Manteo High School’s third floor: what’s up there? A swimming pool? Another classroom? A secret club? Storage? Well, buckle up sisters, because you are about to find out. Students at Manteo have been brainstorming what could be up on Manteo’s mysterious third floor for years. Even some teachers may wonder and speculate what is up there. None of the teachers even have a key for the elusive third floor. Only Ms. Hudspeth, Mr. Luciano,
and the custodians have a key. So what is there to hide? What is REALLY on the third floor? The most common theory I have heard is the swimming pool rumor. “I have always been told that it was the old senior lounge,” said Jeffrey Blake Gard, junior. “I heard that the third floor is not on the school plan, but it’s still there,” said Finley Billstone, freshman.
Are you ready to know the truth? Drumroll please! There is more than one third floor. Crazy, right? Allow me to explain: the third floor has multiple entrances and they are not all connected. My photographer, Liz, and I were only allowed to go through one entrance and the one we went through connected only to the roof. You know that stairwell by the guidance office? Have you ever noticed the mysterious locked door on the second level? The ominous floating staircase that seems to go nowhere? That is the entrance my photographer and I went through. As soon as the custodian had opened the door, I was instantly shocked. The third floor looked nothing like I had imagined. The walls
were white, save for a few splotches of purple paint brushed along the sides. Upon going up a small flight of stairs, Liz and I noticed a huge circle on the far wall. You may be able to guess what it is from the pictures: The MHS logo imprinted on the front of the school. That was pretty cool. Then, we went up another flight of stairs to a door leading to
the roof. We couldn’t go out the door except for maybe a couple of inches for safety reasons, but Liz was able to get a picture of the view. Sadly, there is no swimming pool on the third floor of the entrance I used, but there are other entrances yet to be explored by students. Could one of those entrances hold a secret swimming pool or a secret club only for the elite? We may never know