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South Hills High School, located along the southern slope of Mount Washington in Pittsburgh, was one of the Pittsburgh School Board's primary secondary education facilities from 1917 to 1986. The school was named for its hilltop location in Pittsburgh's South Hills. The school building and accompanying grounds grew to occupy an entire city block bounded by Eureka, Ruth, Secane, and Harwood Streets. For sixty of its seventy years, South Hills High School served all public school students from the Mount Washington, Banksville, Beechview, Lee, Brookline communities.
Originally planned as Bailey High School in 1915, the original Ruth Street Wing opened on April 7, 1917, with 225 pupils in the 9th and 10th grades only. The Harwood Street Wing was completed in 1925. At this time the school became a four-year institution. South Hills High School was the second high school built and opened by the Pittsburgh School Board. The other was Schenley High School. At the dedication, the Superintendent of Buildings for the Pittsburgh Schools told the audience that South Hills would “equal and in some respects be superior to Schenley.”
<><><><> <><><><> <><><><> <><><><> <><><><> <><><><> South Hills Tunnelites South Hills High School was built in part to serve the children from the recently developed land to the south of Mount Washington (ie: Brookline, Beechview). Investors and improvement firms called this region "Tunnel Land", a reference to the Mount Washington Transit Tunnel, which was the catalyst that led to the rapid commercial and residential development. With this in mind, the school chose
the nickname "Tunnelites." This moniker was reinforced in 1924 with the
opening of the Liberty Tunnels.
South Hills students and athletic teams were referred to as Tunnelites for
many years. The name was eventually changed to "Tigers".
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<><><><> <><><><> Taking The Streetcar To
School The school was conveniently located
near the Pittsburgh Railways South Hills Junction. The southern trolley network covered each
community represented at the school. The Pittsburgh School Board provided
students from the surrounding neighborhoods with a transit pass so they could
ride the streetcar to and from the junction. From the car stop, a set of
city steps led up the hill to the school building. Classmates from the Brookline
neighborhood made the daily trip on the 39-Brookline. For many, streetcar ride was often the highlight of their
school day, especially the afternoon trip home. Enrollment at South Hills High School
peaked at 2925 students in February 1939. Thirty years later, in 1969, the
school was enlarged with the addition of an annex along Eureka
Street. <><><><> <><><><>
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<><><><> <><><><> South Hills High School
Yearbook <><><><> <><><><>
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<><><><> <><><><> Athletics at South Hills
High Participation in organized sports,
like baseball, softball, football and basketball, was a big part in the
lives of South Hills High School students. From the players to the
cheerleaders, from members of the band to the spectators who filled the
bleachers at Moore Park, scholastic athletics were quite an
experience. In seventy years,
South Hills Tunnelites/Tigers athletic teams captured a total of
fifty-seven city championships in a variety of sports. Here is a list of
the title teams:
Football: 1931-32, 1935-36, 1936-37, 1937-38, 1940-41, 1968-69 <><><><> <><><><>
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<><><><> <><><><> The Final Years At
S.H.H.S. In the mid-1970s, the School Board
began construction of a modern high school in nearby Beechview. John A. Brashear
High School, located along Crane Avenue, opened in 1976. Graduating Seniors in the Class of 1977
were permitted to remain at their alma mater. All other South Hills High School
students from Banksville, Beechview and Brookline were transfered to the new
facility. South Hills High School remained open
for another nine years, serving students from Mount Washington and other
city neighborhoods. The aging institution was permanently shuttered by the
Pittsburgh School Board after the 1985/1986 school year. <><><><> <><><><>
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<><><><> <><><><> Photos From South
Hills High School South Hills HS Football - 1930 For more photos from
South Hills High School, visit the <><><><> <><><><>
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<><><><> <><><><> South Hills Retirement
Residence (2010-present) After the school was closed, the
abandoned building stood idle for for over twenty years. The once proud
learning institution fell into a state of disrepair. As a result, nearby
property values began to drop and the city considered demolishing the
building. In an effort to save the landmark
structure, it was decided to do a complete renovation and convert the building
into affordable senior citizen housing. Beginning in 2009, the former South
Hills High School building, at 101 Ruth Street, was transformed into a
160,000 square-foot sustainable and affordable mixed-use community asset
known as the South Hills Retirement Residence. Architects installed a total of 106
apartments. These included both one and two-bedroom suites. The ground floor
contains a 7,500 square-foot YMCA Community Fitness Center and a 4,500
square-foot Adult and Day Care Center. Funding for the $22 million project
came from multiple sources, including the Pennsylvania Housing and Finance
Agency, the URA, and Allegheny County. The rehabilitated
green-certified South Hills Retirement Residence was completed and opened to residents in
September 2010. |
