Referencing New Rochelle’s French heritage, New Rochelle High School was rendered in a French Gothic style infused with provincial chateau elements.
My first exposure to New Rochelle High School was a series of photographs in a 1932 article on school architecture written by James Betelle. While I had been pretty familiar with the traditional English Gothic and Neo-Classical designs of his schools, this one stood out as unique; it had a style unlike any other. Towers, dormers, finials and ornate sculptural details combined to create an edifice almost implausibly grand for a public high school. I had to see it.
Recently I arranged for a tour with a New Rochelle town official. She, along with NRHS’s Principal, were interested in my research into the school’s history–a sad chapter in its past had meant the loss of much archival information, so hopefully I could teach as much as learn.
My first stop was New Rochelle Town Hall, where I was granted access to an 8-foot tall file cabinet stuffed with plans and blueprints. Most of the material dated from the mid 50’s and on. In one drawer I did find an original Guilbert & Betelle blueprint, but it was in poor condition.
Woodrow Wilson was the original name for the school, but a scandal erupted in 1926 when it was rejected by a new school board, which favored calling it New Rochelle. A plaque in the front hall dedicating the school to Wilson was created as a concession.
The most interesting find was a series of early renderings and floor plans of the school. In these drawings, the overall proportions are the same, but the clock tower details are a bit different, featuring larger windows with elaborate Gothic tracery. More importantly, they give a better sense of what the original structure looked like before the complex maze of additions were added.
New Rochelle High School viewed from Lake Huguenot. The lake was originally an ice pond, and more recently was reconfigured to accommodate athletic fields.
Unlike most suburban schools, which tend to be crammed in densely populated town centers, NRHS is situated at the rear of a massive plot, fronted by the man-made Lake Huguenot and public park space. When I first drove up to the property, I was taken by air of civility this arrangement presented.
The myriad additions to the school are mostly in the rear of the building, which helps it maintain the classical profile. As I made my way closer to the school, however, a curious feature came into focus.
In front of the building, where once was a landscaped lawn and curved driveway now sits a semi-circular addition. It’s nearly impossible to see from the street because it’s built partially below grade with an earth-mound formed in the front as a means to obscure it. The roof of this structure is an open plaza, with a straight path leading to the main entrance.
The towers of NRHS poking up from behind the earth-mound. This addition is reminiscent of prehistoric long barrows.
The plaza is a slab of angles rendered in concrete. It’s a rather barren and uninviting space, and has the effect of diminishing and isolating the once focal entrance, reducing it to almost an afterthought. That you have to go up a set of steps to enter the front doors, but down a flight to get to the side tower doors is disconcerting.
Nevertheless, the plaza is a good location to comfortably view the details of the facade. In keeping with the French Gothic aesthetic, Betelle used an ogee arch motif over most door and windows. The central clock tower is the most ornate, with stacked reliefs of monkeys, owls and other wildlife adorning the window treatment. The tower pediment railing is decorated with seashells and fleur de lis, protected by surly gargoyles.
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Approximately 7am on the morning of May 17th, 1968, a disturbed student set fire to the school. Students, teachers and others stood on the lawn staring at the conflagration, stunned by the mass of flames and smoke. The fire raged until being doused about 2pm, but it simmered for days. The blaze completely gutted the original building. 40 years later, it is still a sharp memory to witnesses I spoke with.
Amazingly, most of the main facade was spared. The brickwork, copper and carved stone details appear to be in excellent condition. The beauty of the facade is tempered the moment you step through the front doors, however; nothing remains of the original interior. It is an entirely modern structure, hastily built after the fire to get its 3,000 students back into the building.
The transition from red buff brick and cut limestone to cinderblocks and steel is jarring; you immediately feel the scope of the loss. From within the building, the stately facade suddenly feels like a Hollywood backlot set–a beautiful exterior masking a utilitarian interior.
NRHS’s main entrance, as seen in 1929 and 2007. Note the ground level was raised to accommodate the front addition. The original doors and windows were lost in the fire of 1968.
Another loss to the fire was the original auditorium. Designed to be accessible to the community (as many were at the time), it featured a handsome entrance with carved detailing similar to the front doors. This is the only photo of it I have found, but an early rendering gives a sense of what that facade looked like in context.
NRHS was actually constructed in two phases. The first, completed in 1926, comprised the bulk of the finished school, but the front facade was only the middle portion with the clock tower. The two wings containing the side towers were added in 1931. These additions were part of the original plan, and as such blend near seamlessly with the original structure.
A curiously modern element are the large shed dormers. The second floor of the wings were double-height rooms for music and art, so the windows provided valuable natural light. Another interesting feature are the windowless oriels that were probably intended for recessed performance platforms.
One of the 1931 additions. The decoration on the left-hand window enforces the French Gothic motif. Copper gutters following the curvature of the downspout is another nice detail.
