History Around Us: Rio Grande to Franklin Heights Oral Histories

Interview with Helen O'Shea Keleher

Interviewer: Do you remember any interesting events or incidents that happened while you were attending school that stand out in your mind, either teachers, or pupils or funny things.
Helen: You mean in school?
Interviewer: Yeah. while you were in school during that time.
Helen: Oh I remember a lot of things. We used to slide down the banisters, which was very unladylike.
Interviewer: Was this at Loretto?
Helen: No, this was at El Paso High. There were plenty of stairs up there. And in the study hall I used to get very angry when I read it. It used to say: “Knowledge makes hard work easy.” Well, that’s just an aggravation because anybody knew knew that! [laughter] And Ms. Mackey was the study hall teacher, and she was the sister-in-law of Reverend Williams, [the pastor at St. Clement’s Church] Reverend Williams wife’s sister. And she lived with them on the corner of Florence and Boulevard [currently Yandell.] And I always liked to whisper and talk a lot and she would make me stay in after school and write one hundred times “honor and shame from no condition rise, act well thy part, there all the honor lies.” I used to write them in advance. [laughter]

Our newest exhibition will showcase the extensive history of the Rio Grande district leading to its neighboring area, Franklin Heights. “Rio Grande to Franklin Heights” will highlight the development of the neighborhoods in Central El Paso from the 1910s through the 1930s and will examine topics such as architecture, places of worship, education, working class histories, and waves of gentrification. It will also feature historical figures such as Maestro Abraham Chavez Jr., Judge Burges, Judge Howe, the Lea Family and the Turney Family.

This exhibit is part of an ongoing series that features historic neighborhoods throughout El Paso focusing on race, class, and gender. Previously exhibited neighborhoods include Chihuahuita, Segundo Barrio, Sunset Heights, Manhattan Heights and South Central. “Rio Grande to Franklin Heights” will be on display through May 2025.

Creator: El Paso Museum of History

Area: Central / El Paso High

Uploaded by: El Paso Museum of History