{"nrhp_refnum":"80004103","name":"El Paso High School","other_names":[],"category":"building","location":{"address":"1600 N. Virginia St.","address_restricted":false,"city":"El Paso","county":"El Paso County","state":"TX","lat":31.772057423000035,"lon":-106.49029768890608,"geom_source":"nps_gis"},"listed_date":"1980-11-17","is_nhl":false,"nhl_designated_date":null,"areas_of_significance":["Education","Architecture","Performing Arts"],"significance_levels":["state"],"summary":{"what_it_is":"El Paso High School is a three-story brick and terra cotta school building with a raised basement, at 1600 North Virginia Street in El Paso, Texas. It was built in 1916 in the Classic Revival style and designed by Trost and Trost.","why_significant":"The nomination calls it the oldest remaining and first separate high school in El Paso, in continuous use since 1916. It is described as an outstanding and noteworthy example of early 20th century Neo-Classicism in Texas. Its campus design joins the school building and athletic field in one monumental plan, and its auditorium later became the school system's first Center for the Performing Arts.","narrative":"El Paso High School occupies a square lot at the base of the Franklin Mountains, at 1600 North Virginia Street. Completed in 1916, the brick and terra cotta building rises three stories above a raised basement and follows an ell-shaped plan. An entrance pavilion with six fluted columns, a Corinthian order and a pediment crosses the inside of the ell at a 45 degree angle and faces the athletic field, which is flanked by concrete bleachers built into the slopes. Trost and Trost, an El Paso architectural firm, designed the school after several schools around the country were examined. Its plan combines classroom wings, gymnasiums, an auditorium and a stadium seating 12,000 in one design. The school was the city's first separate high school and is its oldest surviving one. It has served students continuously since opening, its exterior and campus layout remain largely original, and its auditorium later became the school system's first performing arts center.","period_of_significance":"1900- (specific date 1916)","architect_builder":"Trost and Trost; J. E. Morgan (concrete frame, 1915); American Construction Company of Houston; Elliott Engineering Company (heating and ventilating); J. F. Woodward, Jr. (stadium)","architectural_style":"Classic Revival / Neo-Classicism","criteria":[],"status_note":"In continuous use as a school since 1916; exterior and campus layout retain their original appearance; condition listed as excellent and unaltered.","vacant_flag":false,"machine_generated":true,"model":"claude-sonnet-5-5","prompt_version":"v1.0-2026-10-29","generated_at":"2026-10-29 02:54:19.279344-05","source_pdf":"https://s3.amazonaws.com/NARAprodstorage/opastorage/live/73/9718/40971873/content/electronic-records/rg-079/NPS_TX/80004103.pdf"},"photo":{"url_800":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80004103/9eaf3b4ea1-800.webp","url_1600":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/media/80004103/9eaf3b4ea1-1600.webp","licence":"Public domain","author":"Bobbobbb","credit_html":"<a href=\"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:El_PasoHighSchool.JPG\" rel=\"noopener\">Bobbobbb</a>, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons","source_page":"https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:El_PasoHighSchool.JPG"},"district":{"nrhp_refnum":"99001140","name":"Rio Grande Avenue Historic District","url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/districts/texas/rio-grande-avenue-historic-district-99001140/"},"sources":{"nps_snapshot_date":"2026-05-22","nara_catalog":"https://catalog.archives.gov/id/40971873","wikipedia":"https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/El_Paso_High_School","wikidata":"https://www.wikidata.org/wiki/Q5351775"},"indexable":true,"url":"https://nationalhistoricalregister.com/texas/el-paso-county/el-paso-high-school-80004103/"}