1918
The present epidemic of influenza in St. Johns requires the cooperation of all the citizens to stamp it out. There are at present 135 cases under strict quarantine. The flu is no joke; the state is full of it and it rages from Siberia to the tropics, with 300,000 deaths having occurred in this country. Eleven deaths have occurred in St. Johns.
Rodney B. Wilson, 17, of St. Johns died at his home about 1 o’clock Saturday afternoon. He had influenza that went into pneumonia. Rodney was the only son of Mr. and Mrs. Arthur Wilson. Burial was made at Mt. Rest Cemetery.
Board of Education Special Meeting, August 21, 1922
The Board received a report on the acquisition of properties included in Ball Site for a proposed new high school. The Teachout place, owned by Mr. Vincent; the Corbin House; the Baptist Church and 55 feet on the east end of the property; the Legion Posts. Art Wilson will gift to the district his portion and adjacent owned by Mr. Ball, providing Mr. Ball agrees. The Board stated the new school building would be named Rodney B. Wilson High School. Mr. Wilson at first demurred, but then agreed.
1922
Citizens of St. Johns will vote May 26 on a new high school building.
Now and then a man will do something unselfish and fine for the town in which he lives. Mr. and Mrs. Arthur E. Wilson will donate to the city of St. Johns the property known as the Cooley E. Ball corner, to be used as part of the site of the proposed new high school. Mr. Ball joins his daughter, Mrs. Wilson and her husband Arthur, in donating the lot which he owns to the south of the property.
The Board of Education appreciates deeply this generous gift and proposes that the new high school, when erected, shall be known as the Rodney B. Wilson High School in memory of Mr. and Mrs. Wilson’s son, Rodney, who was a second year student in our high school at the time of his death in 1918.
The present Central School building in St. Johns was erected in 1885, over a generation ago. Every department is cramped and handicapped for want of space. Halls are crowded and good ventilation cannot be had. Careful estimates made by the architect and the Board of Education show the cost of a new high school including building and equipment will not be far from $225,000. Voters will decide the bond issue Oct. 27.
The proposition to bond St. Johns School District No. 4 Bingham Township for $225,000 to build a new high school was carried last Friday by a vote of 496 for and 329 against.
1923
The taxpayers of District 4 Bingham Township voted last Friday to issue $75,000 in additional bonds if necessary for the purpose of completing the new St. Johns High School building.
1924
Henry L. Vanderherst of Grand Rapids was the lowest bidder among the 15 contractors for general construction of the Rodney B. Wilson High School in St. Johns. School officials turned down all bids submitted last year and a 12-month construction delay resulted. Building costs will be over $10,000 cheaper this year. The school is scheduled for completion in August at an estimated cost of $280,000.
1925
School will open in the new high school in St. Johns Monday morning January 19. A dedication service will be held later after the school is completely finished.
Mr. and Mrs. Arthur E. Wilson of St. Johns are the donors of a splendid gift to the new St. Johns High School building in the form of a Steinway grand piano.
Friday, April 17 will be a red letter day in the history of St. Johns schools for on that day the splendid new Rodney B. Wilson High School building will be dedicated. Mrs. F.M. Spaulding, President of the School Board, will present the school.
Fall, 1954
The St. Johns Board of Education has completed final plans for the new addition to Rodney B. Wilson High School and has asked contractors for bids on the $450,000 project.
1964
Nearly $200,000 from the estate of the late Arthur E. and Norena E. Wilson will be held in trust to provide scholarships for the future graduates of Rodney B. Wilson High School.
1965
East Essex voters approve annexing to the St. Johns school district on March 6. The election was the first of a series of thirty-two that will take place between now and July 1, 1965.
The largest school annexation in the history of Michigan was completed on May 8 when the last of thirty-two area school districts annexed to St. Johns. The passage of the millage, 4 1/2 mills, was also necessary in each district before the annexation could pass.
1966
Architects began work in earnest Tuesday on the St. Johns School buildings after district voters gave the $5.4 million bond issue a slim nineteen vote victory. A proposed new high school will be built on the site southeast of the city park, and additions are planned to the schools at Eureka and East Essex.
1968
Total enrollment in the St. Johns School District, as of September 37 was 3789.
Seven rural schools were sold recently at public auction by the St. Johns School District. They included the Union Home, Jason, Merle Beach, Cedar Lake, Lemm, Simmons aand Parker. The school bells that had not been stolen were removed and will be auctioned later.
January, 1969
High school students in the St. Johns district attended classes in the new multi-million dollar high school for the first time.