Columbus High School, Class of 1952

[David Sechrest]

For those of you who graduated in 1952!

[BobLane]

Friends of CHS 1952. This is Bob Lane, however, if you remember me at all it would be as Bobby. I graduated with the 52 bunch, but I went to school most of my young years with those who were in the 53 class. That being so, I will talk to both.
This is a wonderful website. Many thanks to David Secrest and his many hours of labor to make it come alive. I encourage you to join in. Register and logon to let us know about you. I am hoping we will be able to create a chronicle of our class that will make interesting reading for our children, even our grandchildren. I’m thinking if each of us would write some small chapter of our lives and post it on this site, it will happen. Just a small snapshot in words of who you are and what made you who you are.
Tell us of your life in the 40’s and 50’s or later. There is a thread for those thoughts on this site, but come back as often as you can. If you are not comfortable with a computer, your grandchildren will gladly teach you. Ask them.
Tell us of that first bike, or the trip to the woods with your father. Tell us about that great vacation to New York City, or Washington DC, or Florida. Give us your impressions of first grade, the first date, slipping that garter snake into the girls cabin at camp. What did you enjoy in scouts, in music lessons, which teachers were very important in your education mission, and why?
Don’t tell all in one session, spread the joy and happiness out over weeks, months or even years, but write. God is good. May He shower you with His goodness.
Bob Lane

[BobLane]

.
Auto shop in my senior year was a real experience. Mr. Dial would try to get us all on some project and then go on to someone else. I don’t remember who my partner was on this project, but they had an old V/8 engine on engine mounts. It had not run for some time. We tore it down, did whatever repairs we needed to do and was now ready to try to start it. I don’t think we had much faith it would start. Now, mind you, it had no exhaust system, just straight out of that engine exhaust manifold. Well, we did start it. I guess they heard it up on third floor and maybe over in the Wilson building, as we didn’t get it shut down very quickly, no ignition system either. I think Mr. Dial heard about it from teachers in the Industrial Building very quickly, as we had a few visitors right after that. Had a lot of fun too. I was given the job of making a muffler for it. I did roll and weld one out of heavy sheet metal, no baffles, but we never started that engine again. I think Mr. Dial told me to take the muffler home. It sounded gooood on my old Plymouth.

Bob Lane

[Margo CHS Class of 55]

GREAT Information, Bob.
I wish they had let girls sign up for Auto mechanics back then. Maybe, I would know how to work on my car now, instead of paying Dealer Prices ! UGGGGHHHH !

I just discovered a friend from First Baptist Church, Ken Tull is a member of your Class. I have given him this web site and hopefully, he will post some memories also. Blessings, MArgo

[Bob Lane]

Margo, I remember Ken Tull, tell him hi for me, Bob

[Margo CHS Class of 55]

Surely can do, Bob. Do you wish me to give him your email addy? I never do this unless I have permission first.
Ken knew Bob Weldy also, as he worked with him at Cummins. Blessings, MArgo

[BobLane]

I remember my teacher for sophomore English class, Miss Andrews. I think this may have been her first year teaching. She was more fun. Some of the guys would just aggravate her to see her get mad, embarrassed, and frustrated. One boy, don’t remember his name now, was sent out to stand in the hall umpteen times. I don’t think that is how one keeps control of one’s class, but we did learn English from her. I’ll bet she learned a few things from our class too.

[bobkellogg]

Can anyone put me in touch with the Class of 1952 reunion planning group, or the person who maintains the list of living graduates of the class?

email me directly: [e-mail]

Bob Kellogg

[mfaure]

Bob: you might try Mary Jane Voss Miller - Alvy Miller - Mary Jane seems to keep up with all of us, or Sharon Talkington Renner - Keith Renner. I think one of them could tell you who's on the committee.

Margie

[bobkellogg]

1952 Grads,

One of your classmates was a good friend of mine when I was in college. She was a student at the Indiana University Nursing School in Indianapolis. Her name was Jane Reeder. The last I heard of Jane, she was married and living in Columbus. However, I have forgotten her married name and lost track of her for many years.

