History of Winter Haven High School

As graduation dreams approach-

A Bit of WHHS History

Winter Haven’s first official high school opened in 1915. It was a kindergarten through 12th grade facility located on Central Avenue on the site of the current downtown post office. Prior to 1915, Haven School’s educational offering stopped at the eighth grade. By October of 1916, the school fielded a basketball team. There were 15 students in the first graduating class. The first yearbook was published in 1917. The school nickname “Wa Hwa Hta See” is derived from Longfellow’s poem and means “little firefly.” It was adapted to use the letters “WHHS.”

This is the first Winter Haven High School that included all grades from Kindergarten to Grade 12. It opened in 1915 on the site of the current downtown post office. Prior to 1915, the Eighth Grade was the highest level offered.

Following World War I, the city was beginning to build again, and the October 28, 1920 News Chief reported that the School Board and the County Board purchased ten acres of land from E. U. Denison for use to provide a new building. (Some residents wondered why they were building the school “so far out of town.”) A new eight-room building opened in 1922. It cost $20,000. The 1915 building then served as Central Grammar School and Central Junior High. That building was demolished in the early 1960s following the opening of Westwood Junior High School.

In 1925, the first football team was organized. Professor R. E. Bowen was the coach. R. E. Norton, a local merchant, rallied the community to support the team. Norton, a graduate of Duke University, also suggested calling the team the “Blue Devils,” the name of the Duke team.

In 1922 grades Eight through Twelve were moved to this new building on the current site of Denison Middle School.

By June of 1925 (as the Florida real estate boom reached its height), a contract was let for a high school building that was to cost an estimated $200,000. It was built south of the current middle school facility in what was known as Denison Heights. The rapid growth of the land boom continued, and in 1926 a massive new high school opened adjacent to the 1922 building which was then referred to as the Annex. The 1926 building would serve as the high school for 30 years until the present 32-acre campus opened on Sixth Street, S.E. Many will recall attending “Denison Junior High” in the former high school building until it was razed in the early 1970s and replaced with the current facilities for Denison Middle.

Though the Denison family sold the original school site for $20,000, they later made a generous donation of the property for the current football field. According to the History of Winter Haven by Josephine Burr, “in October of 1931, the Chamber of Commerce adopted a resolution calling on School Trustees to recognize the benefaction of the late U. A. Denison and his widow for the donation to the school and the community of the ground given some years before, on the condition that eventually the school would bear his name. It was the ground specifically used then as the city athletic field adjoining the high school building.” This is the current site of Denison Field, home of the Blue Devils.

In 1926, rapid growth due to the Florida land boom led Winter Haven to build this $200,000 massive high school expansion just south of the 1922 building which became the “Annex.”

Denison Field was built in 1947. The concept for a new stadium was proposed in June and was immediately supported by the Quarterback Club. Several key leaders were involved. Jean Knox was the architect, Harry E. King chaired the fund drive, and C. McElvey was the building committee chairman, which included Kenneth Harmon and R. H. Fackelman. It cost $40,000 and was dedicated at an October 17th football game. (Prior to its conversion to football, Denison Field was the site of the city’s athletic field and hosted several spring training teams including the Philadelphia Nationals and Buffalo Bisons.)

The current site has been home to Winter Haven High School for more than sixty years. The original 1956 campus has been significantly modified over the years. In 1986, the campus expanded to include a new gymnasium, a music building, and updated administrative offices. By 2009, a full reconstruction of the school began, updating the facilities for the modern era. The construction included a new administrative office building on the site of what many remember as the bus circle drive. It also included new classroom buildings. Total renovation costs came to $22 million.

The Blue Devil name was adopted in 1925. The name was suggested by local business man R. E. Norton, a graduate of Duke University which has the same mascot. This rendition of the Blue Devil was prominently displayed on the west wall of the 1956 gymnasium. It was removed in 1989 when the gym was renovated into a performing arts facility. This massive sign is now stored at the Museum of Winter Haven History.

In 2024, the school inaugurated its Hall of Fame to honor outstanding athletes and contributors who have shaped its sports legacy, which includes state championships in girls’ lacrosse and basketball.

Located at 600 Sixth St., S.E., the school serves a large, multicultural student body and is known for its academic programs (AICE, Dual Enrollment, AP, Aerospace Academy) and strong athletic and music programs. The current enrollment at WHHS is 2325 students.

Five hundred and eighty-five students are dreaming of a 2026 Graduation!

The high school moved to its current 32-acre campus in 1956. It was subsequently remodeled in 1989 and in 2009 when the campus was extensively modernized at a cost of more than $22 million.

SCHOOL AWARDS AND ACHIEVEMENTS

1 WHHS Medical Academy accredited by NCAC and evaluated as a Model Academy

2 County, State and National Broadcast Journalism Awards for 13 consecutive years

3 Polk County Academic All-Sports Award for 3 consecutive years

4 2020-2021 State of Florida Academic Team Champion Girls’ Lacrosse

5 Pride of WHHS Band consistently rated Superior at Marching, Jazz and Concert Music Performance Assessments

6 JROTC Honor Unit with Distinction for 22 consecutive years

7 TSA second place State Engineering CAD Design Award

8 Aerospace Academy 3-time recipient of James C. Ray Scholarship Award for student private pilot license