Archives 1953-1954
8th year of the school’s existence
On Monday, October 21, 1946, a new American high school opened. It was one of six high schools that opened in the fall of 1946, not in the United States, but in Germany. This high school was in a small town approximately 15.5 miles north of Nürnberg, one of Germany’s most historic cities. It was called Erlangen American High School.
A year later, on Monday, September 6, 1947, this American high school opened its doors as Nürnberg American High School, in a new location, 19 Tannenstrasse in Fürth, a town approxi-mately 6.5 miles from the Nürnberg Hauptbahnhof. The school was to remain at this address for five and one-half years.
The sixth year of the school’s existence was begun in the old school on Tannenstrasse, but the students, on January 3, 1952, moved into a brand new American school at 30 Fronmüllerstrasse in Fürth.
The doors of NHS were to remain open at this new address until the school closed in 1995, after 49 years. In 1995 thousands of Nürnberg High School alumni had to face the fact that their school was gone. But it lived on in their memory, and these alumni have bonded together to preserve their high school friendships and their memories through the Nürnberg Alumni Association.
The students of the 1953-54 school year, the eighth year of the school’s existence, were the second to spend their year in the new building on Fronmüllerstrasse. The new school building had come about as a result of the change in Germany’s status as an occupied territory. In 1952 the allied forces went from armies of occupation to co-partners with the Germans in defending the West.
The 1953-54 school year is notable for three new NHS traditions. After seven years in which the school newspaper was called The Army Brat, the name was changed to the Trichter, a name which prevailed until 1991. During the first seven years NHS had two Alma Maters, neither of which was, apparently, very well received. In this school year the Alma Mater which begins “Hail, oh hail to dear old Nürnberg” was adopted. This song was to be the school’s Alma Mater until the school closed. A third new tradition was a locally produced AFN radio program by and for NHS students. This tradition is believed to have lasted until the school closed. In addition, the school continued the tradition of decorating the large front window at Christmas time, a tradition which had begun the year before. This tradition is also believed to have endured until the school’s closing.
In the files that are linked to from this page, you can read an attempt to preserve the history and memories of the school’s eighth year.
If you find anything here that you believe to be historically inaccurate or know of something that can be added to these files, please contact me.
Bob McQuitty, NAA historian/archivist