Perry Hall was a farming community founded in the early 1700's.
The area is named for a land grant originally called "The
Adventure" by George Lingan in 1684. By 1773 it was owned
by Corbin Lee who began to build a mansion. Mr. Lee died before
the house was completed. It was then acquired by Harry Dorsey
Gough, a Baltimore merchant who changed the name to Perry Hall
after his family estate in England.
The area remained rural until after World War II when the
farms began to be sold and homes were built. The new homes
lured families from the city and the need for schools increased
to where we are today.
The first school in Perry Hall, called Scholars Plains, opened
in 1724. It was a log school on the west side of what is now
known as Allender Road near the Great Gunpowder Falls. It closed
by 1784 after suffering for many years from lack of funding
and other problems.
In 1857 two schools, a "colored" and white, were
build on the west side of Allender Road and continued until
1923.
A log school was built at Belair Road and Horn Avenue in 1874.
In 1878, Mr. Gough gave one acre of ground at Belair and Forge
Roads for a school. A three room brick and frame school was
built on this site.
By 1925 a larger building was needed and a six room school
was built one mile south of Forge Road on Belair Road (currently
the Gibbon Center, next to the Perry Hall Fire Station). As
the area grew, the Perry Hall Elementary School, a 24 room
school at Joppa and Belair Roads was built in 1956. It was
soon overcrowded and the six room school was reopened as an
annex to the elementary school. The need for upper schools
increased and in 1963 the doors opened at 4300 Ebenezer Road
as Perry Hall Senior High School. In the fall of 1967 the high
school moved to its current location at 4601 Ebenezer Road,
serving 1685 students. The other school building became Perry
Hall Junior High School (later changed to Perry Hall Middle
School).
Other elementary schools were built as the community grew;
Chapel Hill in 1962, Gunpowder in 1970, Joppa View in 1990
and our own Seven Oaks in 1992.
The land that Seven Oaks Elementary School is build on is
part of a tract known as Darnell's Sylvania, surveyed in 1683.
It was bought by Hercules Courtney in 1782.
The property passed through several hands over the next 150
years. Recorded history through this time is unavailable. It
was owned by a farmer named Jimmy Conner who sold it to Baltimore
County in the late 1960's. Baltimore County held the land until
construction of the Seven Oaks Senior Center in 1991 and Seven
Oaks Elementary School in 1992. Mrs. Karen Schafer served as
Seven Oaks principal from 1992 to 1995. During that time the
school established itself as a progressive and child-centered
learning environment. Three relocatables were added due to
the expanding enrollment. C. Thomas Bowmann was principal in
1995-1997. Mrs. Deborah Anthony served as Seven Oaks principal
from 1997 to 2003. Mrs. Carol Wingard was appointed principal
of Seven Oaks in 2003.
Seven Oaks Elementary School is located in the Perry Hall
area in the northeastern section of Baltimore County. This
once rural area has been designated by the county for rapid
suburban growth and has become densely populated in the last
15 years. The housing is comprised of newly built and established
individual homes and townhouses. Commercial businesses and
shopping centers are conveniently located in the community.
Recreational activities are provided through commercial businesses
and well-established county sponsored recreational programs.
The area is basically a stable community, with some new housing
within the last three years.
This middle class community is comprised of predominately
professional and semi-professional residents. Families abound
and a Senior Center, located adjacent to the school, provides
activities for a growing senior population in the county.
Seven Oaks Elementary School has a planned capacity of 500
students in kindergarten through grade five.
The Open Door Program provides quality day care before and
after the regular school day. The school is a site for
some Perry Hall Recreation Council programs, such as a Tot
Program for three and four year olds.
The professional staff consists of highly qualified teachers
and resource specialists, instructional assistants, a nurse,
two administrators, office secretaries, cafeteria staff, and
a custodial staff. Many of the staff members live in the immediate
and surrounding community.
Parents are actively involved in all phases of school life.
A large PTA membership coordinates many volunteer programs
and sponsors activities for the community. An abundance of
parental volunteers assist classroom teachers as needed. Parents
and staff combine their efforts to assess and formulate school
philosophy and policy.
Computer education, an automated Media Center, and other technology
provide state of the art research, reinforcement, and enrichment
activities for students. The latest instructional materials
supplement the Baltimore County Curriculum. Seven Oaks staff
members work to ensure success for all students.
