| Gonzaga High College |
| CLICK ON PIX 2 INLARGE |
| UP-DATED 02-05-12 |
| Up-Dated 07-22-10 |
| NEW MEMORIAL ADDITIONS NOVEMBER: John Quinn Aukward ? (?) Kevin M. Ramplin 60 (69) Darren Frederick Morrell 32 (97) John Joseph O'Conner 97 (32) DECEMBER: Robert Coyle Sullivan 84 (44) Paul Francis Cain 78 (51) Bernard William McQuade 72 (57) JANUARY: Vincent Joseph Hearing 88 (41) Raphael Joseph Dondero 84 (49) Karl Dewitt Mullen 78 (51) Thomas Matthew O'Brien 72 (57) |
History of Gonzaga College High School
Gonzaga is the oldest educational institution in the old
Federal City of Washington. Gonzaga College opened its
doors to the young men of the Federal City in 1821. It was
then located on the north side of F Street, N.W., between
9th and 10th Streets. The building's foundation stone had
been laid in 1815 by Bishop Leonard Neale, auxiliary to
Archbishop John Carroll, the first American bishop of the
Catholic Church. Both men were originally Jesuits. The
building was first intended to become a House of Novices
for the Jesuits, but this plan was abandoned. According to
one report, the building housed a small school during the
period of abandonment. However, after standing empty for
several years, the Jesuits finally entered their building in
1820 and started a House of Philosophy for Jesuit
Scholastics. In the months that followed, the Jesuits were
besieged with requests from Catholics and non-Catholics
alike in Washington to allow their sons into the college
(which was originally under the charter of Georgetown
College), not to become Jesuits, but for a good basic
education. The Jesuits agreed, and the Washington
Seminary, as Gonzaga was originally called, began classes
for lay students in 1821.