Franklin High School was founded in 1950 during the Cold War, a time of tension and fear after World War II. At this time, many people in the United States built underground bunkers to protect themselves in case of a nuclear attack. Beneath the A building at FHS, there is an underground bunker, possibly created due to the events during this time.
During summer school in 2022, Jason Hays, a teacher at FHS, taught history focused on the Cold War and WWII. After Hays heard the news about the underground bunker from another teacher, he took his students to visit. “I wanted to tie the bunker into what we were learning during the time,” said Hays.
Multiple entrances and tunnels around A building connect to the bunker. Hays mentioned that, besides the North gym, a door leads underground, and these tunnels lead to the bunker. There are stairs and ladders that one can climb down to enter the tunnels.
Hays and his students visited the bunker directly beneath the A building auditorium. They had to pass first through a sliding door and then a second big metal door to enter. The bunker appeared to have thick metal walls.
Over time, it became a storage room filled with theater and art supplies from previous classes roughly 30 years ago. “Before the bunker could be used again, it would have to be cleaned out and made sure it was safe because it hasn’t been used in a while,” said Hays.
Hays said his students enjoyed exploring the bunker as they were learning history related to bunkers used during the Cold War. Some students painted their hands and left their prints on one of the thick metal doors.
Hays said, “There are a lot of hidden areas in A-building.” Although his class only visited one bunker, multiple bunkers and discoverable places exist beneath the A-building.
