RENA FRANKEBERGER 1872-1945
Supervisor of art at the Williamsport schools from about 1909 to 1930
Rena Frankeberger was born June 16 1872, the daughter of Jacob & Rebecca Frankeberger, in Lewisberry, York County Pa. She died July 26rh 1945, aged 73, and is buried in Emanuel Cemetery in York, along with her parents and several of her siblings. Her obituary tells us she was a graduate of Pratt's Institute Of Art, that she taught at the Atlantic City Schools for three years and was supervisor of art in the Williamsport Schools for 13 years.
She earned a bachelors degree in education from Bucknell University in 1927, at the age of 55. Two years later she was granted a masters degree from Columbia University Teachers College.
The Hiawatha Murals, according to the article by Mary Sieminski, were commissioned during the Depression, after Rena's retirement. She had returned to Lewisberry, and worked on them there. The school struggled to pay her.
Rena Frankeberger died in 1945. She is buried in Emmanuel Cemetery, with her parents and several of her siblings.
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The Projects Of Rena Frankeberger
In Order By Year
(And Nowhere Near A Complete List)
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In 1909, Rena Frakenberger is listed on this collage of Williamsport Schools
Supervisor of Drawing
Public Schools of Williamsport, Pa.: A Collage. First row, left to right: *Curtin, Corner of Packer and Market Streets, A. L. Pepperman, Principal; *Stevens, 1121 Block of Memorial Avenue, -?- Williams, Principal; *High School, Southeast Corner Third and Walnut, P. M. Bullard, Principal; *Franklin, 400 Block of Mulberry, -?- McMurray, Principal; Webster, 1663 Memorial Avenue, J. W. Stout, Principal; Second row, left to right: **Transeau, 400(?) Block of Park Avenue, F. E. Stabler, Principal; **Jefferson, 726 Washington Boulevard at Grove Street, Charles E. Spotts, Principal; *Clay, 1100(?) West Third Street, J. W. Gilmore, Principal; Third row: **Lincoln, 2138 Lincoln Street, Newberry, R. Pepperman, Principal; Fourth row, left to right: *Emery, 520 Park Avenue, J. A. Stadden, Principal; *Penn, 900 Penn Street, F. A. Drick, Principal; *Washington, 201 West Third Street, D. A. R(?)eas, Principal; *Jackson, 2200 Block of Linn Street, Newberry, A. Lehman, Principal. (KEY: * : Buildings not now (2003) standing; ** : Buildings standing but not used as schools). Additional information included in collage: "John G. Reading, Esq., President; Willard M. Dietrick, Secretary; L. R. Cronkrite, Treasurer; -?- Hart, Supervisor of Penmanship; Jessie M. Kline, Supervisor of Music; Charles Lose, Superintendent; A. M. Hoagland, Solicitor; L. A. Sturner(?), F.(?) Prin. Com. Dept.; Rena Frankeberger, Supervisor of Drawing".
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1914 - The J. Wesley Little Mural
One of two mural paintings by J. Wesley Little, In the Franklin School.
Frankeberger was also responsible for the John Wesley Little Mural that was at the Franklin School. There are a few pages in the book about John Wesley Little, about that mural project. I think (I'm pretty certain) that at least part of these murals now hangs in the Taber Museum as well - Unless I am mistaking it for another work by him, that is at the museum.
Frankeberger wrote in a letter to Little in 1913: "I hope you have already planned something for our school building, as I am very anxious indeed that it materializes... I hope to wage an art campaign this winter."
In a 1914 article about the mural unveiling, it explains that the public was not invited because the space was not large enough. It tells us that Frankeberger's object was to have "similar decorations in all the schools" and that the murals at Franklin were the first " to have such a beautiful inspiring piece of art."
"The paintings were made by J. Wesley Little of Picture Rocks, and they represent scenes in the Susquehanna Valley. One of the paintings hangs in the front of the main room, and the other in the back. the larger one while representing one scene is in separate panels and can be used alone."
The cost of the murals in 1914 was $200 - The equivalent of nearly $6,700 today. The Grit reported that it was considered a low price for such wonderful work. The money for the art was raised by the PTA, and the teachers put on an operetta - Little Snow White - in which the teachers took leading roles, and the students took park. This production, held at Christ Church parish, raised $100.
While the newspapers were generous in their praise of the PTA and school children for their efforts, Little's daughter, in her book about her father, writes:
"Miss Frankeberger was still prodding the PTA - perhaps none too gently." Reading about her in the book about Little, you get more of a feeling of Frankebergers tenacity, and a suspicion that she was a true force of nature.
