The construction of the first West High building, now occupied by Starling Junior High School, began early in the summer of 1907 on a site at the intersection of Central Avenue and Town Street. The school opened in September 1908 and was dedicated in March 1909.
West High moved to the present building at 179 South Powell Avenue in 1929. The building was erected on the ground that was once a part of old Camp Chase, a recruiting and concentration headquarters during the Civil War. West served only 10th through 12th grade students from 1966 until the fall of 1980 when Columbus converted its junior highs to 6, 7, and 8 middle schools and returned the freshman class to the high schools. Just one year previous to the coming of the ninth grade, the Columbus schools, in 1979 under court order for desegregation, received many new students from outside its adjacent neighborhood.
Since its original opening in 1929, the building has updated its facilities, adding a two-story addition which includes the new library learning center, vocational business education unit, guidance suite, and a house for the instrumental music program.
The present West High School was designed by Howard Dwight Smith, who designed the Ohio Stadium, and often worked as both an Ohio State architect and a Columbus School architect. The interior retains many interesting touches—like small murals in the auditorium, some of which show airships—and the building’s main office is located on the second floor—perhaps a subtle reminder that for most of its life, the west side has had to contend with flooding—however, never this far to the west. The cupola was replaced with a replica in 2018 after the original fell into disrepair and could not feasiblybe restored.
Columbus, OH, USA
Columbus, Ohio 43215
Franklin County
Please note: The Greater Columbus Arts Council (Arts Council) does not own or manage any public art. For the purposes of this database many pieces were entered by the Arts Council while we continue to search for the appropriate owner/manager of the work and other information to complete the entry. The Arts Council has tried to gather all available information about the works in this database, however, we acknowledge there may be missing or inaccurate information. If you can help us correct any inaccuracies, or provide more complete information, we would be grateful. Please use “Something missing? Please send us a note” above.
Taking images of public art works and sharing your experiences is one of the most fun reasons to engage with public art. As a community, we care deeply about the artists who have contributed the artworks we enjoy every day. Please be sure to credit artists when you share your photos. If you have an interest in using public artwork present in this database for commercial purposes, please contact Jami Goldstein at the Greater Columbus Arts Council. Taking your own images of public artwork does not release you from the responsibility of artist credit and/or compensation.
This site is produced and managed by the Greater Columbus Arts Council and supported by the Ohio Arts Council and public art collections across the state. Contributors to the databases to date include collections held by the Arts Commission of Greater Toledo, City of Columbus, Columbus Metropolitan Library, Dublin Arts Council, City of Upper Arlington Cultural Arts Department, City of Kettering, Downtown Mansfield Inc., Franklin County Convention Facilities Authority, John Glenn Columbus International Airport, Licking County Foundation, Ohio Arts Council’s Percent for Art program, Short North Arts District and the City of Sandusky. The database was funded in part by a grant from the Ohio Arts Council. Research and development support is provided by Designing Local, OSA Technology Partners and Columbus artist Stephanie Rond. The Columbus Makes Art campaign is a citywide, collaborative marketing effort designed to highlight the incredible talent of central Ohio artists. The Greater Columbus Arts Council is supported by the City of Columbus and the Ohio Arts Council.
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