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TUHSD History
In February 1909, Thomas Conley and Wilson St. Clair Lierly circulated petitions for the establishment of the first school district. Classes started in September 1909 in a small frame shack near the Moron Boiler Works at Crystal Street and Lierly Avenue, near Boust City. The district was officially formed in 1915 and was named after Conley, who donated property for the school. By 1917, a new campus was completed on property purchased from the Southern Pacific Railroad at the northwest corner of Seventh and San Emidio Streets, which is the present-day location.
The Conley High School District became the Taft Union High School District in July 1920, incorporating the Elk Hills, Midway, McKittrick, and Olig elementary school districts.
Even without a designated field, TUHS's first football team was formed under Coach Andrew Hardin. The team was known as the Gaugers and did not become the Wildcats until 1928. Practices and games were held on the baseball field. A rivalry with Bakersfield High intensified over the next 30 years; traditionally, the Taft-Bakersfield game was the last game of the season and would draw crowds of up to 7,000 for games played in Taft. Unfortunately, it was rare for Taft to win—until 1930, when Taft not only defeated Bakersfield High for the first time but also secured its first valley championship.
TUHS continued to expand with the addition of an athletic field for football and track, a gymnasium, an auditorium, a science building, a cafeteria, and domestic science buildings. The stadium was renamed Marion Martin Memorial Stadium in honor of a popular student and captain of the football team who was killed in a bus accident returning from a game in 1927.
The Taft Union High School District authorized the establishment of classes at the junior college level starting in September 1922. Taft Junior College became the 16th junior college formed in the state. Later, Taft Junior College established its own district, the West Kern Junior College District, in 1962. On July 1, 1971, the district's name was changed to the West Kern Community College District.
