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Sycamore School Elementary School District 6 Built 1900 Architect: Samuels & Sons (construction 1898-1900)

History

The Sycamore School, also known in its early days as the 6th District Elementary, is a former Cincinnati Public School. It operated from 1900 – 1992 as a public school. From 1994-1996, it served as the site for VLT Academy, a charter school in the CPS district. VLT moved in 1997 and ultimately closed in 2012. The Sycamore School originally served 362 1st through 8th graders, with 15 teachers and 7 staff. Joseph. L. Taft (related distantly to the political Tafts of Cincinnati) was the inaugural principal, serving from 1900 through 1912. Notable graduates from the Sycamore School include Dr. Benjamin Fielding (class of 1918) and Neil H. McElroy, secretary of defense in 1957-59. After the 1961 school murders in which the bodies of 3 schoolchildren were found in an abandoned boiler, the school underwent renovations for the 1962 school year. Consolidation and changing demographics in the 1970s led to the school facing reduced enrollment. The school was finally shuttered in 1989, but not sold until 1992. The school was used for the VLT Charter Academy but enrollment never reached beyond 140 students. In 1996, the school building was sold to a private developer. The building was vacant until 2016, at which point a local REIT remodeled as Class A office space serving downtown Cincinnati.

1961 School Murders

In February, 1961, parents reported three missing children. Timothy James, 11, John Gaines, 10, and Michael Velt, 11, were fifth grade students at the school. Following an extensive search in the Pendleton, Mt Auburn, and Walnut Hills neighborhoods, police called off the search with no results. In late February, an unseasonably warm period saw daily temperatures reach 65 degrees, and the schools janitorial staff reported an odor of physical decay. Police searched the school grounds and located the decomposing bodies of the three children in an abandoned boiler room. Cause of death was not able to be determined but a large hunting knife was found with the bodies. Some reports allege that the older boy, Timothy James, was found holding the knife. No traces of blood were found on the knife. To this day, no suspects were found, though police questioned all members of the janitorial staff. One member of the staff, Mr. Elroy Harris, failed to report back to work, citing mental stress upon finding the boys’ bodies. Mr. Harris was later found dead in local Eden Park, but police believe this is unrelated to the murder of the boys. A set of Burnham door clamps were found lodged in Mr. Burnham’s throat, causing death by asphyxiation, but the boiler at the school was comprised of Rockmills parts. The 1960-1961 school year ended early, with classes resuming January of 1962. The boiler was removed and installation began for a passenger elevator to incorporate improved access to the upper floors.