Investigating the Cleveland Hill School Fire of 1954
Suggested Teaching Instructions
Optional Slide deck that could be useful: https://docs.google.com/presentation/d/1mxUtt0vnoH_sgHfBg0rYJ8tMD8DIcEqd8eFWow-AlMA/edit?usp=sharing
Overview & Background Information:
On March 31, 1954, in Cheektowaga, New York an explosion and horrific fire broke out in a wooden annex building of the elementary school of the Cleveland Hill School District. In the annex and at the time of the explosion a sixth-grade music class was being conducted. The fire killed 15 students, severely injuring many more, and left the community devastated. After multiple investigations, it was determined that the fire was started by either an accumulation of coal dust that spontaneously combusted or the faulty boiler. The surviving students were told to move on and not talk about it.
Over the course of the next sixty years, families and the community mourned and healed, quietly, and often privately. New York State, and to an extent, the federal government passed legislation that added safeguards to schools to ensure this would never happen again. The fire at Cleveland Hill elementary school was the last fatal school fire in New York State, and one of the last in our nation.
Today, students at Cleveland Hill see plaques on the walls, a memorial in the front of the school, and an interactive learning experience for visitors, but they often ask: What really happened? Why was there a wooden annex where a parking lot sits today? What started the fire? How did so many children die?
The materials that have been donated to the school over the years, including scrapbooks and photo albums filled with clippings, have provided a treasure trove of primary sources for the teachers and students to sift through. The primary and secondary sources donated provide a rich learning experience for students to practice the historical thinking skills of sourcing, determining cause and effect, and asking questions as they work through the inquiry process.
Goal:
Students will use a variety of primary and secondary sources from the Cleveland Hill school fire of 1954 to both create questions and answer them. They will utilize and practice historical thinking skills. In this school district, students learn about World Wars I and II in 7th grade, along with a comprehensive Holocaust unit. While they have an understanding of life on the homefront during the wars, they do not know yet about the local connection - the impact that increased war-related productions had on the local economy and the subsequent population boom are directly related to the creation of the annex that caught fire on March 31, 1954. Students will also be able to trace and articulate cause and effect narratives. The explosion and fire led to reforms and new regulations related to building codes and fire safety measures that have positively impacted safety across the United States. However, in the shadow of these reforms lay the deaths of 15 children, the loss of which devastated their families and the community.
Objectives:
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Students will be able to use historical thinking skills (chronological thinking, cause and effect, author’s purpose and point of view, document sourcing, historical context versus historical circumstances) to analyze primary sources.
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Students will construct a historical narrative that focuses on both short term and long term causes of the fire and the effects of the fire on the community and on school fire prevention and safety .
Investigative (Compelling) Question:
How do tragedies create opportunity for change?
Time Required: 5 class periods
Recommended Grade Range: Grades 7-12
Subject: Social Studies
NYS Social Studies Framework Learning Standards:
8.6 WORLD WAR II: The aggression of the Axis powers threatened United States security and led to its entry into World War II. The nature and consequences of warfare during World War II transformed the United States and the global community. The damage from total warfare and atrocities such as the Holocaust led to a call for international efforts to protect human rights and prevent future wars. (Standards: 1, 2, 3; Themes: TCC, GOV, TECH, EXCH)
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8.6b From 1939 to 1941, the United States government tried to maintain neutrality while providing aid to Britain but was drawn into the war by the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor. The United States fought a war on multiple fronts. At home, the economy was converted to war production, and essential resources were rationed to ensure adequate supplies for military use.
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Students will investigate the effects of the war on the American economy and day-to-day life.
8.8 DEMOGRAPHIC CHANGE: After World War II, the population of the United States rose sharply as a result of both natural increases and immigration. Population movements have resulted in changes to the American landscape and shifting political power. An aging population is affecting the economy and straining public resources. (Standards: 1, 3, 4, 5; Themes: ID, GEO, SOC, GOV, ECO)
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8.8a After World War II, the United States experienced various shifts in population and demographics that resulted in social, political, and economic consequences.
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Students will explore the short-term and long-term effects of the baby boom generation on the economy, including increases in the construction of homes and schools and increased demands on both Social Security and health care.
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Students will examine the effects of suburbanization, including urban decay, suburban growth, and the diminished availability of farmland both nationally and within New York State.
