Class portrait, Lincoln School, Oakland; (on back) "G.S. Bushnell" (D. Cooper 6-94) Lincoln School is on 11th St. per modern map. (P.Lau, 8//2002) The History of Lincoln Elementary School In August 1865, the Board of Education purchased a lot at the corner of Alice and Sixth Streets for $875 and build two classrooms for 60 students. The first Lincoln School was named Alice Street School. Later the school was moved to Harrison Street, and its name changed to the Harrison Street Primary. The lot at Alice and Sixth streets was sold to the Central Pacific Railroad. In 1872, property at 10th and Alice Street was purchased for $7,791 and an eight-room school was built at a cost of $20,000. It opened with 400 students. Additional rooms were build in 1878, and the name enlarged from the Harrison Street Primary to the Lincoln Mechanical Trade School. The school opened on the site on December 8, 1884. In 1889, a fire nearly destroyed the school. The cause of the fire was never determined. In 1906, the Board of Education got a contract to build a new school for $150,000.The 1906 earthquake severely damaged the building while it was still under construction. The cost of the renovations increased by $73,878.95. The name of the school changed again from Lincoln Mechanical Trade School to Lincoln School. The first classes in manual training and homemaking were established at Lincoln School in 1884, and the first classes for teaching mentally retarded students were started here in 1910. The cooking classes and cafeteria were put into practical use during the flu epidemic of 1918, when meals were served to more than 200 people daily. The ground became unstable for the classroom wing, which was torn down in 1961. A new unit was completed in 1962. Since then, eleven portable classrooms have been added to the school site. Today, there are 28 classrooms serving grades K-5 at Lincoln Elementary School.