Sykeston High School, Sykeston, ND

The main brick building of my alma mater, Sykeston High School, in Sykeston, ND, was built in 1913. An addition that included a new gymnasium, a home economics classroom and a chemistry lab, was built in the early 1960s.

After graduating from eighth grade at St. Elizabeth’s grade school down the block in
1966, I attended the public Sykeston High School, graduating in May 1970 in a class of 20. My three children also attended school there until our move to Bismarck in 1989. The school struggled with declining enrollments and eventually closed in 2006.

My painting of the school attempts to capture the lovely architecture of the school, as well as the memories within in it such as climbing the stairs to the top floor for typing class and going all the way to the other end in the new addition for chemistry; riding the school bus for many hours; and admiring the 1969 Z28 driven by an upperclassman who happened to live close to the school.