MERRITTON MATTERS

A Memorable Man and a Memorable Era
at Merritton High School
By Phyllis Thomson
Do you remember your high school Principal? I
do. Although we never met in my years at high
school, I remember him very well! When my
friends and I were about to enter Grade 9 (known
as ‘First Form’ many eons ago) we had been
warned that ‘HE’ (nary a ‘she’ back then!) was a
dreaded Simon Legree, an ogre who was there for
the prime purpose of meting out punishment, to
be feared and avoided at all costs. So, being well
warned, when he walked down the hall it was
like the parting of the waters, we would all flatten
ourselves up against the nearest wall of lockers
until he passed. And if he happened to know your
name, you knew you were in big trouble!
The students at Merritton High School during
the 50’s and 60’s were lucky – Jim Smith just didn’t
fit that stereotype at all - he seemed to enjoy the students and despite
the fact that he did know many by name, most of the time you were
safe! He could be a stern disciplinarian when needed, but was always
approachable and always fair. The students respected him and liked him.
Add to that an extraordinarily likeable teaching staff for the most part,
and it made for a pleasant atmosphere.
Following graduation from Stamford Collegiate, Jim went on to
graduate from McMaster University in Hamilton and the Ontario
College of Education in Toronto. He accepted his first teaching position
in Delhi in l948 where he remained until Thorold High School beckoned
in l951. In l954 he moved down the hill to Merritton High as Vice
Principal where he and I shared an office for a few years. The students
of that era will remember, I’m sure, that tiny little office where we both
had our desks along with several pieces of office equipment and, usually,
a few students to be found in there as well. In l958, he became Principal
of Merritton High and it was a sad day for the students in 1966 when
he decided to accept the Principalship of a new school that was about to
open in the north end of St. Catharines – Laura Secord.
It was a great testament to the esteem in which they held him, when
several of our staff members decided to join him there, but it was a
tremendous loss for Merritton High School. One of these teachers told
me years later, that when they left Merritton to go with Jim to Laura
Secord, they started calling the new school “Merritton North”! In 1974
Jim was offered a Superintendent’s position, which he accepted, and
where he remained until his retirement in l981. I asked him if he enjoyed
this last phase in his long teaching career and he gave me a resounding
“very much”.
Jim and his wife, Florence, knew each other in high school. While
Jim was at McMaster, Florence was in the nursing programme at the
Hamilton General Hospital. Jim’s version of how they started dating is
that Florence called him up at McMaster and asked him to chaperone
her at an upcoming nurses’ dance – they will soon celebrate 61 years of
marriage so I think we can now safely say that the rest is happy history!
Four ‘little Smiths’ arrived over the years, Moira, Kirk, Shelley and Tara
- two have become teachers with the local board of education, while two
have chosen other professions, and there are now nine grandchildren
and eight great-grandchildren for Jim and Florence.
They still spend summers at their cottage north of Kingston and
in retirement they have enjoyed traveling around Britain and Western
Europe. Jim, and many former Laura Secord teachers,
began a tradition which continues to-day – they meet
for breakfast once a week at local restaurants – what a
great way of keeping in touch!
He has enough memories of his years in
education to fill a book (now there’s an idea worth
pursuing!) and here is just one …..“I remember well
the day when ‘Surf was Up’ at Merritton High School.
The date may have been the Spring of 1960. Before
I went out for lunch, I noticed some water under the
vending machines in the cafeteria and when I came
back some students were waiting for me at the office
door. “Mr. Smith” one of them said, “you’ve got to
come down to the cafeteria right away”. A very unusual
sight greeted me. Water was spurting up through
the joints in the terrazzo floor in a manner similar to
water spurting from a perforated garden hose and it was starting to flow
down the hall towards the gymnasium. Through the quick action of a
group of boys from the Gym and Shop, gym mats were used to block
the flow at the end of the hall to direct it into the furnace room where
George Wilson, our caretaker, then directed it into the floor drain. Thus
the Gym and Shop floors were saved. And what was the explanation as
to the source of the flood? A new addition had been built on Merritton
High in l954. The footing of the new addition had settled onto the
footing of the older building which, in turn, rested tightly against the
water main. In time, the added weight of the addition eventually cracked
the water main which entered the basement from a spot on Merritt
St. opposite the intersection with Oakdale. As you can imagine, the
situation required considerable excavation to repair. In this emergency
operation to save the Gym and Shop, it was a moment to remember
when about ten boys took off their shoes and socks and, as they grabbed
the gym mats and ran to put them in place to block the water, all of
them were shouting ‘Surf ’s Up’ – which provided a bit of levity to an
otherwise potential disaster.”
Jim reflected on the many reasons the Merritton Community has
an especially warm place in his heart. ......“In the late summer of l953,
a terrible epidemic of polio was raging and Florence became infected.
Isolation wards at the hospital were full so we, along with our three year
old daughter Moira, were placed in isolation for three weeks at home,
which at that time was on Bessey Street. During that time, we never
wanted for anything - neighbours and parents of students brought us
groceries and, often, fully cooked meals until the quarantine was lifted.
Merritton was sometimes referred to as a ‘Lunch Bucket Community’
and I fitted into that community very well. A Department of Education
official, who had once been my teacher, said “For a good principal, a
school should be his second family” and, for me, it was. There was back
then an undisputed community spirit which I know still lingers in the
Merritton Ward today.”
By the time you read this, Jim will have reached the special age of
87, and you will be happy to know that he is still lookin’ good and feeling
pretty good. In a recent conversation that I had with a student from that
era, Jim’s name was mentioned and the student ended his thoughts by
saying “Mr. Smith was just a great guy” - a fitting way to end this small
tribute to the man who steered the good ship Merritton High and kept it
in calm waters ‘way back then!
MERRITTON MATTERS I 11