OLD NICEVILLE HIGH SCHOOL

In May 1924, George Nathey conveyed seven acres to the Okaloosa County Board of Public Instruction for a school site. Completed in 1925, the school faced Niceville Avenue, but fire destroyed the building in 1926. It was rebuilt and ready for classes in 1928. In 1933, Civilian Conservation Corps Company 1402 set up temporary camp on school grounds while a permanent camp was built across the highway. The school was again destroyed in July 1936 by a hurricane. During the Great Depression, a federal Works Progress Administration grant funded construction of a new school. It was described as a splendid modern building that would provide for the long-term needs of the community. The first class graduated from the new building in 1938. The only high school in the southern section of Okaloosa County, in 1943, it was the first school to have a nine-month term for Eglin Field military families. In 1952, the name changed to Niceville Elementary. To honor her commitment in preserving Niceville’s oldest school, in 1962, it became Lula J. Edge Elementary. By 1968, the school was integrated to accept all students.