Historical Palmyra

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Historical Palmyra
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This first Palmyra School dated 1874 was at the
north end of Main Street on Illinois where the
library now stands on the triangular piece of
land given by John Taggart. The grades were not
separated and went through 10th. There were only
three rooms. This picture was copied from one
belonging to Edna Hart Holland, class of 1896.
Palmyra graduated its first class in 1891.
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This 1973 photo shows additions to accommodate
more students as Bennet and Palmyra merged in
1965. Country schools consolidated with town
schools. The country school was added on the
north. The metal building and connection were
added in the 1970s. All grades 1-6 attended at
Bennet and Kindergarten moved to Bennet in 1986.
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Supt. Childers contributed this aerial view of
the 1996-1998 brick two-level addition on the
north of classrooms, computer lab, larger media
center and improved music facilities. The
parking lot across the street north was also
added. The parking lot east of the circle drive
was added earlier in the 1990s.
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This is the new 1905 school located at the
current location. It faced east and also had a
west entrance. You can see the Taggart home upper
left. Basketball and plays were held downtown on
the west side of the street in the middle of the
block. There was a wooden annex west of the
school that later became the Legion Hall. This
picture was the property of Pearl Francis
Stilwell, born in 1895.
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This was the school in Palmyra until the fire in
1933. This school faced east and also had a west
entrance. There were outhouses. Basketball and
plays were held downtown on the west side of the
street in a Hall that later was partitioned and
became a restaurant and later the Lions club.
The building directly north of the Beauty Salon
with the Telephone Building occupying the north
half of the same building. In later years the
manager of the telephone company and his family
lived in the south half. There was no auditorium
at the school until the new one was built in
1935.
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This is an enlarged copy of a 1907 postcard sent
from Roberta to Nellie Jones. It is part of the
postcard collection and the Nebraska State
Historical Society. I was especially interested
in the boardwalk and the path where West 4th
street is now.
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Palmyra From the Heavens 1910
August 2000 This is an
enlargement of a postcard belonging to Lyle
Whited of Torrence, CA. He is the grandson of
Orville Edwards. It was taken from the water
tower in the park looking down Illinois, the
angling street. See the Presbyterian and
Methodist churches. Notice people had barns.
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Palmyra Public High School and Grade School The
1905 building burned over Christmas 1933 or 1934.
The building was an improvement because it had
indoor plumbing and a gym/auditorium. There is a
cornerstone on the southeast corner. The picture
was copied from the 1951 cookbook of the Palmyra
Progressive Club.
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Copied June 1998- This photo of the 1935 school
taken by Helen Wallen (Luff) during her senior
year 1940. The 1st floor bay windows are the
Primary Room on the south and the Intermediate
Room on the north. The 1st floor middle row of
windows are the Grammar Room. The upstairs round
windows are the boys bathroom on the south and
the girls on the north. The middle set of 6
windows are the high school study hall. There are
6 more rooms upstairs for high school and a
stage, gym, bathrooms, locker rooms, and Home Ec
room, shop, kindergarten room and classroom. We
played softball west of the row of pine trees.
The pine trees on the left or south served as a
windbreak for the side walk.
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Congratulations to the 50 year class 2002 as seen
in their Junior year back row Leslie and Bill
Weatherhogg, Ed Golden and front row John
Stilwell and Jim Strodtman. Malvin Kissinger is
not shown. Other team members back row Gary
Thomson and Warren Lashley front row Coach
Bernie Davis and Lynn Copes, Duane Biggs, Kent
Lanning and Wayne Copes.
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Congratulations to the 2003 50 year class! Back
row Mildred Hartman and Wilma Dowding middle
row Marquerite Guy, Elberta Rhoten and Gera
Powers. Other team members back row Donna Smith,
Frances Anderson, Coach Bernie Davis, Marie
Cooper and Connie Foreman Middle row Jodene
Dowding, Francie Stilwell, Marie Weatherhogg,
Betty Copper and seated Marilyn Kelly and Vera
Thomson.
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A bond issue was passed in 1953 to add a kitchen
for hot lunches enlarge the gym by tuning it
east and west and add a bathroom, home ec, shop,
classroom and large kindergaten room to the
north. Kindergarten started in 1950 and was
combined with 1st and 2nd. The high school study
hall windows and kindergarten windows were
covered as part of the energy crisis remodeling
as seen in this view. There were school buses
starting in 1963
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panther large copy