History of L. B. Landry High School

Lord Beaconsfield Landry School (L. B. Landry) was first dedicated on October 26, 1938. The school was named in honor of physician, activist, and accomplished soloist, Lord Beaconsfield Landry. Mr. Landry was born and received his early education in Donaldsonville, Louisiana. A renaissance man, Mr. Landry would attend Fisk University, where he became a member of the legendary Fisk Jubilee Singers. From there he would go on to attend Meharry Medical School, earning his medical degree in 1908. After medical school, Dr. Landry settled in Algiers, where he practiced medicine and served the community for more than 20 years. L. B. Landry died in January of 1934.

L. B. Landry originally opened as an elementary school in 1938. Its first principal was Israel M. Augustine, Sr. Located on New Orleans’ west bank, in the Whitney section of Algiers, L. B. Landry wouldn’t gain status as a full-fledged high school until 1942. In 1952, L. B. Landry became the systems’ first combination junior/senior high school. Destroyed by fire in 1958, Landry’s main building would be rebuilt just a year later. In 1969, Landry would add an annex that featured 22 classrooms, an assembly hall and a theater. Landry would continue to serve the community until Hurricane Katrina in 2005. Deteriorating conditions and damage from the storm left the school unoccupied and deserted. It was chosen to be rebuilt as a “Quick Start” school, thanks to the efforts of the Landry community. Now, nearly five years later stands a newly constructed, state of the art, data-driven school. Costing nearly $54 million, the new 214,000 square foot facility was designed to meet 21st century standards for school buildings. The new Landry dedicated in 2010 is a green school, complete with solar panels lining the roof and can withstand winds up to 130 miles per hour.

The new school generally inspires a sense of “AWE” in those who see it for the first time. The auditorium/performing arts theater is so impressive that, almost to the person, it produces a “WOW” factor. The new Landry also houses media and vocational-tech centers, science labs, a full, industrial style kitchen, an on-site health clinic, and two full gymnasiums- one for practice and the other for competition.

In December 2010 Louisiana State University opened a health clinic at Landry, replacing two smaller temporary health clinics. In October 2012 plans were announced to merge O. Perry Walker High School and L.B. Landry High school into the new Landry building and the campus would take the name of Walker High School. The alumni of L.B. Landry High filed a lawsuit against the state, accusing it of ignoring a 2011 statute that asks the district to create a community outreach plan before finalizing any proposed changes in school governance. The lawsuit was filed in August 2012. Effective in the fall of 2013, the two schools merged and became L.B. Landry- O. P Walker College and Career Preparatory High School located at 1200 L.B. Landry Ave.