History
The school began as St. Mary's Institute on March 25, 1852 in rented rooms above a livery stable on Military Plaza. The original faculty consisted of Brother Anthony Edel (Founder, First Superior, and First Principal) from Ohio, three Marianist Brothers from Bordeaux, France (Nicholas Koenig, Jean-Baptiste Laignounse, and Xavier Mauclerc), and Timothy O'Neil, a layman from San Antonio.
The school moved to a new 2-story building at 112 College Street March 1, 1853. In 1891, the school was renamed St. Mary's College, reflecting its expansion to include boarders and primary and middle school grades. In 1923, the school added boarding students from St. Louis College and was renamed St. Mary's Academy. The site is now a hotel entryway, recognized by Texas Historical Marker #3819 as the location of Old St. Mary's College, or "The Old Academy."
In 1932, the school relocated to a new 3-story brick building on 2.2 acres (0.89 ha) at 1403 N. St. Mary's Street and was renamed once more to Central Catholic High School. The third floor was not occupied until 1953. Grade school classes were dropped in 1955. A Dr Pepper bottling plant occupied the northeast corner of the site until 1956. On December 6, 1982, the school was incorporated in the State of Texas as Central Catholic Marianist High School. Upon the assumption by Rev. Joseph Tarrillion, SM, of the presidency, the school's name was changed back to Central Catholic High School. The school now occupies over 10 acres (4.0 ha) after purchase of surrounding properties.
Central Catholic is one of the oldest high schools in San Antonio, and it counts many prominent business and political leaders among its alumni. It was the first all-boys school in San Antonio and remains one of the largest all-male schools in Texas. Texas Historical Marker #788 on the school's front lawn describes the school's history and denotes it as a Texas landmark.
Read more about this topic: Central Catholic Marianist High School
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