Ridley Park High School
Class of 1944

Our High School Years, 1940-1944
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Ridley Park (PA) High School existed from 1918 to 1968. The Class of 1944 bridged the halfway point of the school's existence. The school was not large, even in its day, with approximately 400 students in grades nine through twelve and a faculty of about twenty-five. The student body consisted, in approximately equal numbers, of students from the Boro of Ridley Park and tuition students from neighboring communities, drawn by the school's excellent faculty, facilities and reputation. Our story began four years to the day from our graduation. On that day, 13 June 1940, the old school was gutted by fire. Little credence is given to the theory that this was a vain effort to keep a few of us in our class from entering.

But enter we did, shortly after Thanksgiving Day, 1940, several months having been spent attending high school, college campus style, going to classes throughout the boro with classrooms in the churches, banks, and other Boro public buildings. Curiously, I do not remember a single rainy day; or a complaint about the students at large in the community.

If 1940 was marked by a local catastrophe, December 7, 1941 saw the greatest shock of our lives, the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. With it began a steady attrition of the class as members reached eighteen and left for the military. Our school life would never be the same. The War was pervasive. Classes began one hour earlier than usual in line with the national shift to "War Time." Night time school social activities were curtailed to conserve power and gasoline. Shortages were everywhere, even shellac to make phonograph records. Many families waited anxiously for word from sons and daughters away in the service. Summer vacations were spent at war work in local factories.

With it all, a remarkable number of school activities remained: football, girls and boy's basketball, track, girl's softball, field hockey, marching band, orchestra, chorus, plays, and many clubs. Activities were there and intended to be available to all who would be active.

Nineteen forty-four saw it all come to an end. Each of us looked forward to a future immersed in the War which was coming to its end. Tests were everywhere, not so much for college admission as now, but for military assignment. These included: the Eddy test for submarine electronics, the V-5 test for Naval Aviation, ASTP tests for Army Specialized Training, and the V-12 test for the Navy College Program. Our graduation took place, appropriately, on 13 June 1944, four years after the fire; and one week after D-day.

  • For another look at these years go to WWII: The Homefront, an account of the activities of five American families during the 1943-44 school year. Featured on the site is a museum of WWII artifacts.