Anyone Else Attend Morton?
I was a student there when it closed as a school, back in the 1980s - I attended first and second grade. It was an incredible school and I feel so fortunate to have had the chance to go there. My strongest memories are of Mr. Curtis - we sang It's a Small World at the last student show for the school, and I remember that he was teary-eyed. He loved that school so much, and was so proud of its international student body.
I also remember hanging out in the entry during recess with some of my friends. There was a radiator, and in the winter it ticked and smelled like hot metal. We had more freedom to move around than kids have now - we just told the monitor where we were and it was fine. The play area was blacktop, so it was dangerous to knees and elbows.
Classes were small, which you might expect from a school that had about 200 students. A huge number were children of international students, since a lot of us came from married student housing. I didn't think anything about it at the time, but it really did mean something that so many of my friends came from other countries and cultures. I'm glad I had that experience.
I haven't been back since it changed roles. I wonder if it still smells like hot metal in the winter.