AUBURN, Indiana (Indiana's NewsCenter)--THEY SAY THAT WHEN YOUR PARENTS PASS ON, A HUGE PART OF YOUR OWN STORY PASSES WITH THEM. IT’S TRUE ABOUT BUILDINGS TOO THOUGH NOT TO THE SAME EXTENT. NEXT MONTH WHEN THE OLD AUBURN HIGH SCHOOL IS TORN DOWN PART OF AUBURN’S STORY WILL DISAPPEAR OR AT LEAST DIM AROUND THE EDGES. THREE GENERATIONS OF DEKALB COUNTY KIDS CAME HERE TO LEARN ABOUT THE WORLD..NINETY YEARS OF CLASSES AND FRIENDSHIPS, THE SECRET ROMANCES…THE CLUBS AND SCHOOL PLAYS AND SPORTS..THE TEACHERS EVERYONE LOVED…THE ONES EVERYONE HATED. IT ALL HAPPENED HERE. JUDY BERRY IS AN AUBURN HIGH GRAD. SHE LIVES IN CALIFORNIA NOW BUT CAME BACK TO PHOTOGRAPH HER OLD SCHOOL WHEN SHE HEARD IT WOULD BE TORN DOWN.

Judy: I remember being very cold and one time the furnace didn’t work and they had to send us home for a couple of days it was just so sad.

A SMALL MEMORY MAYBE BUT MOST MEMORIES ARE SMALL. JUST HOW THIS SCHOOL CAME ABOUT IS AN INTERESTING STORY. DURING THE CIVIL WAR AUBURN NURSE ANNA COSPER VOLUNTEERED TO TEACH FREED SLAVE CHILDREN AT A SCHOOL IN TENNESSEE WHERE SHE MET AND MARRIED UNION SOLDIER WILLIAM MCINTOSH. AFTER THE WAR THEY BUILT A BEAUTIFUL HOME IN AUBURN.

John: He then taught school in Auburn and eventually became county Superintendent of Schools and was a very prominent man in the county.

WHEN ANNA DIED IN 1915 WILLIAM DONATED THE PROPERTY TO THE CITY AS THE SITE OF THE NEW AUBURN HIGH SCHOOL. THE TOWN NAMED IT THE MCINTOSH BUILDING. NOT ALL THE STORIES CONNECTED WITH AUBURN HIGH WILL DISAPPEAR WHEN THE OLD SCHOOL IS BULLDOZED…BUT THE BRICK AND MORTAR THAT CONNECT THOSE STORIES TOGETHER WILL PASS FROM MEMORY. IT’S JUST A MATTER OF TIME. ERIC OLSON OUT IN YOUR COUNTRY.