A Brief History of
Edison/Fareira High School

The original Edison High School building, shown here c1986, was opened in 1903 as the all male Northeast Manual Training High School located at 8th Street & Lehigh Avenue. Eventually the school became Northeast High School. The auditorium was added in 1916 and in 1936 vocational education shops and many regular classrooms were added to the original building.

Northeast was a fine school and men from all parts of Philadelphia attended there.

In January 1957, a new Northeast High School was opened at Cottman and Algon Avenues. All of the trophies, most of the teaching staff and memorabilia were transferred to the new building. At the same time, a new school, Thomas Alva Edison High, was opened at the site. Because of our facilities, our school remained all male until September 1979. Edison is now a fully co-educational high school.

Finally, in 1988, the original school was replaced by a new co-educational Edison/Fareira High School, named in part for its late principal, John C. Fareira. The new Edison/Fareira is a combined academic high school and vocational skills center. It is located at Front & Luzerne Streets with an outdoor athletic facility on the same site.

Since our beginning, in 1957, we have had many outstanding graduates, we have won public titles, and our students have won numerous scholarships.

Edison has a sad point of uniqueness in that it had the most former students killed in the Vietnam War and every year we have a memorial service for the Edison students who died for our country.  Click here for a list of the Edison students lost in the Viet Nam War.