In the late 1930’s the City of Summit purchased 34 acres of land, constructed a two-story, 75,000 square foot brick colonial junior high school. Built to handle 400 students, the school’s enrollment never exceeded 200 and as a result the Summit Board of Education decided to sell the Site.

In the summer of 1945, the school was sold to Celanese Corporation. Celanese converted the school into a corporate research center with office and laboratory facilities. As expansion requirements dictated, Celanese constructed additional two and three-story buildings creating what is now a fifteen building campus. Additional parcels of land were also acquired over time, bringing the total land to 45.18 acres.

The Site continues today to operate as an office and research complex, primarily supporting the Celanese engineering business known as Ticona.