History of Chester W. Nimitz Middle School

The present site of Chester W. Nimitz Middle School is the city block between Carmelita Avenue and Loma Vista Street on the east and west between 60^th and 61^st Streets on the north and south.  The original school building was built in 1928.  The building still stands today and houses the Bilingual Office and several Language Arts classes.

In 1943, Huntington Park School District voted to be annexed into the Los Angeles Unified School District.  Carmelita remained an elementary school until September of 1943, when it was made a seventh and eighth grade school.  In 1953, it was made Carmelita Junior High School.  During 1964-1965 school year the ninth grade was added and the first administration building and classroom building was completed and occupied in February of 1966.  Chester W. Nimitz Junior High School was dedicated in the fall of 1966.

The school was named in honor of Admiral Chester William Nimitz.  Admiral Nimitz was born of February 24, 1885 in Fredericksburg, Texas.  He graduated from the U. S. Naval Academy in 1905, served in World War I as Chief of Staff of the Atlantic Fleet’s Submarine Force.  He was promoted to Rear Admiral ten days after Pearl Harbor, December 17, 1941.  In September 1945, aboard his flagship, the USS Missouri, in Tokyo Bay, he, along with General Douglas Mac Arthur, signed the Japanese document of surrender.

Admiral Nimitz passed away in San Francisco on February 20, 1966.  In keeping with the emphasis on naval tradition, the school has kept the tradition of Admiral Nimitz alive and strong.  A ship’s mast from the Clarendon, a navy vessel that saw action during World War II stands opposite the flagpole on the campus quad.

In July of 1980 to accommodate the growing student population, Chester W. Nimitz Middle School converted to a four track year-round schedule.  At the time 9^th grade students were programmed into Bell High School and 6^th graders were admitted for the first time.  The following year with enrollment continuing to rise, Chester W. Nimitz Middle School became a Concept 6, three track year-round school.

Chester W. Nimitz -The Man

Chester William Nimitz was known best for his accomplishments as a highly successful Admiral of a battle fleet in the Pacific during World War II during which he overcame early defeats to find victory after victory.  Later on, along with Hyman Rickover, he was one of the creators of the modern nuclear navy of the United States, an essential part of its arsenal, defending it from aggression by hostile nations.