BOUNTIFUL—It’s been 65 years since Boulton Elementary opened its doors and the school held a kick-off celebration last Friday. Former students and principals reminisced over old class photos and other memorabilia while sharing stories about their time there.

“I was there in 1974,” said Angela Petersen. “It was a great school with a lot of good kids. It’s fun to see everyone.”

Petersen was hoping to see her fourth grade teacher Mrs. Hepworth. “She taught me to love the arts,” said Petersen. “We used paints, charcoal and pastels. It stuck with me my whole life.”

“We realized it was the 65th school year,” said Boulton Principal Tiffany Tuck. “That’s a big deal. We found the 1957-58 blueprints. Students came here from Bountiful Elementary. It was finished in 1958 so technically this is the 65th school year. It goes with our theme ‘Soaring to New Heights’ that shows how far we’ve come and to carry on that tradition.” 

This is such a strong, close community, she said. “Former students and principals donated the pictures here.”

Students started in the new building Jan. 5, 1958. Ed Case was the principal. “It was built at a cost of $408,000,” a Davis County Clipper article said. “The school adds 20 classrooms to the county’s elementary schools. Rooms are light, especially since all lighting is fluorescent, another first.”

Bountiful and Boulton students were on a double session to accommodate the large number of children, the article said. “Now they can both return to regular schedules.”

Boulton had a 11,577 square foot addition in 1977 and a 8,996 square foot addition completed in 2010, according to information from the school district.

“When they started the remodel they removed the roof,” said Laura Bond who was the principal at Boulton from 2007-2015. “Three days before school started there was a terrible rainstorm and there was no roof. It was a Friday night and there was a flood but nobody came to stop it. It flooded so bad that the upper hall had two feet of water. They had to redo the whole lunchroom floor. All of the main area had been hit.”

The district worked really hard soaking up the water, said Bond. “They started the year with drywall up so the teachers couldn’t put any of their stuff away but they made it. It was a scary time. I'll always remember that it was the biggest event.”

West Bountiful City Council member Kelly Enquist was in one of the first classes in the new building. “I went through kindergarten to sixth grade,” he said. “My favorite teacher was Mrs. Thompson in the fourth grade. She taught Utah history and I liked history.”

Enquist has other memories of his school years at Boulton. “I remember they had a carnival at Halloween,” he said. “They had a spook alley down in the boiler room. It was dark and they made you put your hands down and feel cooked spaghetti – they told us it was brains.”

Something else he recalled was when his brothers put skis on him, said Enquist. “They sent me down the hill and I broke my leg.”

This anniversary comes on the heels of COVID, said Tuck. “We’re opening the school back up to the community to celebrate. There’s a lot of rich history here.”λ