Construction Crew Goes To Renovate A School In Oklahoma City, Discovers Chalkboards Frozen In Time For Over 100 Years

Emerson North High School is pretty much the closest thing to a time machine there is. In 2015 and 2016, construction crews went there for what they thought was ordinary work. But what they discovered was anything but that — historic drawings from the early 1900s.

The boards contribute to the already rich history of the school, established in 1911. The principal at the time, Sherry Kishore loved the historical treasures. She said they provided a glimpse into people that were in this building before and the way they taught.

More info: okcps.org

At first, workers renovating the school in downtown Oklahoma City discovered slate blackboards with incredibly well-preserved pieces dating back to 1917. They included an old multiplication wheel as well as civic and music lessons. All from the year when the first Jazz record was released. The Original Dixieland Jazz Band would be proud. There were also rules for keeping clean and a vocabulary list with words like “blunder” and “choke” written in cursive.

Construction Crew Goes To Renovate A School In Oklahoma City, Discovers Chalkboards Frozen In Time For Over 100 Years

Later, the school decided to pull old chalkboards to make room for smart boards. Again, workers were called in and again they found priceless artifacts. A detailed rendering of Oklahoma’s Indian territory, more sentences in cursive, and various shapes explaining perspective. Some flowers in different shades of green and yellow. Everything has perfectly stood the test of time.

Construction Crew Goes To Renovate A School In Oklahoma City, Discovers Chalkboards Frozen In Time For Over 100 Years

The current principal of the school, Jack L. Reed, M.Ed., took the position after his predecessor, Ms. Kishore, was promoted to Alternative Education Director for the Oklahoma City Public Schools. She was the one who informed him about the discoveries. “A few [of them] are exposed with an acrylic glass protecting them,” Mr. Reed told Bored Panda. “Others have a sheet of plywood covering them until funding can be received to purchase and install the acrylic glass to expose them.”

Construction Crew Goes To Renovate A School In Oklahoma City, Discovers Chalkboards Frozen In Time For Over 100 Years

“These boards have a significance to the school that the teachers and students could not have realized back in 1917. They have survived the test of time and now represent the school in a way that no person could have imagined.”

Construction Crew Goes To Renovate A School In Oklahoma City, Discovers Chalkboards Frozen In Time For Over 100 Years

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Construction Crew Goes To Renovate A School In Oklahoma City, Discovers Chalkboards Frozen In Time For Over 100 Years

I'm a Visual Editor at Bored Panda since 2017. I've searched through a multitude of images to create over 2000 diverse posts on a wide range of topics. I love memes, funny, and cute stuff, but I'm also into social issues topics. Despite my background in communication, my heart belongs to visual media, especially photography. When I'm not at my desk, you're likely to find me in the streets with my camera, checking out cool exhibitions, watching a movie at the cinema or just chilling with a coffee in a cozy place

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Rokas is a writer at Bored Panda with a BA in Communication. After working for a sculptor, he fell in love with visual storytelling and enjoys covering everything from TV shows (any Sopranos fans out there?) to photography. Throughout his years in Bored Panda, over 300 million people have read the posts he's written, which is probably more than he could count to.

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What do you think ?

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Lauren Caswell 4 years ago

I hope they get the funding to preserve the rest with acrylic too! What an amazing time capsule it was easy to imagine the teachers and kids having a lesson. So cool!

29points

KatHat 4 years ago

Incidentally, my grandmother was born in October of 1917. She turned 102 last October and is still going strong. So the chalk on these boards has lasted almost exactly as long as she has :)

24points

KatHat 4 years ago

I'd like to think that some, at least, were left on purpose as a sort of time capsule. I can imagine teachers and classes doing this if they knew construction was about to take place.

5points

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POST

Lauren Caswell 4 years ago

I hope they get the funding to preserve the rest with acrylic too! What an amazing time capsule it was easy to imagine the teachers and kids having a lesson. So cool!

29points

KatHat 4 years ago

Incidentally, my grandmother was born in October of 1917. She turned 102 last October and is still going strong. So the chalk on these boards has lasted almost exactly as long as she has :)

24points

KatHat 4 years ago

I'd like to think that some, at least, were left on purpose as a sort of time capsule. I can imagine teachers and classes doing this if they knew construction was about to take place.

5points

Load More Comments