Thousands of students passed through the old school building on Main Street that has been known by several different names. In the beginning in the first building on the site, it was Washington School, then The Denison Educational Institute before it became Denison High School.

When the school still known as the "new" high school that was built in the mid-1950s the old school became McDaniel Junior High School and a parade of younger students progressed through the halls.

Now as prospects for the demolition of the old building are getting better every day, those grown-up students are becoming sentimental but realistic about the future of the building.

After announcement was made in a banner headline July 23 that the "end of an era" was near, our own sentimentality came out in a column published on Wednesday, July 26. Since then, former students have been responding and most agree that the time has come for the school to come down and something for which the public can be proud be established in its place. Some even have suggestions for commemorating publicly the building’s demise.

First to respond was Roeann West Vaughan, who remembers the school as McDaniel Junior High in 1976. She said the picture was of several of her classmates and the article made her smile but also feel sad.

Roeann said that she took a little tour during the time of the Haunted High sponsored by the Denison Jaycees and took a few pictures "for old time sake." She said seeing the school was a flash back to a great time – the 70s.

Nancy Hauschild said she was saddened to learn that the old school cannot be preserved in some manner, but she agreed that it’s time to "move on."

Nancy said her dad, Robert Hauschild, graduated from that school in 1933 and that she and her sister attended junior high there. Even their children spent part of their school years there.

She said she remembers her dad commenting on the clock in the bell tower. He said when he was in school they called the clock "the four faced liar" because each of the four faces would have a different time displayed. Nancy has always thought of that as a fond memory from his school days.

Her dad was a Katy Railroad man and so was his father. She said he was always proud of Denison and its history with the railroad, which always was very close to his heart. He passed away before the Katy was merged with the Union Pacific and she’s often thought it would have been difficult for him to watch that happen.

Don Furman, DHS graduate now living in Atlanta, GA, said he read the article online and wrote to say he liked the colorful descriptive just as he did when he read the story about the old drug store that his granddad used to own. Don and I have that drug store’s memories in common as my father owned it in later years.

Jim McClure, 1980 graduate, said he read the article which he said "pulled together many sentiments into one article." Jim said he looked closely to see if he was in the picture with Keith McBrayer whom he called "Mr. Mac" and the other students. He spent a little time in the clock tower himself – legally with the Junior Historians.

Mike Tingle hates to see what has happened to the building. He said every day you can go by and see another window broken or plywood ripped off. He feels it will be a sad day for Denison if this part of the city’s history is destroyed. Mike would hope that the money needed to take the building down would go a long way toward slowing down the deterioration of the building. Mike feels the people of Denison should make the choice to destroy the building or to save it.

Tom Murray is a Denison High 1957 graduate and concurred with my sentiments about the beautiful old building. Tom has a story about the school’s namesake, B. McDaniel, who he said played a significant role in his development years in Denison.

Tom said Mr. McDaniel opened his home to him and introduced him to his family. He encouraged Tom to further his education. Tom said he has fond memories of entering Mr. McDaniel’s home and feeling the warmth and caring that he, his wife, and children shared.

He also remembers Mr. McDaniel’s stories of his days at the Naval Academy and how Chester Nimitz performed free ascents from torpedo tubes in the early 1900s.

Based largely on his influence, Tom attended the Naval Academy and spent 26 years in the Submarine Force culminating in Command of the USS Lapon (SSN-661). Tom said he has no doubt that Superintendent McDaniel touched many lives.

It was good to hear from Tom. I remember his mother, Ione, who was home service advisor for Texas Power and Light here and became a very good friend in the 1960s as well as I can remember.

David Maddux, DHS graduate now living in McKinney, would like to have some sort of party on the grounds for those who attended the old school with possibly a last tour of the old building before it comes down. Several people have expressed this idea and the Denison Alumni Association discussed the possibility at its meeting Tuesday. Does anyone else have ideas for such an event?

Bobby Noe and I must have been thinking alike even before he read the article because he suggested to Britt Swain that the old clock atop the school be preserved in some way as a memorial to the old school which is especially significant because it is said to be the first free graded public school in Texas. Although this fact was never proven to the satisfaction of the Texas Historical Commission, B. McDaniel spent days searching old records and newspapers at The Denison Herald Building trying to prove the fact. He knew it was a fact though.

Bobby suggests a way to pay for the memorial. Bricks from the old structure might be sold in addition to a campaign raising funds that might be matched by a foundation.

Bobby describes himself as "sentimental to a fault", knowing that it’s not economically feasible to save the old building, but sad to think it will be destroyed. Although Bobby has been away from Denison for a long time, he says he still considers it his home.

One good thing in the school’s favor is the fact that many of the people who are looking to the future of the property attended classes at the old school, including Mayor Robert Brady who is placing emphasis on revitalization of the city as he begins his term in office.

This may be the end of an era, but it will certainly be the beginning of a new era that hopefully will make Denison proud. - Donna Hunt

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