Manlius Pebble Hill School

The Manlius Pebble Hill School (also known as MPH) is a non-sectarian, coeducational, independent Pre-K through 12 school in DeWitt, New York. The school is a result of a merger in 1970 between The Manlius School (founded 1869) and Pebble Hill School (founded 1926). The school's mission statement is "To inspire our students to think critically, act responsibly, and develop a passion for life long learning."

The Manlius School

The Manlius School was founded in 1869 in Manlius, New York as the St. John's School by Bishop Frederic D. Huntington, of the Episcopal Diocese of Central New York. However, by 1880 attendance had fallen to the point where the school became insolvent. As a result, in 1881 it was reorganized as the St. John's Military School.

By 1887 the reorganized St. John's again found itself with enrollment and financial problems, and the trustees looked for someone who could not only turn the school around, but also assume all financial risks. This person was New York State Adjutant General William Verbeck, who at the time was the co-principal of a military academy in Aurora, NY. Starting with 18 returning students, he raised enrollment to 120 within five years. By the time of Verbeck's death in 1930, what became known as The Manlius School had become one of the top military schools in the United States.

Pebble Hill School

The Pebble Hill School was founded in 1927 as a non-sectarian country day school for boys. In early 1927 a piece of property in the Pebble Hill section of Orville (now part of the Town of DeWitt) was purchased, and the school opened on September 20, 1927, with an enrollment of 49 boys.

Prior to 1929, all classes at Pebble Hill were held in what still is known as "the Farmhouse." This building is the basis for MPH's logo and now houses the school's administrative offices. Built in 1832, the MPH Farmhouse is one of the oldest buildings in the Town of DeWitt.

Merger

By the late 1960s, enrollment at military schools was falling off as more and more people became disenchanted with the Vietnam War. The Manlius School did not escape this trend, and once again financial difficulties were on the horizon. At the same time, Pebble Hill was running out of room for the many students who were enrolled there. In 1970 the two schools merged to become Manlius Pebble Hill School.

At first the newly merged school used both campuses, with the DeWitt campus being used for the Lower School and Middle School and the Manlius campus used for the Upper School. However, by 1973 it became impractical to run two campuses. The Manlius campus was shut down beginning with the 1973-74 school year and all classes were moved to the DeWitt campus; the MPH Class of 1974 was the last class whose commencement was in Knox Hall on the Manlius campus. The Manlius campus was sold in 1979 to a private developer.

Today

Today Manlius Pebble Hill has an enrollment of more than 450 students and counts among its more than 4,600 alumni members of both predecessor schools as well as those who attended MPH.

Notable people

Heads of school

• Bishop Frederic D. Huntington, founder and president, St. John's School (1869â€"1904)
• William Verbeck, Adjutant General of New York State, head of school, The Manlius School (1877â€"1930)
• Maj. Gen. Ray Barker, head of school, The Manlius School (1946â€"1960)
• Baxter F. Ball, Jr., head of school, Manlius Pebble Hill School (1990â€"2011)
• D. Scott Wiggins, head of school, Manlius Pebble Hill School (July 2012-June 30, 2015)
• James Dunaway, interim head of school, Manlius Pebble Hill School (February 26, 2015-present)

Alumni

• Peter Anderson, ceramist and founder of Shearwater Pottery
• Walter Inglis Anderson, painter, writer and naturalist
• Chief Buffalo Child Long Lance, journalist, writer, actor; spokesman for Native American causes
• Mac Cummings, entrepreneur and political fundraiser
• Howell M. Estes III (General, USAF, Ret.), former Commander in Chief, NORAD and US Space Command, and commander, Air Force Space Command
• Carl Gersbach, professional football player
• Elliot Griffis, composer
• Thomas J. McIntyre (1929), Democratic U.S senator from New Hampshire
• Malcolm Wheeler-Nicholson, writer and publisher
• Hon. Kenneth R. Willard, New York State legislator
• Steve Wynn (1959), casino resort developer

See also

• Guido Verbeck
• Scouting in the United States

References

External links

• Official website
• "Board appoints new head of school," November 2011
• "Local author Bruce Coville to speak at MPH graduation," The Post-Standard, April 1, 2010