Can anyone give me an update on Jane? Is she still living?

If she is living, I hope she's not too embarrassed by use of such a public forum for my inquiry. :-)

You may reply directly to my e-mail address: [e-mail]

Best wishes to the class of '52 and thanks for any information.

Bob Kellogg
Greensboro, NC

[bobkellogg]

Hopefully, some of the class of 1952 members will remember my friend, Cortes Perry.

Cortes was a dark haired nerdy kind of guy with black rimmed glasses, small and wiry with a wry sense of humor.

He didn't graduate with your class because by the time he was a junior he had plenty of credits and decided to enroll at Wabash College. He won a scholarship there, so went directly from his junior year at Columbus to Wabash. This is where I met Cortes.

After graduation he got a masters degree at Minnesota (I believe) and went to work for NASA in Huntsville, Alabama. We stayed in touch, and once when my family and I visited Cortes he took us through the Huntsville Space Center and showed us the Mass Spectrometer he'd designed that rode inside the early orbiters.

Cortes was very active with the Boy Scouts. He made several trips to Philmont with scouts and received the coveted Silver Beaver award along with many others.

Cortes never married. He had a rare congenital disease and determined not to pass it on.

Cortes passed away in January, 2006, in Huntsville, Alabama.

Does anyone remember him from school?

Bob Kellogg

[RER]

Welcome bobKellog to the Columbus Historical site. We want to read more about your memories of Columbus, as you come on-line. You can spend many hours reading things here, but we need more folks like you to post items and maybe old photos. Again, Welcome!

P.S. I didn't know Mr. Perry. Was he related to Max Perry ?


Bob

[mfaure]

to both of you Bobs about the Perry's
I was in grade school with Cort Perry. He would have graduated high school in '52 if he had waited around on the rest of us. I wish I had known he was in Huntsville. I lived there in '89 '91and part of '92. I remember the spelling bees. He was always last down.

Max Perry was a bit younger. Max was a basketball boy from the time he could walk. I remember his dad out clearing the snow off the parking lot so Max could practice. I believe he went on to play for the University of Nebraska after that I have no idea. He lived around the corner from me when we were growing up. His uncle was the Mr Fivecoat that used to sell fireworks off his from porch on the corner of Reo and State.

Margie

[RER]

Ref:

Max Perry was a bit younger. Max was a basketball boy from the time he could walk. I remember his dad out clearing the snow off the parking lot so Max could practice. I believe he went on to play for the University of Nebraska after that I have no idea.

Hi Margie,

My wife and I enjoyed seeing you again and meeting your husband George. George sure makes a great Santa Claus in the picture herein under Santa Claus. We enjoyed the historic committee get together with you two and all the members that showed up at the Dairy Queen.

I have known Max Perry since he played for the Bulldogs in the middle 1950s. Max graduated from Utah State University in Logan Utah in 1961. He had a scholarship as did Jerry Schofield to that school. They both are outstanding players of the past. Max Perry coached basketball at several schools many years ago. He was once the basketball coach at Nashville Indiana. He has been married to his wonderful wife for over 47 years. He is retired and lives in Raleigh, NC with his wife.


Bob

[Babs]

Yes, I remember Cortes Perry from East Columbus School. Think he was a year ahead of me but his little brother Richard was in my class. Richard had a nickname, I won't put in here but I'm sure some of you remember it. I am pretty sure I have a picture of Cortes and Richard, maybe I will dig them out and have Richard post them. I always thought Cortes was rather "cute"!

Well I found the two pictures so in a few days I will get them scanned and sent to Richard for posting. This is not something I've done yet, and just not quite too eager to begin it just now, so I usually call on Richard.

[bobkellogg]

Wow!

It's great to see that some of Cort's classsmates remember him!

He was a very intelligent and unusual person. I always enjoyed him and was disappointed that he didn't have a family of his own. He was an active volunteer, and as I mentioned, especially active with the Boy Scouts. I believe he took a group with him to europe one time. He did a lot of travelling.