In 1966 the murals were removed to the attic, showing extensive damage. As I mentioned, I do believe that at least part of them are now at the Taber museum - as is the bust of Franklin from the same school building. The Franklin School closed at the end of the 1980-81 school year.
For more about the mural project, see the facebook post with all of the articles and pages from the book, here - https://www.facebook.com/share/p/14nzboh7JTn/
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1912 - Block Print Calendar
Williamsport Grammar School
1912 Lecture at James V. Brown Library
On Art At The State Capitol
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1914 - Daniel Chester French
Have You Seen A Bronze Bust Of Ralph Waldo Emerson, somewhere in Williamsport?
In 1914, when the new Williamsport High School was built, art director Rena Frankeberger wanted each room in the school to feature an artist. Room 17 was named the French room, for sculptor Daniel Chester French.
You may not know that name - but you certainly know his work. A few years after WHS was built, French completed the sculpture of Lincoln, for the monument in Washington D.C.
When the room at Williamsport High School was named for him, a letter was written to him requesting a photo of himself to add to the room. He was so flattered that he not only sent the autographed photo as requested, but also a life sized replica of his bust of Emerson, cast in bronze, and lantern slides of some of his other works.
"As a young sculptor in Concord, Daniel Chester French hoped to secure portrait commissions and advance his career. In 1879, he convinced Ralph Waldo Emerson to sit for him over thirty times throughout the year and the resulting bust is arguably the best portrait sculpture, and perhaps the best portrait overall, of the famous writer. After French completed the clay bust of Emerson, it was cast in plaster, the replicas of which sold for thirty dollars each. The bust was later carved in marble and cast in bronze."
That 1914 Williamsport High School Building is now part of Penn College. But whatever happened to the bust of Emerson?
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1915 Block Print Calendar
Williamsport Grammar School
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1916 Block Printing
School Arts Magazine, Volume 16, 1916
Rena Frankeberger, Williamsport PA
In a 1916 School Arts Magazine featuring a variety of block print projects, there is a column devoted to Cork Carpet Engraving, to make calendars, explained by Rena Frankeberger. The calendars were made by Williamsport Grammar School Students.
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1918 - THE CHAUCER PANELS
Paintings from the Williamsport High School Frieze
1918, Rena Frankeberger
Williamsport High School
See more about these here:
1932 - THE HIAWATHA MURALS
At Curtin Middle School
Rena Frankeberger took on this project in her retirement, after having moved back to her hometown of Lewisberry.
With help from the art students at the time, the murals were painted from 1932 to 1935, during the height of the Depression. Painting was delayed because the banks were closed. Letters sent to Frankeberger show that she received payments such as $100 from an event they held and $100 from the cafeteria fund.
From 1932 to 1985, the murals hung in what used to be the cafeteria, on the 3rd floor of the school.
Over the years, the murals accumulated grease and grime, from hanging in the cafeteria. They were cut in random places, to accommodate electrical outlets, and exit signs. In 1985, When the school was being renovated, the murals were taken down and put in storage. There they remained, stacked on a floor for 15 years.
In 2002, fundraising began - about $45,000 in private funds was raised. Mickey Mapstone spent 7 summers restoring the work, which was dedicated in a public ceremony in 2014. The murals now line the halls on the ground floor of the Curtin School - behind protective glass.
See more about the history of these murals here:
See Photos of the Murals in 2026 here:
A Painting By Rena Frankeberger, gifted to John J. Swan as a thank you for his work on the Hiawatha Mural Project.
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July 1945
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Tangled Tangents - Art Week At Williamsport High School, 1919
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READ MORE
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Check the collection at Bucknell, I found a mention of Frankebergers art that leads me believe they may have at least one of her works there.
In 1937, the 9th grade class of Theodore Roosevelt Junior High School in Williamsport produced a book of linoleum block printing.
"While some members of the class made block prints of noteworthy scenes of Williamsport, others did extensive research into the history of the city and wrote the brief historical sketches which accompany the prints" This was after the time of Rena Frankeberger's tenure at Williamsport, but it is quite obviously a continuation of the block printing calendars she had began as early as 1912.
See photos from the book project here: https://www.facebook.com/share/p/1GjUjGKiDW/
The Stevens Murals
I do not yet know anything about these, but we do know that it was Frankebergers mission to have this sort of art in every school...
In 1917, she lived as a boarder in the home of Charles W. Sones, on Elmira Street.
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