Overview of the Collection |
|
| Creator: | Nicholas C. Nett |
| Title: | Syracuse Central High School (Central Tech) Collection |
| Dates: | 1885-2004 |
| Quantity: | 16.6 linear ft. |
| Abstract: | The Syracuse Central High School (Central Tech) collection contains a diverse array of unique materials relating to the history of the high school and the educational and extracurricular activities of its students. |
| Language: | English |
| Repository: | Onondaga County Public Library Local History & Genealogy Department 447 South Salina Street Syracuse, New York, 13202 (315) 435-1800 |
Syracuse Central High School was founded in 1903 to replace the 1867 Syracuse High School facility located
near the old Board of Education Building in Syracuse, New York. The new high school, designed in 1899 by Archimedes
Russell to accommodate 1,500 students, was erected in 1903 at the intersection of South Warren and Adams
streets, south of the business district of downtown Syracuse. The high school operated under
the name Syracuse Central High School from 1903 to 1960 and later as Syracuse Central Technical High School.
In 1975, the high school officially closed after the graduation of the senior class. Even though the high
school has been vacant since 1975, the building is listed on the National Register of Historic
Places since 1981.
The Syracuse Central High School—or “Central Tech”—collection is a recent acquisition of Onondaga County Public
Library’s Department of Local History and Genealogy. The collection was gathered, compiled, and managed by
Nicholas C. Nett, a 1952 SCHS alumnus. Nett created the collection to preserve the cultural heritage of the
currently defunct high school. Nett expected to donate the collection when the School reopened as The Institute
of Technology @ Syracuse Central. However, those plans never materialized and Nett subsequently donated the
expansive collection to OCPL in 2009.
Nett did significant outreach to SCHS/Central Tech alumni to obtain their personal school memorabilia and
academic records. The collection contains a diverse array of materials relating to the history of the high
school and the educational and extracurricular activities of its students. Items of interest
include report cards, diplomas, photographs, student publications, clippings, banquet programs, dance cards,
class rings, pins/buttons, and other unique ephemera.
A History of Syracuse Central [PDF] by Nicholas
C. Nett
The collection comprises archival materials relating to the history of Syracuse Central High School and the academic and extracurricular activities of its students. Items date from 1885 to 2004, along with numerous undated materials. There are six main categories of the collection: academic records, class year materials, special events, extracurricular activities, student societies, and school-related materials. Each series is organized into narrower subseries and then arranged chronologically.
Series 1: Academic Records
This series contains documents belonging to individuals who attended and graduated from Syracuse Central or Central Tech High School. Subseries including report cards, awards, and diplomas provide valuable information for genealogists, while the curriculum materials are a valuable source of information on the history of education in Syracuse. Most of the items presented here contain the names of SCHS/Central Tech alumni. Date coverage is from 1888 to 1967.
Series 2: Class Year Materials
This category includes a variety of subseries ranging from class photographs and reunion pictures to senior
memories booklets. Senior memories booklets are a collection of name cards, often with personalized notes
or signatures on the back. This series also contains graduation materials like commencement exercises, as
well as invitations and programs from various convocation ceremonies. The memorabilia subseries
includes class rings and pins, mostly from the 1940s. Date coverage is from 1885 to 1975. However, not all
class years are represented.
Commencement/Graduation Excercises/ Graduation Lists, 1894-1975 [PDF] [Excel]
Series 3: Special Events
The Special Events series contains abundant dance and prom ephemera, such as dance tickets, event announcements,
and clippings. These unique items span six decades of the school’s history. Also included are items from a
1945 memorial held at Lincoln Auditorium to commemorate the SCHS students who perished in World War II.
Series 4: Extracurricular Activities
Extracurricular Activities includes athletics, the school newspaper, student government, and music and drama
organizations. These groups and organizations were prolific and popular from the turn of the century until
the closing of the school in 1975. However, the items in the collection only extend until the mid-1960s.
Athletics provide a wide range of items from varsity letters, play books, and game stubs to
clippings, photographs, and school fight songs. The Music and Drama organizations provide sheet music and
playbills from many different productions. The Student Government subseries includes hallway passes, election
announcements, and student handbooks. The School Newspaper items include clippings, certificates, and
awards. OCPL holds a separate collection of the student newspaper The Recorder in the Local History/Genealogy Department. This Extracurricular Activities series provides a score of information
on the social and cultural lives of SCHS students.
