January 21, 2025
Local News | Kane County Chronicle
Local News

Residents reflect on 100-year history of Batavia High School

By ERIC SCHELKOPF

Batavia High School school office employee Dorothy Willey enjoys stories shared by other Batavia High School students and employees at the Batavia High School Roundtable event Sunday afternoon. (Rena Naltsas)

BATAVIA – Batavia High School has gotten bigger than Ruthia Massie ever imagined.

"I have to have a tour guide lead me around," said Massie, a 1967 graduate of Batavia High School. "It's wonderful to see progress."

Massie on Sunday participated in a roundtable discussion on the 100-year-history of Batavia High School, which was created by the merger of West Batavia High School and East Batavia High School in 1911.

The building continues to create history. Last fall, the district celebrated the completion of a 150,000-square-foot expansion project.

When Massie went to high school, the building wasn't yet completed.

"The classrooms were done, but the gym wasn't finished," she said.

As a result, graduation was in the old high school, which originally opened in 1915. The building was torn down and is now the site of the Batavia Library.

"It was quaint," Massie said. "I was kind of sad about the old building being torn down."

Batavia Mayor Jeff Schielke, another 1967 Batavia High graduate, added some history to the discussion. He noted that in 1912, Batavia High School's boys basketball team won a state championship.

"That got the community up and going," Schielke said.

Residents in February 1912 approved a referendum to build a new high school at the corner of Wilson Street and Batavia Avenue (Route 31), he said.

He also reflected on Batavia High School producing many notable alumni, including singer Jackie DeShannon, former Cincinnati Bengals quarterback Ken Anderson and professional basketball player Dan Issel.

Sue Peterson, a 1963 Batavia High graduate, got a kick of looking at photos of the high school throughout the years.

"When you see these photos, the old memories come to life," Peterson said.

History also came to life for her husband, Bob, a 1948 Batavia High grad. He is glad that the building continues to take shape, including the addition of a new Fine Arts Centre featuring an 890-seat theatre.

"It's a wonderful facility for the community," he said.