Corcoran

3329 19th Avenue South - closed, demolished
Minneapolis 7, Minnesota

Having been unsuccessful in determining when Corcoran Elementary School was demolished; it was erected in 1889 with additions in 1906, 1909, and 1918. 
UPDATE!  Apparently, it was demolished in January, 1976.  Please see below: 

Brad Stevens AHS writes,
"Thank you so much for a wonderful web site that not only honors the graduates of Roosevelt, but also brings back such fond memories of South Minneapolis.  I attended Corcoran Elementary from 1965 to 1972. 
Even though I did not graduate in 1962 nor attend Roosevelt as we moved to Anoka when I was attending Folwell, I hope I can contribute to a bit of history:  According to the Minneapolis School District, Corcoran was
closed in 1975 and was demolished by January of 1976.  That matches my recollection as we regularly visited South Minneapolis after we moved. 

I have attached a color photo of the school just before it was torn down. 
It only captures about small section of the school.  Prior to 1967 the back half of the playground was dirt.  In the summer of 1967 the district paved the entire play ground and striped it for kick ball and soft ball diamonds. 
It helped us as kids to organize our ball games without the use of coats, books or gloves as bases . . .



Corcoran Elementary School, 1975 prior to demolition

. . . There may have been more, but at least one of the teachers at Corcoran when I was there was a graduate of Roosevelt.  Mr. Dale Jacobson was a 1963 graduate of Roosevelt, teaching from 1968 to 1971
then again from 1973 to its close.  Mr. Jacobson was my fifth grade teacher.

The school mascot, rarely used, was Corky Corcoran which was a monkey, the drawing always reminded me of Curious George.  I need to go through my parents stuff and find a couple of pictures, one that includes a paper mache image of Corky dressed up with a medical outfit for when we had vaccination day at school.

Sadly, until after 1972 the school did not have organized pictures so unless there are family photos of events, not much has survived."  ~ 11/22/11 ~

~ ~ ~

Jon Randall BJHS '78 writes,
"I was jotting down some family history and came across your interesting web site (RHS 1962).  I was searching for some history on Corcoran Elementary School and appreciated the notes you have gathered. 
My grandfather was employed at Corcoran for years in the 1940/50s.  I believe his title was engineer.  He often talked about the difficult job of keeping the boiler running to heat the school.  He lived just blocks away
at the corner of 32nd & Longfellow and always walked to work.  My father and his siblings attended this school as well. 

My Grandfather's name was Franklin Randall.  He was born in the late 1800s so he would have retired from Corcoran around 1960 or so (the year I was born). 
I did not graduate from Roosevelt (Bloomington Jefferson), but my father and his siblings did.  My father would have graduated in '50 or '51.  His younger siblings (Richard & Ruth Randall) would have graduated later than that. 
I actually lived in the house on Longfellow with my grandparents for one year when I was two.  My older brother went to Kindergarten at Corcoran that year. 
Thanks for your efforts.  ~ 1/5/12 ~

~ ~ ~

According to Craig Swanberg,
"I went to Corcoran from '73 to '74 then went to Folwell from '75 to '76.  The last class at Corcoran was in 1976 and it was torn down that summer [or the following summer]." 
That's 87 years!"  Thanks for the updates!  ~ 8/3/10 / 5/17/11 ~
 

The Corcoran neighborhood, just east of Powderhorn Park,
is located between Lake Street East and 36th Street East and between Cedar Avenue South and Hiawatha Avenue. 
This is a mainly residential neighborhood with more than 60 percent of the land used for single-family residences. 

The light-rail stop at Lake Street gives the neighborhood an easy connection to Downtown, the Minneapolis-St. Paul International Airport, and the Mall of America. 
In addition, plans to develop the Lake Street corridor as a commercial thoroughfare are under way, and will have an important local impact.

William Wilson Corcoran
1798 - 1888

~ Sixth Grade ~
Graduation, 1956

Does anyone have the Sixth Grade Graduation photo that can be scanned and displayed below?
If so, please email the webmaster for details.

Until a graduation photo becomes available, here is the beginning of an album of Corcoran alumni.

~ Interesting Links ~

Planning for the Future

Fire Protection Engineering Report




       

 

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