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From 1959 until 1990, 9,000 or so young men were educated by the Norbertine priests, various nuns and other lay faculty in the building pictured below.  Abbot Pennings High School sat on the banks of the Fox River in DePere, Wisconin, between the St. Norbert College Campus and the old Claude Allouez Bridge.  The education was broad and solid, a fine preparation for any college.  The Fighting Squires athletic teams, in spite of having an enrollment of only 300 to draw from, saw their share of successes and championships in football, soccer, basketball, cross country, tennis, track and baseball.

 

In 1990, the three Catholic high schools were consolidated into Notre Dame Academy, but the spirit of Abbot Pennings High School lives on in the hearts and memories of Pennings alumni, faculty and the rest of the Abbot Pennings community.  It's funny because when I was in school there, it seemed timeless, as if Pennings had existed forever.  In reality, it only produced Abbot Pennings High School Graduates for about 30 years*.  Nonetheless, this little corner of the web is dedicated to archiving some photos, stories and other artifacts from our old school.

When the school closure was announced, Paul Gigot ('73), who was then a columnist for the Wall Street Journal, dedicated an entire 'Potomac Watch' column to Abbot Pennings High School.  This is a copy of Potomac Watch from the November 24, 1989 edition of the Wall Street Journal  (Thanks to Paul for writing it, and my Mom for saving it.)

1990 Sketch by local artist BJ Moran