Graham Hill Elementary School - History and Physical Plant

History and Physical Plant

The first school at this location was opened in 1901 as BrightonSchool. Brighton operated here for four years before moving to the site of the current Brighton Elementary school a few blocks away. The original building was used intermittently over the next couple of decades as an annex to Brighton—it was referred to as Brighton Beach or Little Brighton. The old schoolhouse was removed in 1943 and the site became a public playfield.

By the mid-1950s, the post-war population boom in this area of south Seattle necessitated additional elementary school capacity. The school opened its doors as an annex of Brighton in 1957 in portable buildings set up at the site of the original Brighton school. That year it housed K-2 students and an additional grade was added each successive year until the school was a full K-6.

By 1960, the school had grown to the point where it could break the connection to Brighton and hire its own principal. Construction had also begun on a new brick building, which was completed in 1961. This newly independent school was named Graham Hill School. The name was chosen to honor Walter Graham, who originally settled this area in the mid-1850s, and as a nod to its location at the top of the ridge separating Lake Washington from the Rainier Valley. The school is not related in any way to the British racing driver of the same name.

The school became a K-5 school in 1988, when the school district moved 6th grade students to middle schools.

In 2004 work was completed on a $4.8 million expansion which added a new wing containing classroom space and a library expansion. This additional space was needed to replace portables, which had once more been employed. The current school encompasses 55,037 sq ft (5,113.1 m2) on a 4.51 acres (18,300 m2) site with a total of 22 classrooms.