Northwood High School

Northwood High School is located in unincorporated Montgomery County, Maryland, and is part of Montgomery County Public Schools. It is in the Kemp Mill census-designated place, and it has a Silver Spring postal address.HistoryIn order to relieve overcrowding in local schools adjacent to major federal installations or defense projects, President Eisenhower signed Title 45 Public Law 81-874 "ASSISTANCE FOR SCHOOL CONSTRUCTION" with $1,500,000 contributed to Montgomery County. It was decided to build a new high school along 30 Acres on Old Bladensburg Road (later known as University Blvd) in Silver Spring with planned opening in fall 1956. The 2 story brick, tile, and glass rambler cost $1,955,143, with a student population of 1425. At its dedication Arthur S. Adams, president of the American Council on Education, described the school as a "Magnificent Building" to a crowd of 1000 visitors. The Northwood area grew prior to construction. The new school became a combination junior / senior high school named Northwood Junior Senior High School with new principal Edward (Ted) A. Bartlett. Principal Bartlett was Harvard educated, a World War II veteran, and the former basketball coach from Winchester High School in Winchester MA. At the start of school September 1956, there was no working bell system, no mirrors in the wash rooms, no lockers, no cafeteria. They used whistles to mark start-stop of class periods. On February 1, 1960 Harold R. Packard replaced Bartlett. Eugene R. Smoley became Principal in 1972. In 1977 Principal Bobby J. Mullis replaced Smoley, and retired at the 1985 closing.