I wandered the grounds for a while, taking lots of pictures, but the sad truth is, there wasn’t much beyond the front facade to study. Nearly everything else of the exterior was either lost to the fire or simply demolished to accommodate additions (a few tantalizing bits do peek out).
While I lament not being able to walk the original halls or see what surely was a grand auditorium, what remains of Betelle’s New Rochelle High School has been treated well and continues to sit proudly on Lake Huguenot. I’m glad I saw it.
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Additional photographs can be found at my Flickr page.
I graduated from NRHS in 1959 and was one of the skaters on the lake in front of one of the most beautiful architectural marvels in Westchester. Thank you for the nostalgic trip down some magnificent hallowed halls.
Its important to note that the student responsible for the blaze was mentally disturbed. He started the initial fire as an act of protest against the Vietnam War . Unfortunately the situation escalated to such an extreme level.
I GRADUATED IN 66″ . THE REBUILT WAS A GREAT JOB TO A GREAT SCHOOL.
I remember the day New Rochelle High School was set on fire on May 1968…My first class was Law and Economics..When I was in front of the school and seeing our beautiful school burning down I started to cry..We had to attend school at Albert Leonard Junior High School…The day of graduation was very sad in front of the twin lakes overlooking at our High School that was once the most beautiful school in the New York area that one person could do so much destruction.
Jeff and Rick brought back the good times I shared with them during my years at NRHS (class ’73). I was just a 7th grader at Holy Family when the fire occurred and I remember thinking my future school is burning to the ground. The spirit of the students and faculty could never be dampened for those of us living the experience or preparing for the future. We became stronger.
I graduated from NRHS in 1981. Though I have to admit that I’ve long since forgotten most of my calculus and ancient mythology, I have clear memories of having fun during “free periods” … playing hockey on the south lake during winter; talking with friends on “the bridge”; grabbing a sandwich at the awesome deli around the corner.
Fun memories. I’ve always admired the architecture of the building. I’ve since moved away, but have been very pleased to see an aesthetic sense of character and proportion fundamental in the recent (2004?) additions.
Thanks for the research and a wonderful article!
Hey, Perotti, did you have “Snake Lips” Dryer for Math?
I graduated NRHS in 1968 – the year of the fire. I recall fire depts coming from as far away as New Jersey to fight the fire. Fire destroyed the interior and left shell of building standing. One benefit of fire was the remodeling and refurbishing of the school which it did need.
When we were transferred to Albert Leonard, that kid who started the fire was in a couple of my classes and cops had a undercover guy tailing him at school. He was caught setting a fire at Albert Leonard.
Thank you the wonderful article. I was in 11th grade when the fire devastated the high school. The day before the student who set fire to the school set a fire in the mimeograph room. When we were outside I noticed a sundial on the corner of the auditorium building. The next day I stood and watched as the auditorium burned watching this sundial that I didn’t know existed until the day before. For those of us who were there the memories are so clear. There are also happy memories of the high school, ice skating on the lakes, fireworks on the Fourth of July and of course graduation, all taking place in front of that beautiful building.
Enjoyed your history of NRHS. As the chair of NRHS ’55 reunion committee, we’ve watched the school physically change (gone is our blessed Senior Court and the football field area has been halved in size). At our 50th reunion we toured the school and found many new facilities and terrific improvements. The school holds a fond place in our hearts and provided us with a wonderful education.
Did not go to NRHS,but remember the fire very well.
Also a 1959 graduate of NRHS (but I didn’t find Gudrun K. Bruk in our yearbook which I still have and cherish) it was a true treasure for us. The Senior courtyard was the envy of all the other classes and the large front lakes of all other high schools. The changes may have been a necessity, but the beauty has been diminished as a result..yet I still love to visit it!
Thanks for a great trip down memory lane. Though I graduated in 1981, NRHS is one of my fondest memories. My Dad, George L. Bowles was the supervisor for the Building and Grounds of the HS. The 3 years I spent there getting an excellent education and seeing my Dad, teachers and friends everyday will always hold a special place in my heart. I have live in Northern CA and I am amazed everytime I visit New Rochelle how much the HS has changed the past 27 years. The school still stands proud and tall!
I graduated from N.R.H.S. in 1950
Sad there was a fire.
All those that remember how it was
before the many changes might agree.
All memories are relative to time.
Actually I feel all the changes in New Rochelle
have not been an improvement.
I lived a couple of blocks from the High School. At the time, I was in Albert Leonard and would catch the bus at Eastchester and Webster. The morning of the fire we could all smell the smoke and were just hearing the first rumors of the fire. By the time we got to Albert Leonard the whole school was talking about the fire. It did not take long for me and a couple of friends to decide to cut school and go watch the fire. I remember very clearly standing in the parking lot and watching the school burn. A very strange, exciting, and sad day. Also the only time that my father did not get angry that I had cut school. I bumped into him in the parking lot. The following year we had split sessions in A.L. and I went to school in the afternoon and did not get home until after 5pm.