History
Originally named Jersey City High School, the property was purchased in 1904 and the new building opened on September 6, 1906, in an attempt to relieve overcrowding in the city's public schools. It was the first public secondary school in the city. When the school opened, it housed a 2,000 seat auditorium that saw extensive public use, and hosted such events as a lecture by Helen Keller and political rallies for United States Presidents Taft, Wilson, and Roosevelt. The original school was expanded with the construction of a second building in 1912 to further industrial skills education. This building contained a foundry, print shop, and vocational classrooms. In 1913, the school was renamed William L. Dickinson High School for the superintendent who had advocated for creation of the school during his term from 1872 to 1883. The school was expanded again in 1933 with the addition of an annex containing a swimming pool, cafeteria, and gymnasium.
A testament to the school's age, the rear of the building is the site of a late 1800s-era cannon mount built to protect the Hudson River shoreline from early invaders. Given the location of the cannon and the associated technology of the time, its doubted that the cannon would ever have been effective as a defensive emplacement. While the cannon has since been removed, the original mounting remains and is now the site of a black-granite monument to the victims of the September 11, 2001, terrorist attacks.
In 1946, teachers went on strike.
Read more about this topic: William L. Dickinson High School
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