He came from a large family - he had eight or nine brothers and sisters, and I think one of them was named Max, but I don't think it's the Max Perry you mentioned. He showed me a very comprehensive genealogy record he has compiled on his family. I'm pretty sure he made a copy available to the local genealogy folks.

The last time I spent any time with Cortes was in the spring of 2005 when we had our 50th college reunion. We stayed at the same motel and travelled to the various activities together. He had had a kidney transplant a few years earlier. I was impressed when I visited his room and he had all of his medicines lined up across the desktop. There must have been 20 or 25 pill bottles. He had driven to all of the way from Huntsville to Crawfordsville, Indiana in his old Mercedes. --But, he was glad to ride around with Ellen (my wife) and I. It was obvious he was almost living on medications, but his wit was still there and he was getting around pretty well.

Last year, after I discovered Cortes had passed away, I called his brother Henry, who still lives in the Columbus area. Henry said that he was the only one of Cortes' brothers and sisters still living. Apparently, Cortes was right about the disease that affected most of his family.

I'd love to see the picture you mention of Cortes and his brother.

Bob Kellogg

[richard]

bobkellogg said:

Wow!

It's great to see that some of Cort's classsmates remember him!

He was a very intelligent and unusual person. I always enjoyed him and was disappointed that he didn't have a family of his own. He was an active volunteer, and as I mentioned, especially active with the Boy Scouts. I believe he took a group with him to europe one time. He did a lot of travelling.

He came from a large family - he had eight or nine brothers and sisters, and I think one of them was named Max, but I don't think it's the Max Perry you mentioned. He showed me a very comprehensive genealogy record he has compiled on his family. I'm pretty sure he made a copy available to the local genealogy folks.

The last time I spent any time with Cortes was in the spring of 2005 when we had our 50th college reunion. We stayed at the same motel and travelled to the various activities together. He had had a kidney transplant a few years earlier. I was impressed when I visited his room and he had all of his medicines lined up across the desktop. There must have been 20 or 25 pill bottles. He had driven to all of the way from Huntsville to Crawfordsville, Indiana in his old Mercedes. --But, he was glad to ride around with Ellen (my wife) and I. It was obvious he was almost living on medications, but his wit was still there and he was getting around pretty well.

Last year, after I discovered Cortes had passed away, I called his brother Henry, who still lives in the Columbus area. Henry said that he was the only one of Cortes' brothers and sisters still living. Apparently, Cortes was right about the disease that affected most of his family.

I'd love to see the picture you mention of Cortes and his brother.

Bob Kellogg

Hi Bob,

I posted those pictures for Babs. You can find them from this link, which will take you to the State Street School thread.

Richard

columbusin.proboards34.com/index.cgi?board=schoolseducation&action=display&thread=1116221544&page=3

[bobkellogg]

It was great to see that some of Cortes' classmates remembered him! Babs even sent me grade school pictures of Cortes and his brother Richard. Thanks again! And, we called him Cort, also.

When I visited Cortes in Huntsville a few years ago, he had one wall in his den covered with plaques and awards he'd received. Many were from NASA, but there were also Scouting and other awards. I remember him telling about speaking before a group of scientists once in Mexico City, Mexico. So, he apparently had quite a career in aerospace and had contributed to his community as well. He didn't brag about it at all, but it was easy to see he had spent a lifetime full of accomplishments. He was a very smart guy. It's a shame that he leaves no family to remember him.

I believe the class of 1952 should claim him, even if he didn't receive his diploma with you!! :-)

Bob K.

[bobkellogg]

The class of 1952 55th reunion was held a few weeks ago. Does anyone know if some of the pictures taken will be posted?

[bob lane]

I too wonder if or when photos and comments will be posted about this 1952 class reunion. I'm interested. Bob Lane


Re: Columbus High School, Class of 1952
« Reply #18 on Aug 10, 2007, 9:31pm »

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The class of 1952 55th reunion was held a few weeks ago. Does anyone know if some of the pictures taken will be posted?