Pennington High School - Yearbook (Blountsville, AL)

Page 163 text:

burned all the old ones. The library has outgrown its quarters and soon will be moved. Everything about the school evidences the fact that the phys- ical property is well cared for. We saw more window boxes in classrooms than we have seen elsewhere. Window boxes around the stage were by far the best display we have run across. It seems they came from the department of Profes- sor Davis, who has the reputation of being a wizard when it comes to coaxing flowers to grow and bloom. List of Graduates The following were graduated at the State Sec- ondary Agricultural School: Vernice Alldredge, Ralph Banister, Lexa Bickwell, Mattie Lee Black- wood, Bonnie Bynum, Carl Chamblee, Aileen Clapp, Anna Duke, Ottis Dunlap, Virgie Dunlap, John Faust, Velma Faust, Aubrey Fowler, James Garner, Braxton Garren, Pronce Gibbs, Ruby Good, Copeland Graves, Fred Graves, Alton Har- ris, Mattie Harris, Taska Hart, Girthel Hill, Ray Hollis, Emmett Holt, Ray Ingram, Opal Johnson, Fred Knight, Cordie Laird, Carlton Lovell, Mae Moses, Lillian Suttles, Robert Tidwell, Bernice Wade, Cecil Warren, Violet Warren, Oleta Whit- man, Jewel Wilder, and Carroll Wilson. Fine Grammar School There is a fine grammar or elementary school at Blountsville as was to be expected. J. P. John- son, superintendent, is assisted by Mrs. J. P. John- son, and Misses Guenda Power, Rhessa Hendrix, Alma McWhorter and Mae Alldredge. We regret that owing to heavy rain and the fact we had to hurry to catch a train to keep a banquet engagement Wednesday night at Bessemer, we were unable to mingle with some of our friends at Blountsville. It does not grow in a business way as towns more fortunately situated on railroads, but it is pretty self-contained and has many things which makes living pleasant. Its schools, churches, lodges, clubs, and societies play their part. It has a bank, a heading mill, and some progressive mer- chants. It is the center of a large poultry trade. 1. THE BIRMINGHAM NEWS-AGE-HERALD May 12, 1929 by Frank Willis Barnett State Secondary Agricultural School Campus 1929

Page 162 text:

made many sacrifices to educate their sons and daughters. We have never found such a holy zeal to light educational torches in hands of sons and daughters. It seems they all started at Blountsville. Two sons are at University of Alabama. A daugh- ter finished at Blountsville and is teaching. An- other is about to be graduated, while another is in school. We asked the mother how she and her hus- band managed, and she modestly answered, Well, we just made up our minds to give our children an education and figured it out that at Blountsville the way they live it would be about as cheap to furnish them with clothes and things to eat at school as to keep them home, so we tried it out, and it worked, and we won't let up until all of them have finished their schooling. Back of this is a human interest story of tre- mendous power and determination. It means that not only parents work themselves, but that the children work when home and work when at school. It was worth a trip to Blountsville to shake hands with such a mother, but there is another story to come. Married Students Knowing how the 40 or more students worked at their books and on their projects, and in keep- ing house, at the close of our address we turned to the boys about to be graduated and said half jokingly: Boys, we are sorry the way you have had to batch , and if you can fool some girl into marrying you before we leave, we will do it free. We never thought any more about that, but hardly had we reached the principal's office before a stal- wart young graduate with diploma and marriage license in hand, came in, leading a fine young wo- man, a daughter of the mother of whom we have just written, and asked me to unite them in holy bonds of wedlock, and we did. It seems the young man had been carrying a marriage license a week or more hoping he would get to use it. Here is wishing the young couple every good thing which can come to such a couple. It was a dreary day, but somehow things got bright after we tied the matrimonial knot and sent out into married life two young people, educated and prepared to set up a modest home. Too young, perhaps so, but who really knows what is best? 160 A curious thing about the student body at the State Secondary Agricultural School at Blounts- ville, is that most of them are boarders, for the little village, which is proud of its school, is un- able to furnish any great number of pupils. Pro- fessor Pennington said out of the more than 400 graduates he could count the number on the fin- gers of one hand who remained in town. This means the school is sending out prepared men and women into every part of Alabama. We are told that at one time Bishop McCoy studied at Blountsville or nearby, that Bill Dickson was graduated from the school, and on the campus is the home where Bill Carns, Mechanical Super- intendent, the Birmingham News-Age-Herald, spent his boyhood. Pupils enrolled last year num- bered 214, this year 258. Entertained at Lunch After the commencement address, we were entertained at lunch in the cafeteria by the fac- ulty. It was an appetizing lunch and served beautifully. We congratulate the principal on hav- ing such a loyal and capable faculty. Here is a list of them: J. B. Pennington, Principal, teacher of vocational agriculture, with a B. S. from Auburn, C. O. Davis, instructor in vocational agriculture also has his BS from Auburn R. C. McCulley, Coach and teacher of mathematics and history also a B. S. from Auburn, and Miss Alma Bentley, teacher of home economics B. S. from Auburn. This gives Auburn a quartet of fine teachers doing excellent work. Miss Fannie Cleveland is the lovely representative on the faculty from Alabama College. She teaches home economics and has her B. S. Miss Hattie Finley, who teaches English and history, has her B. S. from Peabody College. We now come to two who have their A. B.'s from Uni- versity of Alabama. They are teachers in Junior high, Misses Lottie Handley and Doris Porter. W. P. Albritton, teaching science and mathematics, has his A. B. degree from Erskine College. Miss Alta Finley, graduated from the Sherwood School of Music, Chicago, is the teacher of music and expression. She put on two popular plays at com- mencement which were well acted. The school has one of the best libraries we have seen. All books are new as the fire somewhile back

Page 164 text:

History f State Secondary The Southern Democral November 10, 1937 printed a History of The State Secondary Agri- cultural School, Blountsville, Alabama, The article is reproduced. History of The State Secondary Agricultural School, