High School

When I was in grade school at Holy Family, I don't remember giving any thought about what I would do when I finished school. I suppose I thought I would just continue farming somewhere. I don't remember thinking about high school or college at all. During the summer after I finished eighth grade, Father Grace, our pastor at the time, asked my parents and me if I would like to go to Roman Catholic High School as each parish was supposed to send at least one pupil there each year. So in September of 1921, I started high school by going to the high school annex at Saint Columba's at Twenty-Third and Lehigh Avenue. Here I met many of the boys I eventually graduated with. My second, third and fourth years of high school were spent at the main building at Broad and Vine, and while there I got to know center city Philadelphia pretty well. I even visited and watched a trial in a city hall courtroom. On of my favorite places to visit was the public library at Twelfth and Locust Streets.