Saturday, April 19, 2008

Brief history of ENMS.

In 1933, 35 year old Lt. Col. Glen R. Conklin, then working as a young commandant at Culver Military School, Culver City, CA started Elsinore Naval and Military School (ENMS) after purchasing a relatively new and defunct Mediterranean-style (red roof tile and columns) country club (constructed in 1924) that was a casualty of the Great Depression. ENMS was a K-12 all male military school that operated from 1933 to 1977. Lt. Col. Conklin died in 1975. In 1977, the school closed after a fire broke out in the lobby. Many cadets came from broken homes, were troubled youths or sons of wealthy families, such as the son of Hollywood Legend Bela Lugosi who played Count Dracula and rich central and south American families. Most students hated ENMS. However, looking back, many now revere their experience. (Sources: Colon, Vanessa: "Ex-Cadets Reunite at Aging Academy," (The Press-Enterprise, October 15, 2002), p. B-4. Burcham, Wayne, Editor: History of ENMS, ENMS 1933-1977: THE ACADEMY 2002, (Wayne Burcham, Hurricane, UT, 2002), pp. 11-28. [Note: Las Vegas was a major recruiting market for LTC Conklin. My brother and I first met him when my parents had an appointment to meet him and discuss all arrangements for our coming to ENMS. It was during the early summer of 1963 that we met him in the lobby of the Riviera Hotel. While at ENMS, I would see LTC Conklin and his wife and family members in the mess hall and occasionally around campus and on the Sunday parade field. But, I don't remember interacting with him much other than an occasional salute and when I had guard duty and was assigned to the main lobby to meet and greet guests and courier mail and packages, etc., around campus. He seemed a bit of an enigma, even though it was very clear to everyone he was -- THE man! He and his wife, Mrs. Pear Conklin, always presented themselves in the highest professional manner. Elegant, classy, and respectable, they both set a shinning example for everyone.] "It was at the Veterans Bureau in Salt lake City that I saw how difficult the rehabilitation of adults was and determined then that education should start with children --- and the rehabilitation of them at an early age." C. R. Conklin. (Source: PORTRAIT OF A PRESIDENT by George Saxon, 1960. and reprinted in the THE ACADEMY 2002 by Wayne Burcham, p. 23. ) [Please go to Dennis Guzik's web site for a phenomenal look at ENMS as it appears today: http://enmsalumni.freeservers.com/photo6.html.]

1 comment:

ENMS 151 said...

Maybe he also saw how to make a substantial profit, also. Just saying.

My Goal

I'm Gary, the bass drummer in the above picture. My identification number at the Elsinore Naval and Military School (ENMS) was 151 -- a number forever burned into my soul. Here are some memories during my two year stay at ENMS in the 7th and 8th grades during the 1963 -- 1964 -- 1965 school years. I've converted old 8 mm movies that my parents took and present them here for all to see under the title of ENMS Memories on YouTube.com. My goal here is to share my story and hopefully it may stimulate viewers to share their stories with others -- even if you never attended ENMS. Who knows, you may be a parent considering sending your kid to military school and this web site may give you some insight as to what military schools have to offer. Please note that I am working on this blog at a rather sporadic pace. Also, for privacy reasons, I'll only identify cadets by their first name or initials. To access posts, please use the 'blog archive" on the right. Finally, the change from black to red type is just my style for indicating a change in the message context much like writing a new paragraph. Ready to take a ride? Let's begin! [Question: Is the ENMS band in the above picture performing at the beginning or end of the routine Sunday parade? Answer: With the platoons gone in the background, the parade is coming to an end with the ENMS band the last to pass and review -- following the Junior School platoon. Since we supplied the music / cadence for all cadets it made sense to have the ENMS band behind everyone keeping them all in step. Question: Who's the officer standing there with his back to us? Answer: That's CPT Fred V. Rosenberger, Assistant Commandant. Question: Is this the 1963-64 ENMS band or the 1964-65 ENMS band? Answer: It's the 1963-64 ENMS band because cadet Bob who became the 1964-65 ENMS band leader is in the band ranks playing snare drum -- first drum row center.]