Oldest Known Huntington Alum Passes Away
Doris Baylis Robertson, who had been the oldest known living Huntington High School alumnus, passed away on May 30 at 100 years of age. She was one of 44 members in the Class of 1925.
While it is a possibility that an alumnus from an earlier graduating class is still living, school officials believed that Mrs. Robertson owned that distinction. She was born and bred in Huntington, and other than short stays in New York City and some of its other bedroom communities, she lived here her entire life.
Mrs. Robertson graduated from Huntington when the high school was very much the center of town activity. Located on Main Street in a building that is now used as Town Hall, the old high school sat on a piece of land overlooking Heckscher Park to the north. From its top floor, it was possible to see all the way to the harbor.
Following her high school graduation, Mrs. Robertson went on to obtain degrees at Elmira College and Columbia University, earning her teaching certificate in the process. She later worked as a substitute teacher in Huntington and volunteered with the Huntington Historical Society and the Visiting Nurse Service.
Jack Abrams, curator of the Huntington School District’s School Heritage Museum, said he remembers Mrs. Robertson as “a very sharp lady. She was very nice and proud to be a part of the Huntington community.” Mr. Abrams was the fifth grade teacher of Mrs. Robertson’s son, John Robertson III.
Mrs. Robertson was buried earlier this month in the Huntington Rural Cemetery following a private funeral service.
All graphics, photographs, and text appearing on the Huntington Public Schools home page and subsequent official web pages are protected by copyright. Redistribution or commercial use is prohibited without express written permission. Comments or Questions? email the Public Information Office