ALFRED CRAMER ELEMENTARY
SCHOOL
2800 Mickle Street
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In 1913 the Eastside Elementary School was built in the 2800 block of Mickle Street, during the administration of Mayor Charles H. Ellis. During this time, under the guidance of Camden's longtime Superintendent of School Dr. James E. Bryan, a great many new schools were built in Camden. As the population in East Camden began to grow, and as more children were remaining in school as opposed to entering the workforce at an early age, this building became a junior high and was renamed Alfred Cramer Junior High School, in honor of Alfred Cramer, an innovative real estate developer who made it possible for working class people to buy building lots by paying in installments. He was responsible for much of the development in East Camden and of course, Cramer Hill, which bears his name also. As a Junior High School, most of the children attending public schools in East Camden went to Cramer. In 1930 Woodrow Wilson Junior High School opened up on Federal Street, and Cramer became an elementary school. In June of 1933 Dr. Leon N. Neulen, then Camden's superintendent of schools, announced that Woodrow Wilson would become a high school and that Cramer would once again be a junior high school. This plan went into effect in September of 1933. Around 1957 Cramer became once again an elementary school. Since that time, Cramer has gone through many renovations and changes. Presently, Cramer is a Pre-K to Grade 4 Elementary School, with a full day pre-kindergarten and kindergarten program which emphasizes language development, positive self-image, and early reading activities. The Cramer School has also served the immediate community for many years as a polling place when elections are held. |
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These
Are The People Who Built |
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| John W.F. Bleakly | Joshua C. Haines |
| Dr. Henry H. Davis | Charles H. Ellis |
| James E. Bryan | Harry C. Sharp |
| George Bachmann | |
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Camden Courier-Post - June 7, 1933 |
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CRAMER
SCHOOL PUPILS TO PRESENT EXHIBIT An exhibition and demonstration of the years' work in all grades wi1l be held today in Cramer School. |
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Camden Courier-Post - June 8, 1933 |
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HANDICRAFT
DISPLAYED BY CRAMER STUDENTS Pupils of Cramer School, Twenty-ninth and Mickle Streets, demonstrated their work yesterday afternoon to more than 300 parents and friends, under direction of Miss Elizabeth A. Mathews, principal. Children of the Second Grade exhibited Swiss handicrafts and art. A Swiss play and song were presented by pupils of the Second A class. They were coached by their teacher, Miss Elizabeth Mowers. |
| Camden Courier-Post - June 9, 1933 |
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HIGH SCHOOLS HERE REVISED; JUNIOR-SENIOR PLAN CUT OUT By FRANK SHERIDAN Reorganization of Camden junior and senior high schools has been effected with the approval of the local and state boards of education. By establishing the Camden Academic High School and Camden Commercial and Practical Arts High School the school population of the present Camden High School will be reduced 50 percent when the September terms begin, according to Dr. Leon N. Neulen, superintendent of schools. It also will reduce the student roster of all junior high schools even with the promotions of this month added. Saves $500,000 "This plan will give Camden room for expansion for years to come in high school education and preclude the necessity of building the $500,000 annex to the senior high school, plans for which have been drawn at the cost of thousands of dollars," Dr. Neulen declares. "It will eliminate a number of studies and give the students more education in the more essential subjects. The hours of instruction will be reduced from 30 hours per week to 23. The state law's minimum is 19 hours." Dr. Neulen points out that 2400 students are now registered in Camden High School and promotions from junior school this month would have added 700 more. Under the new plan 1500 will attend the Academic High School and 1300 the Commercial school. The balance will be redistributed back into the junior and seventh grade grammar schools. Wilson High Commercial The new plan will cause a general redistribution of pupils in East Camden because the Woodrow Wilson Junior High School will become the Commercial high. The present junior high pupils will be sent back to Cramer school, from which they originally were transferred. Students in the Garfield and Dudley Schools will take their seventh grade in those institutions instead of junior high. Camden Junior High School No. 1, which now hall 849 pupils, will have 730 next term, Hatch Junior High School has 1106 pupils now and will have 1127 next term. Woodrow Wilson Junior High School now has 970 pupils and will have 643 at the Cramer school. Four Courses at Academic High Dr. Neulen explained that the new Academic High School will teach four courses: College preparatory, college technical, normal preparatory and general. Students will be given four-year courses, in the first three mentioned courses and three years in the latter. Camden High is now a three-year school. That will mean the ninth, tenth, eleventh and twelfth grades will be taught in the college preparatory, college technical and normal preparatory and the tenth, eleventh and twelfth in the general course. The Commercial and Practical Arts High School will teach commercial and practical arts courses in three-year courses in the tenth, eleventh and twelfth. Practical arts will be taught exclusively to boys in the school because only 27 girls elected to take that course this year and they will be transferred to Academic in the Fall, Dr. Neulen explained. Four Years Latin; No Spanish The new plan provides for the teaching of general foreign languages but eliminates Spanish because of so few taking the subject. Latin will be taught four years, French three and German two.
