West Technical High School

10/15/2024

View Labanc Lois's obituary, send flowers and sign the guestbook.

10/09/2024

Jan 17, 1940 - Oct 1 2024
It is with great sadness I announce that my beautiful sister Elizabeth Mod Borosdy passed away after a short illness on October 1st, 2024. I am sure her husband of 44 years Ben Borosdy (WTH class of 1957) flew down from heaven with his plane and picked her up. Lizzie graduated from West Technical High School, class of 1959. She was our family's rock. If you were in need she was always there to help family as well as friends, and sometimes complete strangers. She had an unwavering strength and a kind heart. Thank you for the memories we shared. I will miss you forever.

09/19/2024

Graduate of 1965

View Gerald L. "Jerry" Pacanosky's obituary, send flowers and sign the guestbook.

09/01/2024

View Kathleen Ann Gray's obituary, send flowers and sign the guestbook.

07/15/2024

1962 Grad WTH
Shirley Gromley Obituary (nee Adams), age 80, born 06/13/1944, passed away 07/12/2024. Shirley K. Gromley, age 80, of Norwalk and formerly Northfield Center, passed away Friday, July 12, 2024.
Born June 13, 1944, in WV to Samuel and Mary Adams. She was a 1962 graduate of West Tech High School. She married her husband, Wyott and together enjoyed raising their children, traveling, the outdoors and especially enjoyed trips to Disney. She moved to Norwalk in 2018 to live closer to her grandsons.
Survived by her children, Lisa, Kelly, Joy (James) Tokarsky, and Peggy; 18 grandchildren and 16 great-grandchildren; sister, Penny Wallace. Preceded by her husband, Wyott; daughter, Gale; siblings, Robert, Maddie, AnnaLou, and Samuel.
Friends may call on Tuesday, July 16, 2024, from 5 - 7 P.M. at the Evans Funeral Home, 314 E. Main Street, Norwalk. A funeral Mass will be held 10:30 A.M. Wednesday, July 17, 2024, at St. Mary Catholic Church, Vermilion, OH with Fr. Albert Beltz, Fr. Paul Schreiner and Deacon Jim Tokarsky officiating. A graveside service will follow at 1:30 P.M at All Saints Catholic Cemetery, Northfield Center, OH.

04/17/2024

A blast from the past!

I graduated in 1963.

04/17/2024

It would be great if there is someone out there that went to Tech at the right time would know if the West Tech bomber was built.

The West Tech Alumni Association is trying to find out whether a B-24 bomber funded by students and staff during World War II ever carried the "Spirit of West Tech" emblem into battle.

02/19/2024

BARNUM, FRANK SEYMOUR ARCHITECT WHO DID PLANS FOR W.T.H. and a lot of other buildings and homes. I haven't found a picture of him yet.

BARNUM, FRANK SEYMOUR (25 Nov. 1850-17 Dec. 1927) was an architect who designed and supervised the construction of over 75 Cleveland public school buildings, and was among the first architects to utilize modern building techniques in his designs.

Born in Norwalk, Ohio to David and Virginia (Lambert) Barnum, Frank was educated in Norwalk common and high schools. He came to Cleveland in 1871 and worked as a draftsman for architect JOSEPH IRELAND.

In 1876 Barnum opened his own office. From 1878-1897 Barnum practiced with Forrest A. Coburn in the firm COBURN & BARNUM, designers of the WESTERN RESERVE HISTORICAL SOCIETY BUILDING (1898), buildings for WESTERN RESERVE UNIVERSITY and CASE INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY, numerous churches and residences. The firm also included architects BENJAMIN HUBBELL and W. DOMINICK BENES.

After Coburn's death, Barnum formed F.S. Barnum & Co. with Albert Skeel, Harry Nelson, Herbert Briggs and Wilbur Hall. In 190l Barnum designed the CAXTON BUILDING (completed 1903), an 8-story steel-framed building in the Chicago commercial style, for AMBROSE SWASEY. Barnum designed the Park Building on PUBLIC SQUARE (1904), one of Cleveland's first buildings to utilize reinforced concrete floor slabs. After Barnum's retirement in 1915, the firm continued as Briggs & Nelson.

Barnum's appointment as architect and Superintendent of Buildings for CLEVELAND PUBLIC SCHOOLS, 1895-1915, marked the era of modern school construction. The new buildings pioneered fireproof construction, had flat roofs, electric light, steam heat, and used space efficiently.

Barnum married Jeannette May (dec. 1921). They had one son, W. Hamilton. Barnum moved to Coconut Grove, FL., died in Miami, and is inurned in LAKE VIEW CEMETERY.

Article Categories
Architecture

02/19/2024

The story of WTH after it closed before it became WTH Lofts. It was in pretty bad shape. I am grateful it was saved from the wrecking ball.

West Technical High School in Cleveland Ohio was built in 1911. The school closed at the end of the 1994-95 school year and was threatened with demolition. In the fall of 1999, a fire started in the auditorium and destroyed much of the stage.