Central High School was a public high school in the

Central Central is an adjective usually referring to being in the center of some place or (mathematical) object. Central may also refer to: Directions and generalised locations * Central Africa, a region in the centre of Africa continent, also known a ...

neighborhood of

Cleveland Cleveland ( ), officially the City of Cleveland, is a city in the United States, U.S. U.S. state, state of Ohio and the county seat of Cuyahoga County, Ohio, Cuyahoga County. Located in the northeastern part of the state, it is situated along ...

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

. It was established in 1846 and merged with East Tech in 1952. It had several locations during its existence. The school served white and African American students.

History

It was the first high school in Cleveland and the first free public high school west of the Alleghenies. The school began in a Universalist church basement. After Ohio City was annexed to Cleveland, West High School was established as a division of the school since state law allowed only one public high school in Cleveland.

Notable teachers

Helen Maria Chesnutt Helen Maria Chesnutt (1880–1969) was a teacher of Latin and the author of an influential biography and Latin text book. She was African American. Family life Helen Maria Chesnutt was born in Fayetteville, North Carolina in 1880. Her parents w ...

, among the earliest women of color in American classical education

Alumni

Langston Hughes high school 1919 or 1920

Charles Francis Brush Charles Francis Brush (March 17, 1849 – June 15, 1929) was an American engineer, inventor, entrepreneur, and philanthropist. Biography Brush was born in Euclid Township, Ohio to Isaac Elbert Brush and Delia Williams Phillips. Isaac Brush ...

, inventor and industrialist *

Benjamin O. Davis Jr. Benjamin Oliver Davis Jr. (December 18, 1912 – July 4, 2002) was a United States Air Force (USAF) general and commander of the World War II Tuskegee Airmen. He was the first African-American brigadier general in the USAF. On December 9, 1998, ...

, first African-American to graduate from West Point since 1889. First African-American brigadier general in the USAF. Promoted to four-star general by President Bill Clinton. * Harry Edward Davis, lawyer and Ohio state legislator * Russell Howard Davis, educator, activist, and historian. An alumnus, he returned to the school as its principal. * John Patterson Greene, the "Father of Labor Day" *

Louis William Greeve Louis may refer to: * Louis (coin) * Louis (given name), origin and several individuals with this name * Louis (surname) * Louis (singer), Serbian singer * HMS ''Louis'', two ships of the Royal Navy See also Derived or associated terms * Lewis (d ...

, industrial designer and pioneer in the aerospace industry *

Marcus A. Hanna Marcus Alonzo Hanna (September 24, 1837 – February 15, 1904) was an American businessman and Republican politician who served as a United States Senator from Ohio as well as chairman of the Republican National Committee. A friend and po ...

, businessman and U.S. Senator. Served as Chairman of the Republican National Committee. *

Langston Hughes James Mercer Langston Hughes (February 1, 1901 – May 22, 1967) was an American poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist from Joplin, Missouri. One of the earliest innovators of the literary art form called jazz poetry, H ...

, poet, social activist, novelist, playwright, and columnist * Helen Haiman Joseph, the "grandmother of American puppetry" because of her practical and scholarly knowledge of marionettes * "Mickey" Katz, American musician and comedian who specialized in Jewish humor *

Mary Brown Martin Mary may refer to: People * Mary (name), a feminine given name (includes a list of people with the name) Religious contexts * New Testament people named Mary, overview article linking to many of those below * Mary, mother of Jesus, also calle ...

, the first African-American woman elected to the Cleveland, Ohio school board *

Carman Sumner Newsome In Celtic mythology, Carman or Carmun was a warrior and sorceress from Athens who tried to invade Ireland in the days of the Tuatha Dé Danann, along with her three sons, Dub ("black"), Dother ("evil") and Dian ("violence"). She used her magica ...

, African-American movie star, musician, and leader of a prominent jazz band *

Lila Pauline Robeson Lila or LILA may refer to: Arts and entertainment * ''Lila'' (album), debut album by American country music singer Lila McCann * ''Lila'' (movie), a 1968 sexploitation film * The Meaning of Lila, a comic strip written by John Forgetta and L. A ...

, international opera star and the first Cleveland-born artist to sing with the Metropolitan Opera in New York *

John D. Rockefeller Sr. John Davison Rockefeller Sr. (July 8, 1839 – May 23, 1937) was an American business magnate and philanthropist. He has been widely considered the wealthiest American of all time and the richest person in modern history. Rockefeller was ...

, businessman and philanthropist. * John L. Severance, industrialist and philanthropist * Noble Sissle, African-American composer, bandleader and vocalist *

Thaddeus Spratlen Thaddeus H. Spratlen (1930 - May 18, 2021) was an American economist who was Professor Emeritus at the University of Washington's Foster School of Business. He was the first African American faculty member at Western Washington State College (no ...

, business school professor *

Louis Stokes Louis Stokes (February 23, 1925 – August 18, 2015) was an American attorney, civil rights pioneer and politician. He served 15 terms in the United States House of Representatives – representing the east side of Cleveland – and was the firs ...

, attorney, civil rights pioneer, and politician who served 15 terms in the US House of Representatives *

Rachael Walker Turner Rachel ( he, רָחֵל, Modern: Raḥel, Tiberian: Rāḫēl, Rāḥēl), meaning " ewe", is a feminine given name of Hebrew origin, popularized by the biblical figure Rachel, the wife of Israelite patriarch Jacob. Ashkenazi Jewish matronymic ...

, African-American soprano * Joseph Louis Weinberg, Architect who pioneered urban-renewal and slum clearance efforts * Adolph Weinberger, founder of Gray Drug Stores, Inc.Weinberger, Adolph. Encyclopedia of Cleveland History. Case-Western Reserve University (https://case.edu/ech/articles/w/weinberger-adolph.Retrieved Feb. 18, 2022.)

References

{{Authority control High schools in Cuyahoga County, Ohio Defunct public high schools in Ohio Education in Cleveland 1952 disestablishments in Ohio 1846 establishments in Ohio Educational institutions disestablished in 1952 Educational institutions established in 1846 Central, Cleveland