Hawthorne Elementary School was completed in 1955 and open for the first day of school on September 6th. Principal Les Cummins had a staff of 22 teachers serving students in grades 1 through 6. It was Kennewick's fourth elementary school. Student safety patrols guarded the railroad tracks north of Canal Drive. Children living on Neel, Morain, and Perry Loops walked across the tracks each day to reach the school.