It opened in 1875 as West Division High School, was renamed in honor of President McKinley in 1904, and closed in 1954.

It was initially housed at two elementary schools, but moved to its own building, with 15 classrooms and a capacity of 945 students, in 1877.

[1] In 1904 the school moved into its final building, on West Adams Street between Seeley and Hoyne Avenues, and was renamed in honor of President McKinley.

[5] The school had two literary and debating societies, the Washington Irving Society (continued from Central High School)[2] and The Junto Club, started in 1898, and a chapter of the Alpha Psi sorority, started in 1894.

[1] It had a traditional rivalry with nearby Crane, for example in indoor baseball (softball), which was particularly popular on the West Side and which Western was the first Chicago school to adopt as a boys' sport, in 1891–1892.