For almost a century, the steps leading up to Whatcom Middle School’s entrance have been engraved with numerals spanning from 1924 to 1936.
One might first assume they are time capsules, but a yearbook from 1930 holds the true answer. The numerals represent graduating classes that completed projects beneficial to the school, such as gathering funding for a gym renovation, resulting in their class year being engraved into the steps leading to the entrance.
This tradition began in 1924 and ended when the students moved to a new building. There are even unique half-numbers because it was common for classes to graduate halfway through the year at the time.
The building was built in 1903 — the oldest existing school building in the Bellingham school district — and was originally North Side High School, tripling its size with an addition in 1916.
It became Whatcom Junior High after the current Bellingham High School building was constructed in 1938, and it eventually became Whatcom Middle School in 1967.
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