Bay View High School

Story

Bay View Middle/High School, previously Bay View High School, is a high school in Bay View, Milwaukee, Wisconsin. It is part of the Milwaukee Public Schools. Academic specialties include law, mathematics, science, and construction.HistoryBay View High School opened in September 1914 with 150 students and 7 teachers. The school was then a one-building barracks without central heating. With German teacher Gustav Fritsche as principal, the barracks grew to a bungalow, and in 1922 classes were held in a new school, still in use today.The four-story brick building was a vast improvement over the wooden barracks. Later renovations included the modernization of rooms and lighting; the separation of the east and west study halls into one-story units, later converted to classrooms; a library; and a little theater/conference center. In 1976, another addition to the building included a gym with 1200 seats for spectators.The Oracle Newspaper was first issued in 1915. In 1917, the Oracle, then a booklet of 48 half-pages, began publication as a yearbook. With new facilities, athletics became an important extra-curricular activity, and included football, track and field, basketball, swimming and cross country. Early clubs included Girls' Club (1914), Stage Crew (1924), Art Club (1932) and X Club (1938). A student government association was organized in 1947, and the Redcat mascot was adopted in the early 1950s.mid-20th century to 21st centuryBay View, prior to racial integration, was overwhelmingly populated with residents of Bay View. After desegregation, Bay View's student body changed its composition, and now the school's students come from all over Milwaukee. Older residents felt that the school lost its identity.