DUANE
Duane's take
Here's my telling of what the official marker has to say about the Old Del Rio High School, out there in Val Verde County. Now, Del Rio didn't arrive in this world with a high school already standing. It arrived in 1868, planted on the edge of the Chihuahuan Desert, three miles from the Rio Grande, and it started the way most West Texas towns started — farming first, everything else later.
That included schooling. In the 1870s, whenever a teacher happened to come through — and that word, whenever, is doing a lot of heavy lifting there — the community used an adobe structure as a schoolhouse. No teacher, no school.
Simple as that. Then the 1880s rolled in, and the children moved up to a two-room, wood-frame building over at Pecan and Greenwood streets. Two rooms.
For a whole community's worth of children. But the 1880s weren't just about that building. That decade had bigger moves in it.
The Del Rio Common School District organized in 1884. Val Verde County itself came into being the year after that, with Del Rio as the seat of government. Things were taking shape.
Then in 1890, the residents voted to create an independent school district. Not everyone came along for that ride — the San Felipe neighborhood carved out its own separate school district. But the new Del Rio district got moving, and trustees approved a new school building at this very site.
They called it Del Rio High School, or Secondary School, and it ran classes all the way through the tenth grade. By 1906, the district had grown enough to split into three campuses: the high school itself, Hill School — which later became Northside Elementary — and a separate school for African American students. The district kept building, kept expanding, trying to stay ahead of the students pouring in.
An eleventh grade got added in 1910. And then, in 1930, they put up this building — a new structure, built by Phil Garoni — and with it came the twelfth grade at last. That 1930 building did its job for nearly four decades.
In 1968, the district built a larger high school on the north side, and the old campus stepped back from the spotlight. But here's the thing — it never went dark. The district still uses that 1930 structure for school programs to this day.
From an adobe room that only opened when a teacher was around, to a building that's still standing more than ninety years after Phil Garoni put it up — that's not a story about a school fallin' behind. That's a story about a community that just kept showing up.
What the marker says
Founded in 1868 on the edge of the Chuhuahuan Desert and just three miles from the Rio Grande, Del Rio began as an agricultural community. Early residents had access to intermittent schooling opportunities for their children. In the 1870s, the community used an adobe structure as a schoolhouse whenever a teacher was available. During the 1880s, children attended classes in a two-room, wood-frame building at Pecan and Greenwood streets. That decade brought significant changes to the community, as the Del Rio Common School District organized in 1884 and Val Verde County began the following year with Del Rio as the seat of government. In 1890, residents voted to create an independent school district, which included much of present-day Del Rio except for the San Felipe neighborhood, which created its own school district. Following creation of the Del Rio district, trustees approved a new school building at this site. Called Del Rio High School, or Secondary School, it housed classes through the tenth grade. By 1906, the district had divided into three campuses: the high school, Hill School (Northside Elementary) and an African American school. Ongoing construction projects expanded to meet the growing number of students. The district addded an eleventh grade in 1910 and a twelfth grade level following construction of this school building in 1930. Built by Phil Garoni, the new structure served until 1968, when the district built a larger high school on the north side. The district continues to use the 1930 structure for school programs. Today, the campus of the Old Del Rio High School serves as an important reminder of early educational efforts in the city. (2005)