West Ward Elementary School; Gulfport, Mississippi; 1968
Would you believe I can name almost every one of my second grade classmates? Mind you, I’m fairly pathetic when it comes to remembering the name of someone I met yesterday, but I’m semi-remarkable when it comes to 1968. I’m the tall girl in the back row of this photo, first one on the left. And that might have been the last year I qualified as “the tall girl.”
The school, West Ward Elementary, overlooked the endlessly cresting waves of the Gulf of Mexico (in fact, we’re facing the gulf as we pose for this photo), and like Gulfport High School, it was fittingly the home of the Commodores. The building survived Hurricane Camille in August of ‘69, but did not survive progress. It was bulldozed in the 90s and replaced by the Island View Casino.
The principal, Mr. Walt Ewing, is standing in the back. He ran a tight ship, so most of us were supremely terrified of him. We all told ghastly tales of rumored paddlings for minor infractions–the paddles got larger with every story and evolved into torture devices with holes that sucked up pieces of butt with every stroke. I think I was more afraid of my second grade teacher,though– Mrs. Krass, the lady with the interesting genie hairstyle. She switched my open palms with a ruler one day for pulling out my Crayolas too soon.
It’s funny to look at that little second grader (me) and then look at Nathan who is now a second grader himself. Thankfully, paddles and palm-whackings are a thing of the past (I think I’d have a stroke if someone tried to hurt him).
Alright. Let me prove my mental acumen: (Top, L to R) Karen Parker (me), Denise, Greg Gilstrap, Teddy Gaston, Robin Jackson, Karen White, Mike Cook. (Middle, L to R) Sonia Guyton, Dennis Cospelich, Kenny, Mark Pell, Deborah Ladnier, Thomas Cook, Beth Harrod, Darryl Moore. (Bottom, L to R) Dawn, Tina Serrato, Karen MacMillan, Shari Cornell, Carl Couch, Conrad Hawthorn, Betty Jean, Phyllis, Shari Davis.
So how’d I do? If you recognize yourself or a friend, I would enjoy hearing from you.
Related posts: Mrs. Hutto’s Sixth Grade Class, West Ward Elementary Revisited.
Tags: Gulfport High School, Gulfport Mississippi, Hurricane Camille, West Ward Elementary
April 6th, 2009 at 10:55 pm
This is a great post. Isabelle and I walked through the playground at West Ward just before they tore it down for the casino. I’m trying to remember when they closed that school. I think I was one of the last groups of kids to go there from 1st through the 6th grade.
April 7th, 2009 at 10:03 am
Thanks, Tom. By the time you got there, the principal was Mr. Savell, a very gentle personality. He sat by me at lunch one day and told me he had always admired our school by the gulf and was happy when he was asked to be the principal.