List of the School newspaper The Recorder, 1889-1963 [PDF] [Excel]
Series 5: Student Societies
The Student Societies series includes the Senate, along with sororities popular at SCHS through the mid-twentieth
century. These organizations, especially the Lyceum and Philomathean societies, were extremely popular with
students. Many of the items pertain to events held by the organizations and range from hand-written invitations
to handmade rush booklets with creative themes like ski-pants and stockings. Some clubs contain
unique society jewelry like rings and pins. Group portraits, included in almost all subseries, contain the
names of club members and are an invaluable resource for genealogists.
Series 6: School-Related Materials
This series contains a subcategory devoted to the high school building itself; items include room numbers, postcards, and clippings. Also featured in this series is numerous school memorabilia. Items include school notebooks, pins and buttons, a tablecloth, school banners, passes, and nametags. Additionally, menus from local restaurants that students frequented are featured in this series. Miscellaneous photographs, both identified and unidentified, are included. Date coverage is from the 1900s to the 1960s. Lastly:
List of Lincoln Auditorium Programs, 1930 - 1976 [PDF] [Excel]
List of Yearbooks, 1909-1975 [PDF] [Excel]
Teacher Roster, 1854 - 1975 [PDF] [Excel]
The collection is arranged into series based on broad subject categories like academic records, class year materials, special events, extracurricular activities, student societies, and school-related materials. Series are further divided into subseries, specifying particular organizations, clubs, and events. Within each subseries, items are arranged into folders by form or genre (correspondence, clippings, ephemera, etc.) and then in chronological order.
Patron must have a valid OCPL library card.
User must use materials in the Local History and Genealogy Department of OCPL.
Permission must be obtained from staff for reproduction of any materials.
The Local History and Genealogy Department has other archival materials of Syracuse Central High School, most notably, the school newspaper, The Recorder, and Yearbooks. Please check with OCPL staff to access other collections.
Preferred citation for this material is as follows:
Syracuse Central High School Collection
Onondaga County Public Library
Local History and Genealogy Department
Gift from Nicholas C. Nett to Onondaga County Public Library
Created by: JRR/CM
Date: May 14, 2010
Revision history: May 21, 2010 - EAD created (JRR/CM)
| Academic Records | |||||||||||
| Report Cards | |||||||||||
| Oversize 1 | Report Cards 1902-1963, Undated | ||||||||||
| Awards and Certificates | |||||||||||
| Oversize 1 | Certificates 1888, 1913, 1919, 1935, 1932, 1933 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 1 | Award Announcements 1959-1967 | ||||||||||
| Curriculum Materials | |||||||||||
| Oversize 1 | Curriculum Schedules 1910, 1940s-1950s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 1 | Clippings 1940s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Diplomas | |||||||||||
| Oversize 2 | Diplomas 1892, 1907, 1917 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 2 | Diplomas 1929, 1923, 1924, 1929 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 3 | Diplomas 1930, 1934-1938 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 3 | Diplomas 1942, 1952, 1963 | ||||||||||
| Box 4 | Diploma Ribbons Undated | ||||||||||
| Class Year Materials | |||||||||||
| Class Pictures | |||||||||||
| Oversize 5 | Framed Photographs 1901, 1906, 1907, 1917 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 6 | Framed Photographs 1927, 1928, 1935 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 6 | Photographs 1885, 1913, 1919, 1925, 1936, 1947, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 6 | Printed Material 1935, 1939, 1940 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 6 | ClippingsUndated | ||||||||||
| Senior Class Memories | |||||||||||
| Box 7 | Programs and Booklets 1935, 1947, 1952, 1955, 1959 | ||||||||||
| Box 7 | Senior Class Name Cards 1947, 1952, Undated | ||||||||||
| Reunions | |||||||||||
| Box 7 | Classes of 1942-1946 | ||||||||||
| Box 7 | Class of 1947 | ||||||||||
| Box 7 | Class of 1952 | ||||||||||
| Box 7 | Class of 1953 | ||||||||||
| Box 7 | Class of 1954 | ||||||||||
| Box 7 | Class of 1955 | ||||||||||
| Box 7 | Class of 1963 | ||||||||||
| Memorabilia | |||||||||||
| Box 7 | Class Rings and Pins | ||||||||||
| Class Pin 1926 | |||||||||||
| Class Ring 1942 | |||||||||||
| Class Ring 1943 | |||||||||||
| Class Pin 1943 | |||||||||||
| Class Ring 1949 | |||||||||||
| Class Ring 1952 | |||||||||||
| Graduation Materials | |||||||||||
| Box 8 | Commencement Exercises 1887-1975 | ||||||||||
| Box 8 | Graduation Invitations 1930s-1950s | ||||||||||
| Box 8 | Graduation Ephemera 1895-1975, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 8 | Clippings 1952, 1959 | ||||||||||
| Special Events | |||||||||||
| Proms and Dances | |||||||||||
| Box 9 | Clippings 1934, 1978 | ||||||||||
| Dance and Event Ephmera 1900s-1960s, Undated | |||||||||||
| Memorials | |||||||||||
| Box 9 | WWII Memorial Assembly 1945 | ||||||||||
| Extracurricular Activities | |||||||||||
| Student Newspaper | |||||||||||
