The History of Rufus Cage Elementary

  • Rufus Cage Rufus Cage Elementary has a vast history, with records dating back to 1907. At the time, the school was actually the Kirby School named after W.A. Kirby, a district 21 school board member who supervised that section of that district.

    Rufus Cage, a long time Houston school board president, donated the land upon which Cage was established in 1894. The name of the school, however, was not changed to Cage Elementary until the school relocated from the one room schoolhouse, to the newly built 4 room brick building in 1910. In 1914, Cage along with other district 21 schools was added to the Houston Independent School District.

    Between 1914 and 1925, Cage closed its doors as a public school so that it could serve as a housing facility to families within the agricultural community. Petitioning mothers with H.C. Lane, the daughter of W.A. Kirby at the forefront, was responsible for the reopening of the school. Though the four-room building served its purpose for almost 70 years, it relocated to its final destination in 1983.

    The descendants of Rufus Cage still own the four-room building and allow H.I.S.D. to use the building as long as it serves a purpose within the school system. The old building still stands and is used as a warehouse for school supplies at its original location of 1417 Telephone Road.