On this date in 1934, the Minot Daily News reported on the appropriation request from the North Dakota School for the Deaf. The school was asking the Legislature for funds to complete a building that had been left unfinished for 26 years. Superintendent Burton W. Driggs requested $75,000 to finally complete the long-standing project.
Driggs explained that space originally intended for a swimming pool was being used as a gymnasium, and the auditorium was dark and unsafe for large assemblies. Eight years earlier, it had been discovered that the building’s walls had spread 18 inches; rods were installed in an attempt to pull the walls back into position. Because of this, Driggs said, both students and faculty were dealing with negative impacts to teaching and learning. The assembly room, where most lectures were held, was dark, poorly ventilated, and caused considerable eye strain for pupils.
During the 1935 Legislative Session, $7,345 was appropriated for improvements and repairs. That money, combined with Federal Emergency Relief Administration funds, allowed the most pressing repairs to begin. In his 1936 annual report, Driggs noted significant improvements to the buildings and grounds. Roof projects were completed, loose shingles repaired and repainted, and aging sewer and irrigation systems were finally addressed.
But the funding wasn’t enough to repair the gym building. Students would have to wait several more years before new funds were appropriated, and even longer before construction could be finished. Money was finally approved in 1947 and 1949, but strikes and price inflation delayed the project until 1952. During this time, School for the Deaf students played basketball at neighboring schools to make up for the lack of a usable gym.
At last, in 1953, the new gymnasium at the School for the Deaf was completed, finishing the project Burton W. Driggs had begun nearly two decades earlier. The long-awaited facility finally provided students with the safe, functional space they needed for both education and recreation.
Dakota Datebook by Ashley Thronson
Sources:
- “Finishing of School for Deaf Requested” The Minot Daily News and Optic Reporter. December 22nd, 1934. https://ndarchives.historyarchives.online/viewer?t=42464&i=t&by=1934&bdd=1930&d=12221934-12221934&fn=the_minot_daily_news_and_daily_optic_reporter_usa_north_dakota_minot_19341222_english_3&df=1&dt=10&cid=3106
- Biennial report. State of North Dakota, School for the Deaf. Various years, 1935-1952.
