Amon Carter Riverside High School: Celebrating 80 Years (1936-2016)!

Contributed by Rick Herring

“A high school for Riverside!” was the rallying cry and dream for Riverside community leaders and citizens in the early 1930s. The dream became reality in 1936, when Riverside High School opened its doors to senior and junior high students. In the early years of the 20th century, the Riverside Independent School District operated a high school, but when Riverside was annexed by Fort Worth in 1922, the schools were taken over by the Fort Worth ISD and the high school grades in Riverside were discontinued. Riverside students wishing to continue their education past the 8th grade were forced to attend one of the other Fort Worth high schools, usually Central High School (now Paschal). Parents and community leaders were increasingly frustrated as the Riverside community continued to grow and no high school was available in the community. The Riverside Civic League and George B. Eagle, school board member from Riverside, began garnering community support and pressuring the school district to build a high school in Riverside. After several years of lobbying by Riverside citizens, plans were made for a new high school in Riverside.

Amon Carter Riverside High School, est. 1936

A massive ground-breaking and community celebration in August, 1935, kicked off construction of Riverside High School, and the beautiful new high school building was opened for classes on September 15, 1936. The building was designed by noted Fort Worth architect Wyatt Hedrick, who also designed the Texas & Pacific Rail Terminal, Will Rogers Memorial Center, the United States Post Office and numerous other landmark Fort Worth buildings. Hare & Hare, a noted landscape architecture firm from Kansas City, landscaped the 40-acre wooded campus. Riverside High School quickly became the center of the community and strengthened the already strong bonds of the tight-knit Riverside community. A momentous change occurred in 1941, when the school was renamed Amon Carter Riverside High School to honor the well-known Fort Worth civic leader.