Southwestern Rebels Alumni: Hanover School Buildings

Hanover Schools 1820-Present Day

According to the book 'Images of America - Hanover' by Marty Lenzini Murray, Hanover's first school was a log cabin of split logs with an immense chimney at one end. This school existed as early as 1820, according to William McKee Dunn, who attended it then. There are no known pictures of this log cabin.

Here's a picture of what it might have looked like.

The next school, called the Little Red Schoolhouse, used to sit where the present day Hanover Firehouse is. Children in grades 1-8 attended it. Pictures of this school can be seen as early as 1915. The building now sits at the west end of Hanover.

According to the book, the Hanover College Campus was used for high school grades until the Hanover Public School building opened in 1928.

Here's another picture of the Little Red Schoolhouse in 2020.

It has been referred to as the Administration building & Hanover High School, but over the left door is carved 'Hanover Public School'.

Remember this commemorative plate?

The Hanover Public School building served K1-12 from 1928-1959.

An additional building that included a gym was built in 1952.

The gym building (above) was built in 1952 (without the Southwestern name) and later renamed Southwestern when Saluda, Republican, Hanover and Smyrna townships consolidated in the spring of 1959.

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Southwestern High School 1960-74

These are pictures of Southwestern from 1960-74 (before the tornado hit). Part of Southwestern was made up of this Hanover High School building, from the consolidation of 1960. There was a separate building labeled Southwestern High School that includes the gym on the 2nd floor.

Here's the Southwestern High School Complex with the Hanover Public School building (built in 1928) in front and the Southwestern High School gym building (built in 1952) behind. The road down front of the HHS building is Main Cross today in Hanover.

Here's a view from the Hanover High School building looking over at the Elementary - Junior High buildings (built in 1960). Note the canopy that provided shelter when walking to & from the buildings.

With the consolidation of several area schools, the Rebels and red-white-blue school colors were born!

The back of the Southwestern Gym building built in 1952.

The front of the Southwestern Gym building with canopy that was added later.

The High School complex looked like this with both buildings. The gym was on the 2nd floor of the building to the left. The canopy to/from the Elementary/Jr. High was added later.

The baseball field behind the Southwestern High School gym building.

Another view from home plate. We know one player that hit a home run over the gym!

Here's a close up of the Hanover Public School building. It served K1-12 from 1928-1959

Another view of the canopy back in 1971.

And another of the Gym building showing the canopy.

Did you walk these hallways in the SW High School gym building?

The hallways are empty now, but the REBELS spirit still lingers.

Here are the hallways of the Hanover High School building shown here.

The stairs of success in the old Hanover Public School building!

A rough view of where the buildings were located pre-1974 and today.

Another view of the Hanover Public School building that didn't survive the April 3rd, 1974 tornado.

Here's the destruction shown after the building.

Here's a 2D layout of how the grounds were situated.

This is a picture of the back of the Hanover Public School building

This canopy ran from the High School gym building to the Elementary parking lot.

Another picture of the canopy entrance to the Southwestern High School gym building.

This was the place for pickups and dropoffs at Southwestern back in the day. It's snowing at Southwestern!

Students utilized the canopy to go between high school & elementary buildings.

This is a picture of the Southwestern Elementary building, which also included the Junior High prior to 1974

This is another view of the Southwestern High School & gym building. The community enjoyed many activities here.

Another view of the SHS gym building. There were classrooms on the 1st floor and the gym was on the 2nd floor. Note the canopy that was built over the right front doors.

Inside the gymnasium back in 1963. The gymnasium was on the 2nd floor.

This is another view of the front of Southwestern High School & Gym building.

This is the original Superintendent-Administration building as it looked before the 1974 tornado.

After the '74 tornado, some grade levels held classes in buildings at Hanover College until these 'relocatable' buildings were erected on the grounds behind current day Southwestern High School. While in these relocatable buildings, students could hear & see the construction of the new high school.

During heavy rains, the sidewalks for these buildings would often be under inches of water, but education continued! Do you remember these buildings? Just keep swimming!

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This picture shows approximately where the old buildings stood on current day grounds. A big portion of today's gym still rests on REBELS hallowed grounds!