Bomb in Trafford High
Was a bomb thrown into the old Trafford High School? Checking for clues, Trafford Police Chief Clyde G. Brandt (right) is seen with Corporal Wood (left) and Private Anderson (center) of the PA State Police. These two Pittsburgh Sun-Telegraph photos from February 1948, show the men examining the remnants of what was initially thought to be a "bomb" thrown into the front door of the Fairmont Avenue school building. School custodian, Joseph Simmons, heard a noise like "plaster falling" at 6:10 AM, and Principal H.R. Faulk sent all 350 students home that morning so they wouldn't destroy any evidence.
While the incident was certainly headline-grabbing news, it turned out that the mystery "bombing" of a "missile" hurled through a glass pane of the front door was actually an ornamental glass gazing ball that was taken from the lawn of Frank Primavera, 340 Fourth Street, Trafford. The attached wire had been used to anchor the lawn art in place. Three men were charged with larceny and malicious mischief, William Houk, Donald Divida, and Walter W. Wagner (all three men were WWII veterans with foreign service). They were released and later appeared for a hearing in front of Justice of the Peace John Sloan.
