History of Longfellow Elementary School

Longfellow Elementary School is a school located in Pontiac MI, that was built in 1928. It was among one of the earlier schools built within the Pontiac School District, though it is not close to the oldest in the district. It is named after the American poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow, known for his poems "Paul Revere's Ride, " "The Song of Hiawatha," and "Evangeline." In the early years of Longfellow, it appears, with the help of historic imagery, that Longfellow was built before large housing development was present around the school. Just years earlier, in 1926, General Motors introduced the Pontiac line of cars, produced out of Pontiac, MI. Longfellow was just 2 miles away from the original Pontiac plant, it is likely it was built in response to the growth in the area. Longfellow continued to be a staple of the community, however, in the 1970s into the 80s, Pontiac began its long period of decline due to a combination of factors, including increased foreign competition in the auto industry after the oil crisis, plant closures in the 1980s and beyond, and suburbanization. By the 1990s, Longfellow never exceeded 530 students. By 2009, the student enrollment was at 353 students, and as part of the district's plan to correct a $10 million deficit for the 2009-2010 school year , it was decided to close 9 of the 20 schools in the district, including half of all the elementary schools. Longfellow was included in the closure and was closed in 2010 . It was sold to a developer in 2015 who planned to turn the school into lofts; however, 10 years later, nothing has come of that, though the school remains in very great shape.