A general business course is included in the plan known as introductory business to be taught at the Commercial High. Students will start this course in the last junior high year. Art and Music Optional Art and music no longer will be compulsory under the new plan. Students in Academic will be taught music and art appreciation during the first two years and may discontinue those studies in their last two years. A complete business course has been mapped out for Commercial. The students are given elementary business practice in their ninth year. During their first year at Commercial High bookkeeping, typewriting and shorthand is added. During the third and fourth year they will elect from three sequences to fit them for secretarial positions and general business. Sequence A provides for the continuation of shorthand and typewriting in the third year and office practice is added in the fourth. Sequence B in the third year teaches bookkeeping, business organization and marketing. Common law, bookkeeping and practice is added in the fourth year. Sequence C provides business organization, marketing, exchange and selling. Commercial art and advertising is included in the fourth year. As students advance through the Commercial course they may be transferred from one sequence to another. This will be guided by their adaptability or whether they desire to follow a secretarial or business career. If students elect Sequence A they may have the option of bookkeeping or world history in the third year. Business organization may be taken instead of American history in the fourth year. |
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Teachers
Assigned to Cramer Junior High School |
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Assignment Cramer Junior High School English- Mary G. Dankor, Dorothy G. Dankor, Dorothy Milhous, Evelyn W. Heinold, Emily W. Smith, Ida L. Harman. Social Subjects- Edith Tietelman, Joseph W. Knouff, Charles D. Jones. Science- Mabel A. Rockhill, Florence C. Davis, Alan B. Henderson. Mathematics- Kay S. Witmer, Cheaster L. Witmer, Chester V. Kopuenhaver, Ida Berger, Mildred M. Stoner. Commercial- B. Lucille Doerner, Music- May Marchant. Art- Leslie E. Hayden. Shop- Fred W. Bergmann Practical Arts, Girls- Florence Pratt, Martha Bishop. Physical Education and Health- Mary F. Ladewig, Frank E. Sias. |
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Camden Courier-Post - June 23, 1933 |
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Mitchell Mozeleski Is Assigned to Coaching The appointments to the city's educational staff announced by Samuel E. Fulton, president of the board of education, revealed last night that three former Camden High athletes are among the new appointees. The trio are Mitchell Mozelski, Edward
Lobley and Edward "Pat" O'Brien. In addition to the appointment of the above, shifts in the physical education department for Camden's two senior high schools were also announced. Brooks and Mozeleski will coach the various sports at the academic institution, with the latter more than likely taking over football and track and the former basketball and baseball. Brooks, however, will be in charge of the physical department. Mozeleski comes back to his alma mater after having had wide success in college sports and in coaching. "Mitch" attended William and Mary College and captained the football and basketball teams in his senior year, while also earning a letter in track. Following graduation from the Virginia college, Mozeleski coached at a Virginia military academy. Mozeleski is well versed in football and is expected to turn out a formidable team this year at the academic institution. Still, he will have to find plenty of new material, as a number of the present gridders have transferred to the Woodrow Wilson Commercial High School, located at 32nd and Federal Streets. Grover "Worm" Wearshing, who assisted in the physical ed department at the local school during the past three years, and tutored the football and baseball teams, will take charge of that department and athletic teams at the Woodrow Wilson High School. As yet no assistant has been named for Wearshing, but within the next few weeks an announcement will be made by the board of education. Frank Sias, who was on the physical ed staff at the local high school and coached track, has been appointed as physical instructor at Cramer Junior High School and will be assisted by Mary Ladewig, another former Camden High grad, who has starred on the cinders for Temple University and Meadowbrook, holding a number of Middle Atlantic A. A. U. records. Lobley and O'Brien have been appointed as teachers in grammar schools. The former wlll teach at
Fetters School, while the latter will tutor at
