Land Acknowledgement
Gravenhurst High School acknowledges that we learn, live, and work on the traditional lands and waters of the Ojibway (Oh-jib-way) Nation and the Huron (Hur-on) / Wendat (When-dat) Nation, that now includes communities from the Mohawk Nation, the Pottawatomi (Pot-a-watt-a-me) Nation and the Métis (May-tee) Nation of Ontario.
Under the One Dish With One Spoon Treaty, the Haudenosaunee (Hoden-oh-show-nee) Confederacy and the Anishinaabe (An-ish-i-na-bay) Peoples agreed to share and care for this territory for the benefit of future generations. We acknowledge their stewardship throughout the ages.
A Brief History of Gravenhurst High School
1887 A High School Board is formed in Gravenhurst.1889 The first High School classes are held in the North Ward School.
1890 The School Inspector reports poor conditions in the school but gives the teachers a high rating 1891 The High School Board agrees to create a suitable High School building. 1894 A By-law is passed in Gravenhurst to raise debentures for the construction of a high school. 1896 First Gravenhurst High School building was constructed. It cost $4,150 and consisted of 3 classrooms, 1 laboratory, 1 storeroom and a combined office-library. Dr. W.H. Muldrew was the first Principal and being an expert of native trees and shrubs, designed the landscaping. He published his book, Sylvan Ontario, A guide to our Native trees and shrubs in 1901. 1940 Miss Dorothy Shaw becomes Principal until 1962. Miss Shaw had previously been a teacher at the school. When she arrived the enrollment was about 80 students with a staff of 4 teachers. 1950 The Gravenhurst High School building becomes Gravenhurst Public School. Over its 54 years 2,500 students attended. School population ranged from about 40 in the early years to about 170 in the recent years.
1951 The Ministry of Education opened the new 2 storey brick building on the present site. The school now had 7 classrooms, a library, commercial rooms, a science lab, a gym, home economics facility, shops and a cafeteria. There was a staff of 8. The cost to build was $295,000. The capacity of the school was 250-300 with the enrollment of the time at 189. Several days after the opening the old school building burned down. 1959 The “new” school was expanded to accommodate increased enrollment. 1973 Gravenhurst High School was enlarged once more. 2002 Gravenhurst High School now proudly boasts an enrollment of 495 and a teaching staff of 29, 8 educational assistants, 3 office personnel, and a staff of 5 custodial personnel. The students take part in many teams and clubs.
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