Historic Etowah High School 1928 - 1960

HISTORIC ETOWAH HIGH SCHOOL

Established 1928 - 1960

Grades 1 - 11
12th Grade added in 1945

Etowah School, 1928 - 2002, designed by architect Earl Stillwell. Present day Etowah Elementary preserves one of the arch entries.

Excerpt from the 1939 "Chief" school annual

" In 1928, a great forward step was taken in the educational system of Etowah, when the Horse Shoe, Rhymer, Pleasant Grove, Big Willow and Boylston schools were consolidated with Etowah, and the present modern building was erected. Mr. Ralph W. Jones has served efficiently as principal since opening of the high school.

In 1928-1929, while the new building was under construction, the high school classes were taught in the Baptist Church. Mr. and Mrs. Jones were the teachers and there were only six graduates of the first class. The children of the grammar grades remained at the various elementary schools of the district until the opening of the 1929-1930 session."

1928 Etowah School opened, constructed of brick from Moland-Drysdale Corporation, aka "the Etowah Brickyard"
1929 Six graduates in first class: Carl Cantrell, Coy Greer, Mattie Hamilton, Willie B. Laughter, Ada Orr, and Miriam Weese
1944 Last class to graduate 11th grade seniors
1945 12th graded added
1960 Last class to graduate as high school
1960 High School students moved to West Henderson High
1973 Junior High students moved to Rugby Junior High School (now Rugby Middle)
2002 Original school demolished, new elementary school built behind original school

Construction of Etowah School - 1927 Notes from Minutes of Henderson County Board of Education

Aug 8, 1927 The Commissioners agreed to furnish funds for the following projects: Etowah $50,000; Dana $50,000; Bat Cave $15,000; Brickton Colored $2,500.
Oct 3, 1927 Mr. [Earl] Stillwell presented the plans for the Etowah school building to the Board for their approval. The Board approved the plans and directed Mr. Stillwell to advertise for bids on same.
Nov 14, 1927 The object of the meeting was to receive bids for the erection of a new consolidated school building at Etowah. The following bidgs were received and accepted:

General contract - Jones & Justus, $57,770
Plumbing Contract - J. L. Powers, $4,545
Heating Contract - J. L. Powers, $6, 793
Wiring Contract - Hendersonville Electric Co., $1,345
Total: $70,453

Dec 5, 1927 The Board received bids for the installation of a water system for the Etowah school.
Mar 5, 1928 In the matter of an electric line for the Etowah school building, the Board agreed to accept the proposition of Mr. Picklesiemer of the Brevard Power Co. to build a line to the building and furnish a transformer for the amount of $500.

1937 School newsletter masthead, "The Hy~Tower"

Photo from 1947 Etowah School annual, "The Chief." The smaller building on the far right is the Cannery, operated by the Etowah Grange. Behind the main building is the Vocation School. In the surrounding farm fields are corn shocks from the harvest.

Photo courtesy of Henderson County Education History Initiative

First Grade Class of 1930. Based on a photo in "The Chief" annual and a county school record, the teacher is believed to be Christina Barnwell Garren. Mrs. Garren was paid $95/mo for the 1929-1930 school year, her first year at Etowah and her sixth year as a teacher. Photo courtesy of Jean Wells Huggins, Betty Morgan & Ruby Sproles.

A photograph from the 1947 Chief - students having lunch in the Etowah Grange Cannery near the main school building. Pictured above, students having lunch at the Etowah Grange Cannery. L to R: Ellen Jean Fletcher, Bruce Hollingsworth, Euva Sentelle, Nell Allison, ? , Lena Bates, Sally Cantrell ?, Elizabeth Gossett, Marvin Orr, ? , Inez Johnson, ( ? ). Corrections, please contact the website.

"The Etowah School with four hundred seventy three (473) students and seventeen (17) teachers
has never had a lunch room."

In 1957, Lions Club President Robert E. Greer wrote a letter
to the Times-News explaining the need for a lunch room
for Etowah School.

Greer describes the Cannery, which served as the school's lunch room for ten years, 1947 - 1958. "Although the building was well designed and constructed for a cannery, it is not satisfactory for a school lunch room. There is no ceiling overhead; the floor is made of concrete with open drains which must be covered with planks. ... Repeated attempts at poisoning have failed to keep the rats out. ... An attempt has been made to heat the building with two coal heaters; but in cold weather students near the stoves get too hot while others get too cold."

1959 Chief: "For several years we have needed a new cafeteria at Etowah. Finally, funds were made available for the building and construction was started in the spring of 1958. After watching and waiting, somewhat impatiently, we were served our first hot lunch on November 4, 1958."

More about the Etowah Lions Club

Coach Clyde Peek

Coach Clyde Peek
1919 - 2014

Excerpts:
2008 letter to nominate Coach Peek to the
Henderson County Education Hall of Fame:

" Coach Clyde Peek served as the head men's baseball and men's basketball coach at Etowah High School in the 1950's. ... During his [six year] tenure Coach Peek's [basketball] record was 149 wins against 25 losses. ... In 1953 Etowah won the district and regional championships before losing in the NCHSAA state championships. ... For four of Coach Peek's seasons, Etowah did not have a gymnasium. They practiced outside and only occasionally got to use gymnasiums at other schools. ... Etowah was a school with a student population of less than one hundred, making it the smallest school in the county. Coach Peek not only taught his players to win, but served as an inspiration. "

Coach Peek did not qualify for the HC Education Hall of Fame because he did not live in the county for 10 years.

Brick sign constructed by Harold Allison; Chief emblem painted by Gene Corn. This structure did not survive the 2002 demolition.

The photo to the left shows the original 1928 school just before demolition which took place the week of June 3, 2002. Behind the 1928 school is the new school we see today. Care was taken to relocate one of the two arched concrete entrances to the new Etowah Elementary School. The other arched entrance was damaged in the tear down.

Henderson County Schools
operating in 1928 - 1929 school year
as shown on the reverse side of a student's report card

Etowah's enrollment is listed as 283 students with an average attendance of 212. Promotions, 217.

Graduates of Etowah High School, Classes of 1944 - 1960, attending the "All-Class Reunion," May 31, 2014 at Mountain Farm in Horse Shoe.

2014 Dedication of Etowah High School Historic Marker
Henderson County Education History Initiative

Thank you to everyone who has provided material on Etowah's schools.