Museum Showcases WPHS and Ohio County Schools History
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WHEELING - At one time, there were 30 public schools in Ohio County, according to Wheeling Park High School local history teacher Ryan Stanton.
As WPHS turns a half-century old this year, Stanton has organized a museum area at the school that will be open for tours on homecoming weekend this Saturday. It is located within the social studies area at WPHS.
"We have converted a space that was once where lockers were," he said. "We have four glass cabinets, and two are reserved for the history of Ohio County Schools"
His local history came up with the name "Ohio County Collections" for those items.
The other two cabinets, meanwhile, are dedicated specifically to the history of Wheeling Park High School.
The room also contains huge rows of waist-high filing cabinets to store items. Stanton estimates there are about 10 cabinets.
And the display area is not the only storage space available.
"We don't only have cabinets, we also have a storage place," Stanton said. "We have a secure place to store the items, and we will have evolving displays throughout the year."
On homecoming weekend, older yearbooks will be on display.
The museum collection began with Stanton's own assemblage of items he has obtained over time.
"For me, being interested (in local history), I have been collecting for years," he said. "I have old yearbooks, letterman jackets, buttons, and a spindle from the old Wheeling High School staircase and some of the bricks from the building.
"I not only have artifacts, I have pieces of the schools."
Stanton opened his local history classes to the community on the first Saturday of each month during the school year, and after this, local residents began donating their own memorabilia from their schools to him.
Among the items he has received is a vinyl recording of the Warwood High School marching band performing. Another teacher at WPHS has donated their mother's majorette outfit.
Stanton credited former WPHS teacher and athletic trainer Pete Chacalos with playing a major role in providing items to the museum. Chacalos has collected sports items through the years, including an all-white WPHS football helmet from the 1980s, as well as programs from many games.
Chacalos also provided a huge donation of yearbooks and jerseys to the collection, he noted.
"In 1995, the boys basketball team won the state championship," Stanton continued. "Michael Jebbia (who is the current coach of the team) gave me (former coach) Sam Andy’s ring to display.
"There is also other memorabilia from that year - shirts and buttons."
Stanton has been bringing his local history students into the storage area to see the items, and many of them are attracting their interest.
One of them is a glass from a senior dinner dance that happened only a decade ago in 2016. The students are amazed those attending the dance were given the glasses as a keepsake, according to Stanton.
"I take the students in there and let them roam around. I ask them, 'What strikes you as interesting?'" Stanton said. "A lot of things in there become teachable moments.”
"The studying of history is about more than just facts. You can also learn from holding and touching objects... It's about showing kids it’s OK to look at something, pick up and touch it."
And yes, the students are fascinated by the 40-year-old football helmet provided by Chacalos. They pick it up and at least try to put it on.
"The helmet is for a very small head," Stanton explained. "But it can create a 10-minute conversation just about the logo. They have so many questions."
Stanton said it is important to document the education part of Wheeling's history.
"At one time, there were over 30 schools in Ohio County," he noted. "While they are not open now, many still have artifacts out there that tell their story.
The collection also tells the hard work put into the education profession by teachers, he continued.
"It's good to remember, but we also have to think about the future," Stanton said. "What will it be like here in the next 50 years?"