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Old Hattiesburg High School

Introduction

Text-to-speech Audio

The former Hattiesburg High School is historically significant for its Jacobethan architecture and is the considered the finest example of this style in the city. Local architect Robert Emmet Lee designed it, along with several other buildings in Hattiesburg and in Brooklyn, Mississippi. It was originally built in 1911 expanded in 1921. Prominent features of the four-story building (the original 1911 part is 2.5 stories tall) include a red brick facade with cast stone facings, belt courses and cornices, and towers. The building is now an apartment building for senior citizens called Preservation Crossing.

Images

Old Hattiesburg High School as it appeared in 2004. It was originally built in 1911 and then expanded in 1922..

Old Hattiesburg High School as seen in 2004.

The building is being converted into a home for senior citizens.

Old Hattiesburg High School being converted into a senior home.

Backstory and Context

Text-to-speech Audio

Although the building was originally constructed in 1911, the high school, apparently, operated from 1922 to 1929. It is not clear what the 1911 part of the building was first used for. The 1921 addition designed by Lee drastically altered the building and gave it its Jacobethan appearance. After the high school closed, the building became office space for the local school district and the Board of Education. It then became an antiques mall until 2001 when the Historic Hattiesburg Downtown Association acquired it with plans to restore the old building. This process took a long time. The building suffered from damage on a few occasions including from Hurricane Katrina and arson. In 2018, a new developer bought the building and completed the work of converting it into a home for senior citizens in 2020. The home has around 75 to 85 apartments. The old high school was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 1987.

Sources

"10 Most Endangered List 2003." Mississippi Heritage Trust. Retrieved from the WebArchive on November 15, 2020.

Berggren, Brian N. & Cawthorn, Richard J. "Old Hattiesburg High School." National Park Service - National Register of Historic Places Nomination Form. May 29, 1987. https://npgallery.nps.gov/GetAsset/acc5039e-ff14-4719-8266-cef36c5d3962/.

Burns, Haskel. "Former High School Building is Now Preservation Crossing Apartments." July 15, 2020. https://www.hubcityspokes.com/news-hattiesburg/former-high-school-building-now-preservation-crossing-apartments.

"Historic Hattiesburg Downtown Association Completes Sale of Old High School." Fox23 News. February 20, 2017. https://www.myfox23.com/single-post/2017/02/20/Historic-Hattiesburg-Downtown-Association-Completes-Sale-of-Old-High-School.

"Old Hattiesburg High School." The Historical Marker Database. Accessed November 15, 2020. https://www.hmdb.org/m.asp?m=39906.

Image Sources(Click to expand)

Both images via Wikimedia Commons: https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/Category:Old_Hattiesburg_High_School

Additional Information