Stevens School. Lobley, who was a three-letterman at Camden High, graduated from the University of Pennsylvania and was on the varsity basketball team for three successive years, captaining the five in his senior year when the Red and Blue won the Eastern Intercollegiate championship. O'Brien, who was a star center at Camden High on the eleven, is a graduate of St. Joseph's College, and performed for three years at that position for the Philadelphia institution. While both have been assigned as teachers, it is likely that they will build up a foundation of grammar school athletics, teaching the youngsters the fundamentals of various sports. Fulton also announced last night that in dividing the present enrollment at Camden High into two separate institutions, that both will have the required number of male students to enter the Group 4 division in athletics. Schedules are already being drawn up for football for teams at both the academic and commercial arts schools. Fulton also stated that in all likelihood the elevens of both schools will meet on Thanksgiving Day to decide the supremacy of the city public school football title. However, this cannot be decided upon definitely until the alumni agrees to abandon their regular Thanksgiving Day game with the senior high team. . |
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Camden Courier-Post - February 21, 1936 |
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PUPILS
AT CRAMER PLAN PROGRAMS TO PAY
FOR NEW PIANO By CECELIA CUMMINGS Chords that helped youthful voices stay "in tune" for 25 years at Cramer Junior High School departed on a a piano manufacturer's truck the other day. The
school has bought a new piano. It is a rebuilt grand, replacing the
instrument which had been in use in the school auditorium since pre-war
days. The school itself has assumed the responsibility of meeting
payments on the piano. An entertainment by Morton, the magician, and his
trick dog "Onyx," who reads your mind better than you can,
will be presented in the school auditorium next Wednesday afternoon. The
school will earn a commission on each ten-cent ticket sold, and
proceeds will help pay for the newly acquired piano. Ralph Smith,
electric shop instructor, is in charge of tickets, which have been
distributed through homerooms. Some
sew this way, some sew straight up and down, and they all sew pretty
little dresses for the Camden Needlework Guild. The Guild supplied funds
for materials, and, working with their sewing instructor, Miss Maude
Griffin, eighth grade girls, in their regular course, and ninth graders,
for whom sewing is elective, are making new clothing. The frocks are
cottons, in pretty colors and prints, in sizes 2 to 12. They will later be distributed to needy persons
through the Guild, which is a branch of a national service. Thelma
Selby, new desk clerk of the traffic organization, has about
the unit's biggest job to handle. She manages the traffic room, where
officers check in and out, metes out badges to fellow officers, does all
recording, catalogues lost and found articles and returns them when claims are proved, authorizes passes
for parking bicycles in the school courtyard and for parking skates in
lockers. The bringing of bicycles and skates to school used to be quite
a noisy problem before the pass system was instituted, according to Fred
W. Bergmann, who has charge of traffic. New
heads of the traffic system of this term are Thomas Stewart and Doris
Schellenger. Traffic posts throughout the building rotate every week, so
every student officer gets practice handling moving crowds in each spot.
Betty
Long is president of the traffic club; Sarah Lins, vice president; Edna Crim, secretary and Violet Morgan, treasurer. Active in affairs of
the organization, which is a school government by representative
students, are Thelma Cook, Miss Crim, Miss Morgan, Virginia Leigh, Earl
Idell, William Leon, Gordon Wells and William Robbins, who serve as
ushers in assemblies, and Miss Lins, Miss Long, Margaret Hurff, Marie
Heide, Jane Selfridge, Florence Donahue, Alberta Walker, Ruthe Pogust,
Ella Czernaik, Dorothy Sanders, Elizabeth Yonkers, Reinhold Selm, Paul
van Horn Victor Miduzewski, George Henry, Frederick Meidt, Raymond Oriol,
Charles Miller, Harry Chamberlain, Francis Clark, Joseph Gaughan, Harry
Parker, Leon Heffelfinger and Harry Baker. The
school received a $150 allotment of books from the Board of Education in
September, 1934, and $200 a year later, but has no furniture to organize
a school library. Reference
books for teachers are kept in room 309. So that Cramer students need not miss any of the James
Foley, also of the faculty, is guiding the precise-minded lads enrolled in the cryptogram and math puzzle
club. They make and exchange
grams and puzzles. Miss
Emily Rochill sponsors a progressive game club for boys this term.
Members are divided into quarters
and progress from one type game to another each club period. Ten cents
dues are required so an assortment of games for progressing can be
acquired. A
piping hot stew, generous with brilliant vegetables and a crisp salad
were on the menu for teachers Tuesday, served by home economics classes.
