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Robert C.
Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page 9 relocated to other parts of New Bedford, while others left in search of cities with more industrial stability. The enrollment numbers at the Ingraham School reflect this migration, having had 575 students in 1920 and only 504 by 1930.43 By the time the Potomska Mills closed in the mid 1930s, most families could not relocate because of financial constraints. Without the draw of the Potomska Mill, there was no specific reason for people to move to or stay in the area served by the Ingraham School. Enrollment leveled off after 1930 at just over 500 and would remain this way into the 1950s. In 1927, the completion of New Bedford's first two junior high schools, Normandin and Roosevelt, impacted the enrollment and use of the Ingraham School.
Each of these new facilities had the capacity to hold as many as 1,200 students.* As a result, many of the grammar schools such as Ingraham that educated students in the fifth through ninth grades became "mixed" schools containing "grammar, primary and ungraded.'*S Mixed-level schools were often categorized as elementary schools, while the pure grammar schools were classified separately. By 1930, New Bedford had only five real grammar schools left.* experience an increase of 1,600 more students between the first and sixth grades. .4 It found that the school department owned too many schools in some places and not enough in others. As a result, the report recommended school redistricting, abandoning some schools, building others, and acquiring sites for future schools.
In fact, while the study was being conducted, 600 seventh and eighth grade students from grammar schools in central New Bedford were relocated to its junior high schools.4 Initially thought to be a temporary move, the superintendent of schools later stated "at close of the school year last June the grammar school type of educational organization ceased to exist in this department." The Ingraham School's transition to an elementary school was complete. Between 1960 and 1970, city population increased due to chain migration and family reunification. However, the Ingraham School's enrollment did not reflect this.'° New Bedford public schools no longer had the space to meet demands. There were state requirements, curriculum changes, and groups of citizens requesting specialized programs.
Despite high enrollment city-wide, the Ingraham School numbers dropped to a mere 360 students during these years. With seven schools built prior to 1900 and 16 before 1922 including the Ingraham, the pressure was mounting to replace old with new."' In the 1970 Superintendent's Annual Report, the superintendent stated that (continued) 43 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1920, 1930. 44 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1931. 45 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1931. 46 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1931. 4? New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1950 48 New Bedford, MA.
School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1950. 49 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1950. 50 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1970. 51 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1970. NPS Form 10-900 (Rev. 10-90) United States Department of the Interior National Park Service OMB Approval No. 1024-0018 National Register of Historic Places Continuation Sheet Robert C. Ingraham School New Bedford (Bristol), MA Section number 8 Page10 movinctu groatieg ohol sy of om garize 19705 anu fe ne, ilsihousid bhe sanged sytem is not adapted to a fast accommodate students from all over the city, as well as a new high school.
Groundbreaking began in 1975 for two of the four elementary schools, designed to accommodate 1,000 students each.S Three older schoolhouses closed the following year as construction continued. In 1977, the Alfred J. Gomes Elementary School opened to serve the children of the South End. Several blocks of houses were purchased and demolished for the construction of this school, which is located between South Second Street and Route 18. Due to their proximity to the former Potomska Mill, it is likely that many of the homes razed for the project belonged to former Potomska workers. In addition, the opening of the Gomes School forced the closure of five older elementary schools in this area of the city. The Thomas Donaghy School (1905), Acushnet Avenue School (1878), Thomas A. Greene School (1894) and the Clarence A.
Cook School (1922) were all closed and deemed surplus property by the school department. The Ingraham School was also closed but retained as a "depository" for excess school furniture and functioned in this capacity for the next fifteen years. ** After years of being used as a warehouse, in 1992 the Robert C. Ingraham School was put back into service as an educational institution as the Ingraham Integrated Preschool. It was during this time that several modifications were made to the interior of the building to meet modern building codes, including the installation of an elevator, sprinkler system, a rooftop ventilation system, and new lighting, all of which still exist today. On the exterior, a handicap ramp was added leading to the front entrance on the north façade.
The lettering reading "Ingraham When it reopened in 1992, the preschool was one of the first in Massachusetts to combine special needs, bilingual, and regular students together in one class.' It was also accredited numerous times by the National Academy of Early Childhood Programs, a designation that only five percent of American preschools receive.S In 2006, the Ingraham Integrated Preschool closed its doors for good. In 2007, the City of New Bedford distributed a Request for Proposal for the redevelopment of the Ingraham School. The building is being rehabilitated for affordable housing, community space, and an after-school program. (end) 52 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1970. 53 New Bedford, MA. School Department. Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1976 54 New Bedford, MA. School Department.
Office of the Superintendent, Annual Report. New Bedford, MA, 1978 s5 Pawlack-Seaman, Susan. "New Bedford Preschool is Accredited." New Bedford Standard Times 6 June 1997, Live and Learn sec. s6 Pawlack-Seaman, Susan. "New Bedford Preschool is Accredited." New Bedford Standard Times 6 June 1997, Live and Learn sec. Robert C. Ingraham Schoo Vame of Property 9.
Block