TRADITION
Should you happen to be driving through Derry, New Hampshire on 28 Bypass, you might notice what looks like a small well-groomed college campus. Pinkerton Academy impresses most at first glance. The largest independent high school in New Hampshire, it draws in upwards of 3200 teenagers from Derry and surrounding towns. The school is steeped in a tradition of excellence, both academic and athletic. Huge state of the art buildings intermingle with older architectural forms, gradually spread out as the school expanded over the last 200 plus years. Red brick predominates, tying it all together, contrasting with stately Norway pines and towering maples. The campus sprawls over several acres. It is surrounded by grassy athletic fields and parking lots bulging with cars.
The oldest structure, the Academy Building, dates all the way back to 1815 when the school was founded by John and James Pinkerton, local entrepreneurs and benefactors. This white clapboard edifice is topped off by a remnant of antiquity, a “sacred cod” weathervane, in honor of the early days of New England fishery. No longer used for classes, its attic contains bits and pieces of the school’s history, including the cradle that rocked baby John. There is some talk of organizing all this paraphernalia into a museum, but for now, it quietly gathers dust.
Pinkerton reflects the drama of New England’s seasons. On crisp fall mornings, the fields glow emerald and the maples flame with color. When winter comes, bringing plummeting temperatures and the clearest of skies, the sun rises to flood the old buildings with light just as the students arrive. In spring, red winged blackbirds swoop and dive in the swamp and apple blossoms sweeten the air as the kids fall in and out of love. There are few days without beauty on this campus.
Pinkerton has produced its share of celebrities, but perhaps the most well-known alumnus is the astronaut Alan Shepard, a 1940 graduate. On one of his infrequent visits later in life, he listened to his former classmates reminisce about where life had taken them. “Well,” Alan remarked, “I’ve been a few places and seen a few things.” Like maybe all the way to the moon? Marion Pounder, longtime trustee and fellow graduate, remembered his wry wit.
Then she took me back in time as she recalled the meticulous protocol that was followed at the freshman reception and the coveted honor of using the senior steps. Non-seniors who were caught violating this tradition could be found cleaning them with a toothbrush. Formal dances, complete with dance cards, were held on the second floor of the clock tower building, the “chapel”. In her day the chapel also served as the gathering place for all the students every morning. Boys and girls sat on opposite sides of the room as their voices blended in the hymn, “Jerusalem the Golden”. Attendance taken, announcements read, the students were off for another day of classes, boys in jackets and ties, girls in skirts and sweaters. Not a pair of jeans could be seen anywhere.
Mrs. Pounder and I mused about the noble idea of a classical education for all. Let’s think about it for a minute. Never in the history of the human race has this been offered to everyone, male or female, rich or poor. Yet we have seen it become an expected goal of our culture in America. Pinkerton Academy exemplifies this ideal. “How have such high standards been maintained here at Pinkerton?” I wondered out loud.
Mrs. Pounder responded to my query by reminding me that Pinkerton has never been politically driven. The trustees who have guided the school are unelected and not subjected to the vagaries of town politics and budgets. They typically serve for a number of years, sharing the ongoing vision for uncompromising quality education. The student who attends Pinkerton can position himself or herself for a running start at life.
But wait a minute. What about the students who come to Pinkerton disadvantaged by learning challenges, a chaotic home, a record of school failure? These are the ones that would become mine. These are the ones that continue to live in my heart.