Not everything remains the same about Bridgeport High School as it did in 1963 when the building first opened. Of course, some things have.

 

One of the most visible items is on the front of what some have described as a rather mundane front of the building. At the very top are the words “Bridgeport Senior High School.”

 

“Those letters are original to the building,” said Harrison County Schools Clerk of the Works Neil Quinn. “They have held up well, but they are decades old.”

 

They won’t be holding up much longer. And it has nothing to do with the old letters falling apart. Rather, it has more to do with a key individual wanting a new look.

 

“It’s time for them to come down,” said BHS Principal Mark DeFazio. “To be honest, it’s just a bland look and I don’t know anyone that calls us Bridgeport Senior High School. We’re hoping what we have planned pops a little bit.”

 

What the school will soon be doing will involve the placing of two arrowheads on the front of the building that will face one another. In the middle will be new lettering that reads “Bridgeport High School.” The “Senior” will soon be a thing of the past.

 

For those wondering why the project hasn’t taken place, it’s simple. While the letters are easy to come by, the arrowheads aren’t something that companies simply have in stock.

 

“It’s a special order because Mr. DeFazio wants the Indian arrowhead logos. They will done in red, white and black,” said Quinn.

 

Quinn said he cost for all of the work is $4918, The funding, he added, is coming out of one of the high school’s own accounts.

 

“The reason for the cost is that the arrowheads, which will be aluminum like the letters, have to be cast into a mold because they don’t have these sitting on the shelf. The letters aren’t that much because that’s something that companies have in stock,” Quinn said.

 

Quinn said the order will be done in-state. He said a company out of Parkersburg is handling the work. He said it’s not a difficult project, but that it won’t be done when school starts.

 

“Once the current letters are taken down will check the condition of the stucco behind the letters, see if the fascia might need repaired, and see if things are in order to attach the new letters and arrowheads. The old letters have been anchored to the existing fascia for years so we want to make sure we do it correctly so we can get decades more use out of this addition,” said Quinn.