Monroe High School history

Incorporated in 1844 as the County Seat of Union County

The largest group to graduate from Monroe was the class of 1871 which had 274 members.

John D. Hodges founded the first Monroe High School in 1875.

In 1886 the first class graduated from Monroe with five members, John Mcready, Ella Cheesman Vance, Elmer R. Lowry, Ella Macready Vorhis, and Edgar Eugene Stewart.

Monroe was conducted at this location until 1914 when it was moved into the old county home property on Lancaster Avenue where Walter Bickett is presently located.

A large cistern, which would hold 100 barrels, was built in 1917.

Students were first furnished transportation in 1918.

Sports competition with other schools began in 1920 when the board adopted the Butler county Athletic Association rules ode township schools.

The board instituted a lecture series with four lectures per year, paid for by suggestions of the Current Events Club. (Monroe woman organized to study events and promote intellectual and social culture of its members), a cafeteria was begun December 9, 1921.

It was later named in honor of the Union County native who was the Governor of North Carolina from 1917-1921. It was first occupied on March 27, 1922, and W. Foster Starnes was principal.

Since the building was to be completed at the beginning of the 1924-25 school year, Otterbein Home allowed the first boys' basketball team to practice there two hours each Wednesday.

The new cafeteria opened November 14, 1925.

The agriculture class was dropped, but commercial classes, which had begun in 1927, were continued because of their popularity.

One of the articles in the February 1929 edition of The Tattler was about the purchase of a radio for the school.

Student Council was re-established in 1932.

The school celebrated its "semi-centennial" in 1936. (50 years since the first class had graduated). A pageant was held depicting various stages of the school's development, and a special edition of The Lemon was dedicated to "50 Years of Progress".

By 1937 the school was finally a high school for all of Lemon Township.

In 1938 the first real school band was organized. "Starting with a handful of players there emerged a full fledged 36 piece band." "With the help of the Federal WPA projects, Song and the Alma Mater cloth was obtained and volunteers from throughout the county made uniforms of caps and capes.

Results of the soaking left the capes with the outside wool shrunken to half its original size and the satin stretched to twice its original size." By 1940 members had their new "bought" uniforms and marched every football game.

By 1941 the school was feeling the effects of World War II. "Ray 'Pete" Black was the first Monreite toward whom Uncle Sam pointed his finger.

Ten acres west of the school was purchased from John Zecher in 1948.

In 1952 the first mention of the consolidation with Middletown School District is made in the board minutes.

Monroe elementary school was built in 1954.

Orchard Center High School opened its doors as Orchard Elementary School in 1956.

He retained this position until 1970 when he took an administrative position in the Central Office.

Also during this period, the 1980 basketball team won the N. C. State Championship with Jamie "Luke" Collins as coach.

You will read of these effects on Lemon-Monroe in the remianing pages of the 1982 Monocle.

In 1985 William Lloyd Ratliff, a highly respected principal at Walter Bickett Elementary School, agreed to come to Monroe High.