First Historical Marker of the Season Unveiled at Center St. School
By BILL BELLEN
ONEONTA
On the afternoon of Friday, June 13 at 2 p.m., generations of Oneontans gathered beside one another outside the city’s historic Center Street School building. This congregation was to celebrate the unveiling of the first of five New York State historical markers being placed in Oneonta throughout the coming summer months. The effort this day was spearheaded jointly by the Greater Oneonta Historical Society and the Oneonta City School District.
When asked what sparked interest in the placement of these new markers, Marcela Micucci, executive director of GOHS, said that it came down to “just realizing that there were actually so few in the town and city of Oneonta and wanting to bring some of that to Oneonta in order to preserve some of our local history. We had a few markers here in Oneonta prior to 2022 that were historical in nature, but they weren’t New York State [official markers].”
As Micucci noted, the Center Street School building first opened its doors on October 25, 1897. The facility was used to train teachers for the Oneonta Normal School—which would go on to become the State University of New York at Oneonta—between 1906 and 1933. The school would then be integrated into the city school district, where it saw usage in this manner up until its closing in 2012. Since then, it has been maintained and utilized as the district office building for the OCSD.
With such a long and rich history surrounding the building, it was a no-brainer for GOHS to pursue the location as a premiere spot for a new historical marker. The Center Street School’s status as the oldest standing school building in all of Oneonta lent itself well to formulating an argument for the necessity of a historical marker at the site. Through the collective efforts of OCSD officials and GOHS historians, the organizations were able to piece together enough information on the building’s history to receive funding for the purchase of the historical marker.
With regard to the process of financing such an endeavor, Micucci said, “Some of [the markers] are funded. There are funding opportunities for them. For instance, the William G. Pomeroy Foundation—which funded our Center Street School marker that we unveiled today—they do New York State historical marker funding throughout the state … But they do have some strict criteria. You need to pull a lot of primary source documentation—sources that can corroborate the history of the building or person, place, event, whatever you’re trying to get your marker for.”
With funding secured and excitement building, the day of the unveiling ceremony arrived. A sizable crowd gathered as Micucci gave some short remarks of gratitude to the numerous groups and people involved in the process of placing the marker at the Center Street School. A number of public officials attended, from Oneonta Mayor Mark Drnek, to John Cook, the nearly 30-year principal of Center Street School from 1983 to 2010.
OCSD Superintendent Tom Brindley was invited to give a few words on the marker’s unveiling.
“We recognize the historical significance of this great building. They don’t build them like this anymore … It’s really stood at the heart of education in our community for a long time. And although its purpose has changed over the years from once a school, shaping young minds, to now our district office building, the work continues, and that is of supporting learning and growth in our community,” Brindley said. “I want to thank all of you for not only preserving our shared history, but also celebrating it. So this is not just a tribute to this building, it’s a tribute to the generations of students and educators and community members that have passed through these doors with great hope, with great purpose, and with great Yellow Jacket pride.”
Though the ceremony itself lasted less than a half-hour, the impact of historical markers like this one will be felt by community members and visitors alike for years to come.
“There’s so many people that come to these unveilings, and they have stories to bring about what brought them there and why we’re all celebrating these markers and why we’re celebrating these iconic places or these iconic things that we have here in Oneonta,” said GOHS Visitor Services Supervisor Bhanupratap Gaur. “I think it’s great that we’re highlighting pieces of Oneonta history that sometimes go off the radar.”
With one marker down, that leaves four more to be unveiled throughout Oneonta in the coming weeks. Following the positive turnout and feedback regarding the Center Street School marker unveiling, GOHS representatives are looking forward to these upcoming events now more than ever. If the array of people that attended this first unveiling is anything to go by, Oneonta has a population proud of its history.
The next historical marker will be unveiled on Tuesday, July 1 at 1 p.m. at the Red Caboose in Neahwa Park.
