About
Alternating red sandstone and black lava rock surrounds Hurricane High School in Hurricane, Utah and reflect the school's colors. Looking in any direction, one is awestruck by the panoramic, colorful mountains, flora and fauna of the area, typical of the lower Sonoran desert.
Almost before the town was founded, the people began to build a school. The community built the first "school" on the corner of Main and State. It was actually Ira E. Bradshaw's home that still stands, thanks to the foresight of the Heritage Committee. The living room served as the classroom for children in grades one through eight.
Population growth required a larger building and in 1910 the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints Ward Hall became the school with Joseph Wittwer as Principal. In the fall of 1913, Morgan Edwards became Principal. He is remembered for his unusual discipline: pulling on unruly students' chins. In 1917 a new school was completed with the school board and the citizens of Hurricane splitting the $17,000 construction cost. Uniformly heated rooms replaced the pot-bellied stoves and a gym with a warm-water shower made the new school seem like paradise to the students and ninth grade was included.
