We asked reders to share their memories of the old Rapid City High School. Here's what hey wrote.

The trouble with nooksI was in the class of 1980 and we only got to be in the "Old Central" until February of my sophomore year (1978). Mr. Knowles, the band teacher was forced to have us use these "nooks" for practice rooms. A very fond memory I have is when my friend Laura (Sanders) now Hansen and I were diligently practicing our clarinets in a "nook" during our lunch period. We were so excited about our new music. It was the theme to "ROOTS" (a movie about slavery that was big then), that we didn't even hear the bell. There we were in the "nook" late as ever with nobody to write us a pass. We just took the tardy as we figured that nobody would ever believe we were late due to "ROOTS".

- Linda Jean Spencer

Fire alarm

I was a freshman in the fall of 1970. During a morning science class on the third floor of the "Main Building" (now Dakota Middle School) the fire alarms sounded. Our class walked through and out of the third floor gym to the back of the building for the fire drill. While waiting go back in, I remember someone yelling "Fire." To our left was a little smoke coming from the roof of the Washington building. Most of the students ran a ways up the hill behind us to get a better look. Within seconds, heavy black smoke drove everyone away from the area. When school resumed some two weeks later, all we had was one of the three buildings. Classes were held in the Main building along with nearby homes and the Catholic Church. Annexes were also moved in next to the church for classes.

- Dwight Wagner

President 'Cool'The most interesting story that I've heard about the Rapid City High School building was about President "Cool" Calvin Coolidge and the Presidential Election of 1928.

There had been much speculation about whether Coolidge would seek re-election. As I heard the story, he responded to this speculation in a peculiar way. He assembled reporters on the steps of the school, and handed out individual slips of paper that said, "I do not choose to run for President in 1928." Then, he went back inside.

- Daniel Stanton

Presidential visit

President Coolidge made the announcement to reporters that he would not be running for a second term at the Rapid City High School. He did not announce orally, he passed out a note to everyone letting them know. This took place in the late '20s when Coolidge and his wife would come to the Black Hills (Sylvan Lake) for the summer. He loved the Black Hills and did much for it in those days.

- Jim Zimmerman

Firecrackers

In the fall 1966 I was a Junior at Rapid City High School. I always hung around with the Cowboys on the second floor outside of the balcony doors for the theater. It was just after Halloween. A fellow student had a firecracker with no fuse, he was explaining that you could break the firecracker in half to expose the powder, then light it and bang it with something, like a shoe, and it would still "pop."

So we decided to try it. He broke it, lit it and dropped it on the floor and I stomped on it! It worked great! Made a sound like a high powered rifle in the hallway! Now remember the stairs to the second floor were on each side of the first floor lobby and wound up around to the second floor. Just as my foot hit the floor and the firecracker cracked, our class advisor's head cleared the floor level and was looking at my foot! I do not know what he actually saw, but he knew I and my cohort were responsible for the very loud noise! We told him it sounded like an "06" to us and we were sure it was the Long Hairs at the end of the hall shooting at us! We never changed our story and he let us go after about half an hour.

- Leon Ewert

A bigger school

I remember old RCHS - I attended for 2 years - came from Sturgis High School. What a change! Much larger school. I especially enjoyed my classes in the old Washington building. I would have to almost run from 1st period in the main building to Washington 2nd floor (in 5 minutes). I always made it to my American History class!

I remember the day President Kennedy was shot and hearing about it on my way to lunch - I thought it was a joke. But, the teachers told us all to go into the gym and they told us it was true and we would be dismissed for the day.

I still see some of my classmates today. In fact, I work with a couple of them. Yes, RCHS - those were the days.

- Marilyn (Dennis) Shelton

'Fire and Rain'I graduated from RCC in 1973, I remember our class song was "Fire and Rain" by James Taylor. We endured both a fire that burned down the old section of the school (I think it was called the Coolidge Building then) and the floods of '72 where we lost some classmates. I was also fortunate to be on the tumbling team with Coach K.

- Tim Stemler

Coach Cobb

The most memorable teacher at RCHS was Coach Cobb. When PE class became a little wild he would have us run, jog, walk up to Reservoir Hill to release excess energy. His first name was Euclid but no one was allowed to call him that. I was part of the class of '52, but at the end of my junior year we moved to Spearfish, and I finished up there.

- Arnold Jones

A family of grads

Oh yes I remember RCHS. Graduated in 1951. All my brothers and sister also graduated from RCHS. Wish I still had the picture of the first B-36 bomber to arrive at the airbase when it flew low over town and shattered some of the high school building windows.

- Jim Stillman

Wanted: Bigger hallways

As a member of the class of 1966, I remember how crowded we were. Our class worked very hard politicking for a new high school. Our political and very correct phrase was, "No matter what direction you are walking in the hallways, it is the wrong way!" It is a wonder that any of us got to our next class on time. Yes, after our hard work the residents of Rapid City passed the vote for a new high school and the class of 1972 was the first to graduate from the new Stevens High School.

- Jan Swan

Good memoriesI went to Rapid City High School from 1966-1970. My class was the last class to go to Rapid City High and the first class to graduate from Rapid City Central. When I was a Senior, Stevens was not quite done and the Central kids went in the morning and the Stevens kids went in the afternoon until Stevens was completed. Even though I was not very popular, I think that I had a good time when I went to Rapid City High. I remember there was an assembly in the auditorium and I did not want to go so I skipped and stayed in the library. I thought that if I left the school I would get into trouble so I just stayed at the school, talk about being a chicken. When I went there, there were two more buildings connected to the main building, they were the Coolidge building and the Washington building; they were located on the west end of the main building. If you look close you can still see the foundation of those buildings.

- Rebecca Bartels-Huwe

Memorable Mrs. Lloyd

Of all the teachers who have influenced my life in one way or another, Mrs. Dorothy Lloyd, my sophomore English teacher, stands out.

To this day, I have never forgotten that participles must never dangle, neither must always be followed by nor, and a person is always a who and never a that. I cover my eyes at split infinitives and groan out loud at misplaced apostrophes.

Mrs. Lloyd also instilled in me a love for classic writers like Pearl Buck, John Steinbeck, and O.E. Rolvaag. She would be proud to see my bookcases.

In March of 1968, she chaperoned the RCHS cheerleading squad to Sioux Falls for the State A Basketball Tournament. Since Ivan Landstrom's daughter Shirley was on the squad, he offered to fly them to and from the tournament in his small Beechcraft airplane. On their return to Rapid City, the plane crashed, killing all aboard, including Dorothy Lloyd.

I have always wished we could have reviewed commas one more time before she left this earth.

- Rose Williamson