In 1905, Scarborough built the White School at Oak Hill, a two-story building that became the town’s first true high school. The upper floor housed high school classes while the lower floor served grammar grades. For more than twenty years, this little schoolhouse educated Scarborough’s older students before the town constructed a dedicated high school on U.S. Route 1 in 1926. When the new building opened in 1927, the White School transitioned into Oak Hill Primary.
The photograph shown here captures a group of Scarborough High School students assembled in front of the White School, likely taken between 1918 and 1921. The young women wear long skirts, high-collared blouses, and lace details typical of the late 1910s and early 1920s. The young men are dressed in suits and ties, reflecting the formality of the era. Behind them, the clean lines and balanced windows of the White School provide a classic backdrop for this moment in Scarborough’s educational history.
This image offers us not only a glimpse of student life during that era, but also a reminder of how central the White School was in the lives of Scarborough families. Today, the building, at 225 US Route One, is home to Cumberland Tile Services and MackAirPro.
Do you recognize any of these faces?
People Tentatively Identified
| Name | Location | Class or Note |
| Elwood Bessey | Back, middle of 3 in front of right door. | Principal |
| Leon Lary | Back row, third from right | |
| Norman Webster Laughton | Back row, far right. | (died May 1921) |
| Arthur Pillsbury | 2nd Row, 4th from left, | Tall boy in dark suit. |
| Gerald “Jerry” Pillsbury | 2nd row, 2nd from right – | Lighter color suit, darker hair. |
| Martha Pillsbury | Front row, 6th from left, | Light colored dress with sweater |
This post written using the aid of AI (ChatGP) and edited using Grammarly.
