Religious organization, including the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints (historically referred to as Mormons) and many other Christian denominations, ran most schools in Ogden’s earliest days before Utah became part of the United States. Many religious schools in Ogden were operated with the purpose of educating Utah children of non-Mormon perspectives about the world, especially on the topic of polygamy. This photograph shows one of the first religious schools in Ogden, the Episcopalian Church of the Good Shepherd. The school operated for two decades after opening in September 1870. A second school was built in 1877 after an increase in enrollment. Ogden was the first city in Utah to elect a non-Mormon mayor in 1889. How do you think children’s education affected the path Ogden’s community took in later years?

The Catholic Church was another religious organization that established schools in early Ogden, intending to educate students and expose them to non-LDS, non-polygamous worldviews. The Sisters of the Holy Cross opened the Sacred Heart Academy in September 1878, educating Ogden girls. In 1892, their second building (shown here) was opened with the capacity to host 500-600 female students. Funding was raised for this building by St. Mary’s College in South Bend, Indiana. 21 teachers taught subjects like English, Latin, bookkeeping, shorthand, and more subjects. In 1938, the school merged with the Catholic school male student body and still operates under their name today: the St. Joseph Catholic School. That investment in community by St. Mary’s College in Indiana and by others to make this school had a lasting impact in Ogden. How do you think this school influenced the view of Catholicism in the community?

In the first early years of Ogden City, city leadership attempted to make a school that was free and available to everyone. Leaders tried a general school tax in 1850. Unfortunately, the tax was a failure due to collection difficulties. Parents often paid tuition with goods including hides, flour, or lumber, or by hosting the teacher in their homes. However, the idea was not forgotten and in 1867 Ogden City created tuition schools. The most advanced of these was Central Public School, teaching advanced students from each of the school districts in Ogden. The Central Public School was dedicated in 1880 by territorial superintendent and the President of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints, John Taylor. By 1883, the school could teach up to 800 students. Who should education be for?

In 1889-1890, public education became a top priority for Ogden, which was pushing away from religious education in the leadup to statehood. In 1889, Ogden City offered free school for children. One year later, the Ogden City School District was formed. As one of the two earliest public high schools in Utah, Ogden High School opened at this location in 1890. It was opened at the former site of the Ogden Academy, a school building built by the Congregationalist church in 1884. What effect does higher education have on a community?

In 1869, when Utah became a state, it was decided that the state school for the deaf would combine with the new blind school. It relocated from Salt Lake City to Ogden, in the old site of the Territory Reform School, and became the State School for the Deaf and Blind. In 1908, the Standard Examiner newspaper declared that it was among the top schools for the deaf and blind in the nation as determined by a convention at the school of the American Instructors for the Deaf. The Utah School for the Deaf and Blind continues to operate today at a different location in Ogden, helping Utah children learn and pursue careers after graduation. The location for this building continues to serve as the Ogden City School District offices. How can education in the community include all groups within the community?

Built on land donated by former mayor Fred J. Kiesel, this high school building was opened in 1909. This was the second building to host Ogden City School District high school classes in Ogden and the predecessor to the current Ogden High School built on Harrison Blvd. Due to the need for WPA projects during the Great Depression in the 1930s, Ogden’s “million-dollar high school” (on Harrison Blvd.) was built. This caused the earlier building to be repurposed as a middle school after just a decade of use. It became home to Central Middle School from the 1920s to 2007 and became James Madison Elementary. In what ways have your city’s investments in education impacted you today?

Weber Stake Academy was a church run school (Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints) which started in 1889 and focused on training new teachers. It later transitioned to Weber College in 1922. Eleven years later, in 1933 during the Great Depression, the college was transferred to the State of Utah. It was one of only three junior colleges in the state at that time, alongside Snow College and Dixie College. Weber College transferred from their Jefferson Ave. campus to the current Harrison Blvd. campus in the 1950s. It then became Weber State University in 1991. How has Weber State affected or helped our community today? CONCLUSION: As Utah and Ogden progressed from rural communities into the places we know today, education grew to include more and more people. Investing in education was a way to benefit and help the community. Even from Ogden’s earliest days, religious schools and later public schools sought to invest in children’s education to influence Ogden’s future. We hope you have enjoyed learning about the timeline and history of Ogden City’s school buildings and how the development of education has been vital in the shaping of Ogden’s community!