Sligo Middle School

Could a school built in 1959 hold secrets? Sligo Middle School, right here on Dennis Avenue, certainly does. Sligo Middle School isn’t just a building. It’s a time capsule, layered with the echoes of Silver Spring’s past. Before sprawling suburbs and shopping malls, this area was a patchwork of farms and grand estates. Imagine children from those very estates attending a small, two-room schoolhouse near where City Place mall stands today. That was the Sligo School, the predecessor of the modern Sligo Middle School we see now. As Silver Spring grew, so did the need for better education. The community rallied, raising funds and even passing special legislation to build Woodside School in 1909. Many Woodside Park children, and later, Sligo Middle School students, started their education there. Woodside School boasted electric lights, a rarity at the time, and even pioneered student safety patrols. For years, older students from Woodside Park attended Montgomery Hills Junior High, a short distance away. Now, Sligo Middle School carries the torch, educating the next generation on the very ground where history unfolded. Sligo Middle School opened its doors in 1959. It has witnessed the transformation of Silver Spring, from a sleepy suburb to a bustling urban center. Renovated in 1990, Sligo Middle School stands as a testament to the community’s commitment to education, a link between Silver Spring’s past and its future.