HHS Brick From 1962 Fire

Imagine sitting at home the evening of January 6, 1962. It was quite cold, so most of the town had been inside for much of the day. Sirens began blaring in the distance, but most people didn’t think much of it. After all, they rang out every once in a while. 

But, soon after, your home phone rang. You picked it up to hear your friend telling you, “A few minutes ago, around 9:15 p.m., the high school caught on fire.” 

Memories of thousands were wiped out in about an hour. History was eradicated in mere moments. 

In 1962, Highlands High School (HHS) was the pride and joy of Fort Thomas. To hear it was on fire was a shock. The news spread quickly, with students and community members running over to watch the fire blaze. 

According to the 1962 Yearbook: “Crowds of people flocked to the scene to watch the destruction of one of the most beautifully built school buildings in this area.” 

According to the 1962 yearbook: “Students from the canteen aided in removing records from the Superintendent’s office and instruments from the band room…” 

“Many students and the faculty spent their days clearing and removing undamaged material from the burned building.” 

A few days later, some students decided to nab a brick from the remains of the old high school, before they were thrown away. One such student was Lela Emmerich.  

The brick she grabbed was blackened with soot, scorched from the intense flames that had roared within the walls of the building mere hours before. She painted the initials “HHS” onto the brick once she got home (this is the brick we have displayed).  

Emmerich said, “It looked so stupid, I thought, ‘Why did I ever do that!’” 

In the wake of the fire, the school board contacted many organizations throughout the town to find places to house classrooms for the students.  Most classes were held at the local Methodist church. Many know the place now as the Bluebird Preschool. However, classes weren’t solely located at that church. 

A building (which has since been torn down) near the local Baptist church held art, the girl’s gym was at the canteen, and the chorus was held in the church fellowship hall, to name a few. The temporary women’s locker room was in the boys’ visitors’ locker room.  

The 1962 Yearbook said: “...music classes were held in the Methodist church: and band and art classes, in the Baptist church.” These two churches are both conveniently located across the street from Highlands' campus.

When Emmerich went into 8th grade, she returned to the high school building, but the part that had been destroyed was still yet to be rebuilt. Nearly every classroom was full, as the district wanted to use the building as much as possible. Emmerich explained that some classrooms were repurposed to meet the current needs. 

The school district decided that with parts of the building being destroyed in the fire, it would be a good idea to revise some of the high school’s layout.  Locations such as the library and gym were completely redone after the blaze. Classrooms were also made to be much bigger. New technologies were implemented along with the room changes, creating a better quality of life for school activities. This whole reconstruction and redesign process took about two years. 

Emmerich said: “When I came back my freshman year, the new building was done.” 

While it was incredibly costly, the benefits from these renovations cannot be understated. They made the school more streamlined, improving the functionality of the facilities for the students here at HHS.  However, much history was lost in the inferno that consumed the older parts of the building.  

Follow the link below to see the Highlands Film and Broadcasting Video about the history of Highlands, with information about the 1962 HHS Fire about two minutes into the video:

1962 HHS Fire

Since the fire of 1962, the south wing of HHS has undergone two renovations.  Photos are below.  

The fire of 1962 will forever be an important and impactful part of Highlands’ past.  

Tags