District History
Early History
On a spring day in 1914, a group of parents west of Oklahoma City gathered to discuss how their children could best be educated. The solution they chose was the consolidation of four one-room country schools. Consolidated District No. 1 at Putnam City was born.
By 1915, students were attending classes in a "most substantial and handsome brick structure," (see photo) an early newspaper reported. The building, at the site of the present day Special Services Building at 40th and Grove, had six classrooms, an auditorium, a superintendent’s office and a "commodious basement." There was no cafeteria, so students brought their own lunches. The school was otherwise equipped with electric lights and all modern conveniences of the day.
Students at all levels, primary through secondary, attended the school. Students within two miles of the school walked or rode horses. (There was a shed for horses ridden by students.) Students who lived further away could be transported to and from school in horse-drawn enclosed wagons.
Taxpayers and patrons were highly pleased with the school. "Not only are the pupils afforded a much more comprehensive course of study by having the schools grouped, but the new building furnishes a meeting place for social and civic activities of the district," the newspaper reported.
To learn more about Putnam City's history, read page 5 of the January 2007 issue of Info Magazine from the Metropolitan Library System.
Is There a City of Putnam City?
"Putnam City" was the name given to 2,000 acres of land owned by Israel Mercer Putnam, an early-day Oklahoma real estate developer and legislator. Putnam introduced a bill in 1908 to move the capitol from Guthrie to Oklahoma City. He encouraged his colleagues to choose land that he owned as the site for the capitol. The legislature chose an area at 23rd and Lincoln instead, freeing "Putnam City" for other uses.