Fort Worth Central High School – Cannon

Fort Worth’s new high school, serving the residential districts of the Southside, opened at the beginning of the 1918 school year on the site of the Fort Worth University. The former high school on S. Jennings Avenue, which had opened in 1911, then became a junior high school (see 1015 S. Jennings). Designed by the prominent Fort Worth architectural firm of Sanguinet & Staats, the original plant was built in two phases in 1917-18 by two construction companies: the Bryce Building Co. and the Wyatt C. Hedrick Construction Co. The rear wing and auditorium were designed in an identical style by W. G. Clarkson & Co. and built by the Harry B. Friedman Construction Co. in 1926-27. Of steel-framed construction, with red brick veneer and glazed cream-colored terra cotta trim, the building’s design has both Gothic and Prairie School elements. The main wing consists of three massive four-story pavilions joined by three-story sections. In 1935 the name was changed to R. L. Paschal High School, for a long-serving principal, and in 1955 the school received its present name and use. A major rehabilitation occurred in 1957-58, which included the lowering of ceilings, partial filling in of windows, and the addition of one-story wings to the east and west. With restoration of the original buildings, the school would be eligible for the National Register. The school has received some sensitive additions in recent years. It was designated as a City of Fort Worth Historic and Cultural Landmark in 2001.

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