The years have brought centralization and expansion to Canandaigua public schools.
When Canandaigua became a city in 1913, its educational system consisted of a Union Free School District that had the legal authority from the State Board of Regents to offer a free public education to resident children. It consisted of grades 9-12, located in the new Canandaigua Academy that opened in 1907 on the same site as the former private boys’ school on the corner of North Main and Fort Hill Avenue; and of grades 1-8 (later K-8), in the Union School (built in 1876) on the corner of North Main Street and Greig Terrace (where the YMCA is today). In addition, three small elementary branch schools were located on Chapel Street, Saltonstall Street and Adelaide Avenue that provided K-3 instruction. An annex was made to the Academy building in 1930.
After World War II, a post-war baby boom increased the number of school-age children in Canandaigua. In addition, the Union School and the three branch schools were in dire need of renovation or replacement. The expanding school curriculum also put pressure on the need for new or renovated facilities.
In 1947, after having the Granger Homestead site removed as a possible location for a new elementary school, the Canandaigua Board of Education acquired options for the purchase of approximately 20 acres of land that was adjacent to the residences on the north side of West Gibson Street and extended from the New York Central Railroad line to North Pearl Street. In March, 1947 voters approved this site, and a newly constructed K-8 elementary school opened in September of 1950.
This new building initiated a significant change in the way education was to be delivered to the children of Canandaigua. All students, K-8, were in the same building. The previous branch schools and the Union School were abandoned and sold off. Previously, city students went home for lunch and returned in the afternoon for a second session. This was eliminated with the opening of the elementary school cafeteria. Before 1950, all city students walked to school. The first transportation provided by the school district began with the busing of the children in the primary grades.
With the adoption of the Small Cities School District Law, Canandaigua became a City School District by an act of the New York State Legislature on July 1, 1951. Board of Education members’ terms were changed from three to five years. The new City School District encountered an increasing enrollment with 1,271 students by 1953 and the question of consolidation with the surrounding rural districts. Centralization of the school districts would garner more state aid, especially for future building projects.
Following a study and extensive discussions, a successful vote on centralization was held on March 18, 1954, and the new district was formed effective July 1, 1954. The Canandaigua City School District was a consolidation of 18 common school districts with the original City School District formed in 1951.
All of the common school districts closed, and students attended Canandaigua Academy (Grades 9-12) and the Elementary School (Grades K-8) except for two rural districts in Cheshire and on West Lake Road that continued to operate as elementary schools for several years. Centralization brought with it the need to add to the Elementary School and Academy or build new facilities. The demand at grades K-8 was the greatest, so efforts were focused on a K-3 school that opened as the Primary School in 1955.
Page 2 of 2 - Efforts to expand the Academy on North Main Street failed mainly due to the lack of space required for any additions and playfields at that site. In 1959, the Board of Education purchased property in the current location of Dorset, Douglas and Arlington drives for a new high school. Two vote referendums in 1960 and 1961 were defeated. A citizens committee was formed to find a solution for a site and the size of a new high school that would be acceptable to the community. That committee was chaired by Howard Samuels, a successful industrialist who resided in Canandaigua, and it presented a plan for a new high school to be constructed at the former fairgrounds site at the end of Granger Street. A vote was held on September 1961 and was approved by the voters. For the two years prior to the completion of the new Canandaigua Academy, grades 8-12 were on double sessions, with grades 10-12 attending from 7 a.m. to noon and grades 8-9 attending the afternoon session until 5 p.m. The new Academy opened in September 1963 as a 9-12 high school and the old Academy became the Junior Academy for grades 7-8. Additions to the new Academy were made in 1966.
Since the 1960s, many additional changes have occurred to the Canandaigua City School District. Throughout its history, however, Canandaigua has always had a long tradition of excellence in education.