History of the Central Intermediate School (CIS) Building
In the early 1800’s Levi Blakeslee purchased and owned the land where Central Intermediate now sets. The property eventually was owned by J. K. Durling and Isaac Griesmer. In the 1860’s their properties were purchased for a new school building to house grades 1 through 11. The new building was called the Union School and it was constructed in 1869-1870 and officially opened on November 15, 1870 with John Clark as the first superintendent.
The Union School was razed in the early 1900’s and replaced by Central School which was opened in 1907. Central was located on the same property. Next to Central to the south and slightly west was the Methodist Church. It was originally built in 1835 out of milled boards and then replaced by a larger brick structure in 1903.
Over the years Central has had several additions that included classrooms, a gymnasium and O. J. Work Auditorium. The school has been named Central School, Central High School, Central Junior High, Central Middle School and Central Intermediate School.
The old Methodist Church was purchased and became the Annex Building that housed various classrooms. The Bicksler’s Electric Store, adjoining house and warehouse was purchased and utilized as a storage area. These buildings were razed in 1994 to make way for major renovations to the main building and grounds in the late 1990’s.
The last class to graduate from Central High School was in 1960.