Thanks to the Mt. Diablo Unified School District for the picture shown above, as well as the information below:
Mt. Diablo Elementary was founded in 1862 as a two-room, wooden building situated on the hill above the center of Clayton.
Though the original location of that “little school on the hill” is only an historical memory identified by a stone marker in the playfield, the original bell used to call students to class currently resides in the bell tower over the school’s main office and can still be rung.
In 1865, the school had 41 students and only one teacher. Today, Mt. Diablo is one of the largest elementary schools in the MDUSD, with over 800 students and a staff of 28 fully credentialed teachers.
Our school has a deep commitment to educational excellence. Expectations for student achievement are high, and the realization of those expectations is reflected in high student performance on state standardized test scores.
It is clear that, in 1862, the founder of Clayton, Joel Clayton, understood the importance of education for all its citizens when he sold a parcel of land for $1.00 to be used for a “public school.” The current building opened in 1954 and celebrated its 50th anniversary in 2005 -Mrs. Linn Kissinger.
ABOUT THE CLAYCORD ONLINE MUSEUM: The Claycord Online Museum is made up of historical photos, documents & anything else that has to do with the history of our area.
If you have any old photos or items that you’d like to place in the Claycord Online Museum, just scan or take a photo of them, and send them to the following address: news@claycord.com. It doesn’t matter what it is, even if it’s just an old photo of your house, a scan of an old advertisement or an artifact that you’d like us to see, send it in and we’ll put it online!
Click on the tag below titled “Claycord Online Museum” to view other items!
Wow, 1862 40 students, one teacher. So things haven’t changed a bit.
No they have not. In this area there have ALWAYS been 30-40 kids per classroom at least in the last 60+ years.
Cool photo. I started Kindergarten there in 1976. Good times out playing on the ball field, and rolling down the hill before they put of the chain link fence at the top of the hill.
That sign is awesome. It’s too bad it’s still not around.
Luv the sign, so retro 😀
The Bell from the original school is in the bell tower today I believe. 🙂 I do miss the big wooden ship in the play ground!
Does anyone have a picture of the old wooden ship play structure at Mt. Diablo?? That was such a awesome structure.
I got the nastiest splinters from that thing.
Loved every minute, though
I remember when that ship structure was built on the play ground for the first – third graders when I was a student there in the early 1970’s. That and the other playground for the fourth – sixth graders had those giant used tires from the query dump trucks.
There was a mule that lived alongside the big field out back. We used to feed him carrots at lunch time. Also gophers lived in the “nature area” on the big playground (a nice little park-let with almond trees and small walking path). We fed them too. Like being out in the country while at school.
Sweet!🙂
Didn’t go to school there, was in high school, but used to walk down there on weekends and swing on the swings. Now you’d need bolt cutters and a crowbar.
Reading these nostalgic posts reminds me that kids growing up back then sure had different childhood experiences than youths of today.
As Ringo Starr once said, “I love nostalgia; I was nostalgic at birth”.