Hartford Public High School: the First Fifty Years by R.J. Luke Williams

The Hartford Grammar School, which had a long history dating back to the school started by Thomas Hooker in 1638, was the secondary school for young men in Hartford until 1847. In that year, school leaders, influenced by the ideas of Henry Barnard, himself a graduate of the HGS, decided to bring together the English Course of the First District School and the Classical Course of the HGS and rename the school the “Hartford Public High School,” but it was also called the “English and Classical High School.” It was “public” in the sense that both men and women could enroll. It was a bold move, preceded by much agitation, but it made Hartford stand out as urbane, cosmopolitan, and progressive. This presentation will explore what HPHS was about in the early years: the composition of the student body, the curriculum, and its governance. Many students attended colleges and achieved prominence and influence as adults, especially in the city of Hartford.