Trenton High School (Michigan) - History

History

The current school complex was constructed in 1953 on a plot bounded by West, Westfield and Charlton roads and Edsel Drive. The school was built to handle a surge in students following World War II and the expansion of western Trenton, which was quickly expanding. The building was known as West Road Elementary School and housed elementary school students until Hedke, Anderson, Foley and Owen elementary schools opened in the 1950s.
The original campus consisted of a two-story, L-shaped structure, with academic center on the eastern side and athletics on the west. Later, during the 1967-68 school year, a two-story wing was added to the north of the building, housing the school's library and classrooms. The school is due for major mechanical and electrical upgrades starting in the spring of 2009 as part of the recently passed bond issue. The school's football field received major renovations in 2001. The existing high school replaced Slocum-Truax School, which opened in 1924 and took up an entire city block at Harrison Avenue and Fifth Street. The building—named after city founders Abram Caleb Truax and Giles Slocum—cost the district $165,000 to build. The school’s first state championship came in the form of the Class D boys’ state track title in 1927 The structure, which later served as a junior high school, was demolished in the late 1970s, although the building's stone sign was saved and is displayed on the site, now a public park. Until Slocum-Truax, high school classes were held in buildings with other classes. The first schoolhouse in Trenton was constructed in the 1830s near the Detroit River. Later, a log structure at what is now Jefferson Avenue and Elm Street also served as a school. The first designated high school was a two-story building near Slocum's Island built in the 1870s. The district also operated out of a red building at St. Joseph and Third streets built in 1900 for $10,000, records show. That structure was torn down in 1963.