Moses Menger Elementary School

Duane's take

Here's how the official marker tells it, and I'll do my best to do it justice. Now, most schools just sit there on their corner and do their work quietly — and Moses Menger Elementary has done exactly that, for a long time, on South Alameda Street in Corpus Christi. But the story behind that school?

That's got some layers worth peeling back on a drive like this one. The school opened in January of 1929, and right from the start it was doing something no Corpus Christi school had done before — it was the first one built outside the city's central area, out on the south side, helping to get that whole part of town movin'. The ground it sits on had itself a history before the first classroom was ever built.

That property was once part of Camp Scurry, home to the 2nd and 3rd Infantry Regiments of the Texas National Guard from 1916 through 1918. So before the children came with their lunch pails, soldiers were drilling right there on that same soil. Then the school gets named for a man worth knowin'.

Moses Menger was born on September 8, 1860, way up in Toronto, Canada. He graduated from Toronto University, made his way to Texas as a railroad surveyor — a man measuring land before he ever thought about measuring minds — and then somewhere along the way, teaching got hold of him. He taught in Austin, Hallettsville, and Flatonia before the Corpus Christi area finally claimed him.

By 1891 he was serving as a mathematics instructor and principal of Corpus Christi High School. In 1913 he stepped up to superintendent, then stepped back to teach high school mathematics again, because some men just love the classroom more than the corner office. Then in 1920, for a short time, he served as superintendent once more — right up until his death in April of that year.

The school bearing his name didn't waste any time makin' him proud. Menger Elementary had the first elementary library in the whole district. And in 1929 — the very year it opened — classrooms were already equipped with phonographs and radios, brought in through fundraising efforts, because the teachers and administration had decided that fine arts weren't a luxury, they were part of the deal.

Parents weren't sitting on the sidelines either. The Menger Parent Teachers Association organized shortly after the school opened and has been part of the fabric of the place ever since. A man born in Canada, who surveyed Texas railroads, who taught math for decades and ran a school district more than once — he left his name on a building that was pioneering from day one.

That's the kind of legacy that outlasts just about everything else.

What the marker says

Moses Menger Elementary School opened on South Alameda Street in January 1929 to serve students in Corpus Christi. It was the first Corpus Christi school built outside of the city’s central area extent, helping to initiate development in the community’s south side. The school is located on property that was once part of Camp Scurry, home to the 2nd and 3rd Infantry Regiments of the Texas National Guard from 1916 through 1918. The elementary school was named for educator Moses Menger, who was born on September 8, 1860 in Toronto, Canada. He graduated from Toronto University and later migrated to Texas as a railroad surveyor. Menger taught in Austin, Hallettsville and Flatonia before settling in the Corpus Christi area. He began serving as a mathematics instructor and principal of Corpus Christi High School in 1891. In 1913, he served as superintendent before returning to teach high school mathematics. For a short time in 1920, he again served as superintendent until his death in April of that year. Menger Elementary has been a leader in education since its early years. The school had the first elementary library in the district. Teachers and administration have also stressed fine arts; in 1929, classrooms were equipped with phonographs and radios, which were provided through various fundraising efforts. Parents have also taken a vital role in their children’s education through the Menger Parent Teachers Association, which organized shortly after the school opened. Today, Moses Menger Elementary School continues to be a leading educational institute, serving the children of Corpus Christi. (2008)