Social Studies Practices:
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Gathering, Interpreting and Using Evidence
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Chronological Reasoning
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Comparison and Contextualization
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Economics and Economic Systems
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Civic Participation
Credits: Elizabeth Haynes, Social Studies Teacher, Cleveland Hill Middle School
PREPARATION
Materials Used:
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Google Slides: Cleveland Hill Fire Inquiry
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White board or paper and markers
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Photographs from the fire
Resources Used:
Further Background Resources for Teachers can be found on Consider the Source
PROCEDURE of the LESSON:
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For students at Cleveland Hill Middle School, we begin by asking, “What do you know about the fire?” For students in other school districts, begin by asking, “What do you know about fire safety in schools?” Allow students to discuss what they know and record their knowledge on the whiteboard or on a digital document. Transition students by informing them that many of our school building and fire regulation codes are the result of a fire that happened at Cleveland Hill Elementary School in Cheektowaga, New York on March 31, 1954.
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Transition to the lesson objectives and explain to students that we will start our investigation by developing questions - this investigation will be driven by our own inquiries about the fire.
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Using the Question Formulation Technique (inspired by and adapted from the Right Question Institute), students will be given a photograph of the fire and be prompted to work through the technique to develop questions (see slides). Group students in groups of 2-5. Students will be provided with paper and asked to generate a list of questions, as many as they can come up with, without discussing the questions, answering the questions, or judging the questions. Once students have their lists, they will narrow the questions down to their three most important. Students will write the questions down on the white board in the classroom. (Students may use paper and hang them on the walls instead.) Review and discuss questions with students.
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Next, show students the video, Exhibit Examined Lasting Impact of 1954 Fire. Allow students to discuss the video in light of their questions, amending their lists if needed.
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Next, students will begin to learn about the historical context of the fire. Students will visit the Cheektowaga Historical Society website, Erie Downs – Cheektowaga Historical Association to view a photograph of a dog racing track that was built and torn down in the 1930s. (This track is on the site of future government housing built during World War II that many students currently live in.)
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Students will continue on to Curtiss Wright – Cheektowaga Historical Association and read about the history of wartime production at the Curtiss Wright factory in Cheektowaga, NY. (Review Rosie the Riveter from last year.) Allow time for discussion with students: Is it possible that a “Rosie the Riveter” lived in your home? (I often allow students a few minutes to check online with a real estate website the year their home was built. Simply type in the address and basic information will come up. If houses were built pre-1945, there is a definite possibility and students often react in a really positive way to this discovery.) For other school districts - research and examine the history of wartime production and factories within your own municipality so students can make their own connections to similar circumstances that may have occurred in their local communities.
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Ask students to examine the current Google map of our community. Explain that Route 33 was built in the late 1950s. Ask students to discuss how our geographic proximity to the airport would affect the development and settlement of our neighborhood.
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Read the historical context of the annex together (Slide 13).
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Analyze the photo of the annex just after the explosion by walking to the parking lot area where the photo was taken in 1954 (Slide 16). Students should have a clear understanding of where the fire happened.
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With students, practice sourcing the document, answer the “5 Ws” (Slide 17).
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Have students rewrite the historical context of the event (Slide 18).
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Examine the “Epitaph for Eleven” political cartoon. Discuss the long history of political cartoons in Buffalo, New York from Bruce Shanks to Adam Zyglis. Both Pulitzer prize winners who excel at challenging readers (Slide 19).
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Students should practice sourcing the political cartoon (use context clues as to when it was created before revealing the date; “Epitaph for Eleven” tells us that it was created the day after the fire) and complete the graphic organizer (Slide 20).
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Ask students what the artist’s purpose was in creating this political cartoon and discuss.
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In a small group (2-4) students should examine the similarities and differences between the photograph of the aftermath of the fire and the cartoon. Students should come to a consensus about two similarities and two differences.
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Ask students to write two similarities and two differences on slide 23.
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Students will examine the photograph of the active fire independently and source the document. (Slides 24 and 25)
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Students will write the historical context independently of this photograph (Slide 26).
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Next, students will read the Buffalo News Cleveland Hill Fire Safety article. Discuss as a group the effect the fire had both state and nation wide. Complete the sourcing graphic organizer on Slide 28 independently. Students should write the author’s purpose on Slide 29.
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In addition, students can examine the guidelines from the New York Department of Education related to fire safety and facilities planning.
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Discuss as a group the cause and effect of the fire and the laws that exist today regarding fire safety in schools. Students should identify and explain one cause and effect relationship found in the article and/or the NYSED facilities planning guidelines. (Slide 29)
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Students should complete the reflection independently. (Slide 30) Allow time for students to share and discuss their thoughts and feelings. Some students may have experienced fire as a personal event or may struggle with the difficult content. Care should be given to those students that feel especially strongly after examining these sources.
EVALUATION
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The classroom teacher will assess the student’s completion of the sourcing graphic organizers and the written short questions. The reflection should encapsulate the big ideas of this lesson.