Once weekly, classes cooperate on an actual project and prepare similar
hot lunches. Twenty 9A girls and 12 8A's work with Miss Florence
Pratt, their instructor, in this no-profit plan. The older girls, who have class earlier, make the dessert, which usually takes longer, according to Miss Pratt. The 8A's take care of the hot foods, and acquire a knowledge of correct table setting and serving by doing it for their teachers under Miss Pratt's watchful eye. |
| Camden Courier-Post - February 1, 1938 |
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BOARD
Of EDUCATION SHIFTS 14 TEACHERS The Camden Board Education last night approved transfers of 14 teachers, the appointment of two new instructors and the retirement on pension of two others. The board then adjourned until 11.45 a. m. today and it was announced the 1938-39 board will be organized at noon when Commissioner Mary W. Kobus is expected to be re-elected president. When the report of the teachers committee making recommendations for appointments, transfers and retirements was read it was approved by unanimous vote and without comment. Following the meeting Carlton W. Rowand explained that most of the transfers were made to meet emergencies in teaching classes at Woodrow Wilson High School, where more than 1500 students will be enrolled for the second semester, be ginning today. Rowand explained that enrollment at the Wilson school is the highest in its history, due to many students taking up English and commercial courses instead of entering Camden senior high school, which will have an enrollment of approximately 1540 students, the smallest in several years. List of Transfers Transfers affecting teachers in junior high schools are: Louis E. Feinstein from Hatch Junior High School to commercial business organization, Wilson High School; Frank E. Sias, from Cramer Junior High to physical education, Wilson High; Jessie W. McMurtrie from Cramer Junior High School, to physical education, Wilson High; Wilton D. Greenway, from Cramer Junior High School to mathematics, Camden High; Elizabeth Dickinson, from Bonsall; to English, Cramer Junior High; Mrs. Mildred C. Simmons, from English to mathematics, Cramer Junior High; Miss Celia Boudov, from Hatch Junior High to departmental geography, science, and penmanship, Liberty School; Mrs. Elizabeth R. Myers assigned to English, Hatch Junior High; Thelma L. Little transferred from, Grade 5 to Cooperative Departmental; Dudley school. The following elementary school transfers, also effective today, are: Beatrice W. Beideman from Starr to Sharp school; Mrs. Esther S. Finberg from Cramer to Broadway school; Dorothy M. Lippincott from Parkside to Dudley school; Mrs. Alva T. Corson from Washington to Broadway school, and Mary G. Cathell from Washington to Dudley school. Teachers whose retirement was approved are Carolina W. Taylor, Grade 2, Broadway school, and William M. Thayer, mathematics [Camden] senior high school. Both teachers had resigned and applied for their pensions, the report read. Appointments Made Nathan Enten was appointed as physical education teacher in the Cramer school and Harry S. Manashil was appointed commercial teacher in Hatch school. Each will receive $1400, annually. The board also approved the appointment of Florence M. Dickinson as principal of Lincoln school at a salary of $2200 annually. The assignment of Miss Grace Hankins as principal of Parkside school to succeed Miss Dickinson also was approved. Ethel Thegen was approved for appointment as assistant librarian at the Camden senior high school at a salary of $5.50 a day. All appointments are effective today. To relieve overcrowded conditions among pupils the board approved the transfer of 7A and 7B classes from the Washington to the Cramer school. The board vote to open a library in the Cramer school and Raymond G. Price, supervisor of building was instructed to provide, the necessary equipment. A resolution of condolence upon the death of Ethel C. Wenderoth, for 19 years a teacher in the Broadway School was passed and secretary Albert Austermuhl was instructed to send a copy to members of the deceased teacher's family. 2 New Faces on Board The board received and filed a letter from Mayor George E. Brunner in which he stated he had appointed Mrs. George W. Tash, Samuel T. French Jr. as new members and had re-appointed Robert Burk Johnson as a board member. William B. Sullender, of the Tenth Ward, who was not re-appointed, was commended by the members for his services. E. George Aaron said he regretted the fact that Sullender was leaving as a member and wished him success. Others joined in this tribute. Sullender in reply thanked the members for their co-operation during his term of office. |
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Camden Courier-Post - February 4, 1938 |
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Parent-Teacher
Association News Cramer- Founder's Day will be celebrated at the regular meeting tonight. Mrs. Wilbur Peters is the chairman. Those taking part are Mrs. Harry Tueber, Mrs. Fred Miller, Mrs. Edith Greenwood, Mrs. William Gridley, Mrs. Arthur Fichter, Mrs. Mildred Simmons and Mrs. William Rowntree. Luncheon was served to teachers on Friday and Monday. The committee in charge was Mrs. W. Rowntree, Mrs. F. Creager, Mrs. C. Martin, Mrs. A. Fichter, Mrs. W. Peters, Mrs. W. Read, Mrs. J. Hock, Mrs. R. Abbott, Mrs. S. Clayton, Mrs. R. Schaeffer and Mrs. C. Landenberger. |
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Cramer
Junior High School Principal, Click on Image to Enlarge |
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1953 Junior High School Diploma & Certificate of Award courtesy of Bernie Rieck Click on Images to Enlarge
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