Fire Destroys School No. 7

Old Section of School No. 7, Built in 1882

SPECTACULAR FIRE DESTROYS SCHOOL NO. 7

It was about midnight during mid-summer, July 3, 1942, that a spectacular fire destroyed the old portion of School No. 7 located at West Forest Avenue and Maple Streets in North Olean. In fact I had spent second through fifth grades in this portion of the school. We had to enter this section, built in 1882, through the entrance on the Forest Avenue side. As one entered the stairway to the upper floors was directly ahead in the middle of the building with a hall on either side. The two-second grades were to the right of the stairs and the two fourth grades were to the left, being the rear of the building. As one went up the stairs, the two fourth grades were along the back and the two fifth grades would have been over the second grades. Then there was a long hall, and the one-sixth grade was to the left of this hall. This hall connected the old part to the new section built in 1922. This new section contained the other sixth grade, the two seventh grades and the two eighth grades on the second floor. The first floor was made up of two kindergartens, and two first grades, as well as the principal’s office down the hall near the gymnasium. In the basement were the manual arts and home economic rooms.

It was a fine school with excellent dedicated teachers, who devoted their selves to the education of the North End children. Back in those days of the 1930’s and early 1940’s when I was a student there, we had A and B classes, that was the reason for the two grades. If you started school in September, depending on when you turned age five, then you would be in class A, if one started in January that would put you in class B. I was always in class A, having turned age five in October.

Names of my teachers were Misses Bina Noonan, Stimlinger, McDermott, Griffin, Curley, Gerringer, Barnard, Curran, Mahoney, Monihan and Driscoll. I thought that they were the best teachers in the world and still do. Mr. Paul Dohl was the principal at that time.

Therefore it was devastating when the old section of the school burned. I had just completed the eight grade that June in 1942, and was looking forward to high school. All the old memories of those days in School No 7 were pleasant ones. I remember being in the fourth grade, gazing out the window at the stone quarry in the distance and imagining riding a horse around those hills north of Olean. Cowboys were popular in the movies back then and we used to play cowboys and Indians outdoors.

To get back to the story of the fire, the fire razed the old section, while the new section was saved suffering only water damage. The firemen fought the fire over a period of eleven hours. The fire was discovered about eleven o’clock Friday night and even though the firemen had the blaze under control in three hours, they continued to pour water on the structure until morning.

Company No. 3 received the alarm about twelve-thirty sending Chief Wallen and Lt. Fred B. Page immediately to the scene of the fire. The Chief quickly put in the alarm for Company No. 1. The midnight flyer of the Pennsylvania Railroad was blocking the Union and First Street crossing, which caused a delay of the pumper and aerial truck from reaching the inferno by twenty minutes.

When the firemen arrived, the flames were shooting from the basement clear through to the roof of the old structure. All available hoses were laid, and the water was shot from the aerial truck stationed at Forest Avenue, as well as three other lines on the sides and back of the building, while three lines were used from the roof of the new building. By fighting the flames from the passageway between the two buildings, damage to the new section was prevented.

Fighting the flames was extremely dangerous because of the tall center chimney. About twelve-thirty, the roof of the old structure caved in and a few hours later the sidewalls gave away. In the morning the back was pulled down to prevent it from falling on the electric lines along the street.

The custodian of the school, Harry Reilly, said that when he had left the building at five thirty that day, everything was all right. Without being able to make an opinion of the cause of the fire without an immediate investigation that morning, it was suggested that defective wiring might have been the culprit.

At the Board of Education special meeting held a month later, a settlement of $46,782.38 was accepted for the damage to the old section of School No. 7, and $500 for the water damage to the new section. At an earlier meeting the Board had decided that all the pupils of School No. 7 would be able to attend classes in the newer, unburned section of the school.

Excerpts from a speech given by Miss Florence Driscoll in 1948 Education Week.—Miss Driscoll enumerated some of the changes in educational facilities at School 7.

“After the fire, all the eight grades and the kindergarten were crowded into what remained, and this temporary arrangement continued for five long years. The seventh and eighth grades occupied the four basement rooms, displacing the home economics and industrial arts rooms, which were moved to School No. 5. The gym was made into three classrooms, which at different times accommodated grades first through sixth. The stage was used as the music room at times filling the other three rooms with their melodious strains since the partitions were only 8 feet high.

When the new addition was built in 1947, the teacher and students had the satisfaction of studying, learning and playing in the most modern school in Olean. School No. 7 had an auditorium with a modern stage. The rooms and halls in the new building are sound proof with acoustical ceilings. The kindergarten was the most convenient and attractive in Western New York. In fact, many educators came long distance to visit to get ideas for kindergartens in new building.

Some earlier school history by Miss Driscoll, “ In 1921, the pupils from the kindergarten through the seventh grade were housed in the building, which we know as the old part, and which burned in July 1942. The eighth graded, 8B and 8A, met in the Dom Pulski Hall on E. Elm St. There was no gymnasium. Games were played and gymnastics given in the classrooms. There was no home economics room. The sewing teacher taught had sewing in the classrooms. There was a manual training room in the basement, where Mr. Ivers J. Norton, now principal of School No. 10, taught the boys how to use carpentry tools.

The partition between two of the second story rooms was so constructed that it could be rolled up, and the two rooms made into one. This served as an auditorium, the pupils sitting two in a single seat. Miss Bina Noonan’s kindergarten room was used for dances and other parties.

In 1923, when School 5 was completed, the eighth grades and some of the seventh grade pupils were transferred to Boardmanville. (My Mother was one of these pupils) Soon after this, through the combined efforts of the Board of Education and the PTA, the voters of Olean decided School 7 should have an addition. This was occupied in September 1926.” (This section fronts on Union Street and Forest Ave.)

The Olean School Board decided to close North Hill Elementary School, formerly called School No. 7, located in North Olean at the end of the 2005-2006 school year. This has left North Olean without a school of their own, now having to transport their children to the Boardmanville School or East View School by bus or by their parents.

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