| Box 9 | Clippings 1910s, 1930s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 9 | Awards and Certificates 1934, 1953 | ||||||||||
| Student Government | |||||||||||
| Box 9 | Student Handbooks 1931, 1963, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 9 | Hallway Passes 1930s-1950s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 9 | Student Government Certificates Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 9 | Ephemera 1950s | ||||||||||
| Box 9 | Clippings 1930s, 1950s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Athletics | |||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Athletic Certificates 1935-1958 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Photographs 1934-1959, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Clippings 1920s-1970s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Printed Materials 1903, 1930, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Ephemera 1933-1948, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 10 | Varsity Letters Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 10 | Buttons and Pins Undated | ||||||||||
| Music and Drama Organizations | |||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Sheet Music 1908, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Songs 1909-1910, 1932, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 11 | Printed Material 1950s | ||||||||||
| Box 12 | Photographs 1935, 1957-1958, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 12 | Playbills 1928-1954, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 12 | Clippings 1931, 1948-1949, 1951-1953, 1957, Undated | ||||||||||
| Box 12 | Ephemera 1928, 1936, 1951 | ||||||||||
| Box 12 | Audio – CD, School Fight Song “Sons of the Red and Blue” plus sheet music for all the band parts. Undated | ||||||||||
| Student Societies | |||||||||||
| Alethean Society | |||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Clippings Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Printed Material 1952, 1955 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Ephemera 1906-1968, Undated | ||||||||||
| Lyceum Society | |||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Correspondence 1940s | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Clippings 1930s-1940s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Publications 1889, 1919 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Printed Material 1947, 1949, 1950 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Ephemera 1908, 1930s-1950s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Phi Delta Sigma | |||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Correspondence 1928 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Clippings Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Printed Material Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 13 | Ephemera 1927-1928, Undated | ||||||||||
| Philomathean | |||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Correspondence 1940s | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Clippings 1942, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Photographs 1945, 1950s, 2004, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Printed Material 1940s-1950s | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Ephemera 1900s, 1940s, 1957, Undated | ||||||||||
| Philomathean PinUndated | |||||||||||
| Philomathean PinUndated | |||||||||||
| Senate | |||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Correspondence 1951 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Clippings Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Publications 1924-1925 | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Printed Material Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Ephemera 1910-1954 | ||||||||||
| Senate Pin 1915-1916 | |||||||||||
| Soangetahha | |||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Correspondence Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Clippings Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Printed Material 1950-1951, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Ephemera 1904, 1950, Undated | ||||||||||
| Miscellaneous Clubs | |||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Printed Materials 1928 | ||||||||||
| Echeoratia Member Portrait 1928 | |||||||||||
| Oversize 14 | Ephemera 1928 | ||||||||||
| Amorelta Pin 1928 | |||||||||||
| School-Related Materials | |||||||||||
| Building-Related Materials | |||||||||||
| Oversize 15 | Clippings 1940s, 1952, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 15 | Ephemera 1900s-1950s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Postcards 1900s-1950s | |||||||||||
| Classroom Numbers Undated | |||||||||||
| Signage 1900s-1950s | |||||||||||
| School-Related Materials | |||||||||||
| Oversize 15 | Photographs 1906-1960s, Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 15 | Printed Material 1941 | ||||||||||
| School Memorabilia | |||||||||||
| Oversize 15 | Notebooks Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 15 | Local City Menus Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 16 | Passes, Nametags, and Postcards 1900s-1940s | ||||||||||
| Oversize 16 | Felt Badges and Pins 1930s-1950s | ||||||||||
| Oversize 16 | School Banners Undated | ||||||||||
| Oversize 16 | Tablecloth Undated | ||||||||||