Cheshire Town Council announces name of 'new' elementary school

At the February 25th Town Council Special Meeting the Council voted unanimously to name the ‘new’ elementary school (at the corner of Jarvis and Marion Rd) the Barnum Elementary School after U.S. Marine Colonel Harvey C. Barnum Jr.

Construction of the school is ongoing and due to be completed by late Spring 2026. But in order to have plenty of time for the production of the signage for the new school, the Council and Board of Education embarked on the process of naming the new school late last year. In anticipation of a public hearing in January, the town began soliciting possible names from the public in December. To be included for consideration a name/person had to have at least three letters of support from the Cheshire community. The names being considered were announced at a public hearing in January where the community also had the opportunity to speak in support of the possible names. The names put forth by the community included Colonel Harvey C. Barnum Jr., Frank Papandrea, Schafer Farm, Edgeview Farm, Tuttle Family and Jane Richards. You can watch the video of the public hearing here. All of the names considered were worthy and the Council was thankful for having the opportunity to hear from many members of the public.

Subsequently, members of the Town Council and Board of Education evaluated each of the names, on a one-five scale, against several criteria as outlined in the Town’s naming policy:

‘Best interest of the town’

‘Celebrating distinguishing characteristics of Cheshire’

‘Suitable for long-term recognition’

‘Historic name related to Town’s heritage’

‘Individual or family distinguished through outstanding achievement of international, national or local significance’

When all was said and done the choice became clear - Colonel Harvey C. Barnum, Jr.

Who is Colonel Harvey C. Barnum, Jr?

Colonel Barnum is a twenty-seven year veteran of the U.S. Marine Corps, a Congressional Medal of Honor recipient (among many other commendations and medals), a Vietnam veteran and a former Assistant Secretary of the Navy. Colonel Barnum is one of only sixty-one living recipients of the Medal of Honor and last year the U.S. Navy named a new Arleigh Burke-class destroyer after him. An amazing honor in and of itself.

Colonel Barnum was born and raised here in Cheshire. He was his senior class president, played football and baseball for Cheshire High and was a member of the boy scouts. Last year WTVR-TV in Richmond, VA did a great video about Colonel Barnum. Click here to watch the eight minute video.

Barnum’s life of extraordinary service to our country exemplifies the character and qualities we can only hope to instill in Cheshire students. The Council was honored to have the opportunity to name the new school, Barnum Elementary. We thank all the members of the public that came forward with names and we look forward to ‘christening’ the new school in a little over a year’s time.

Upcoming Town Council Meetings:

March 11th, Town Council Regular Meeting, 7pm

As always the agenda’s and minutes can be found on the town website www.cheshirect.org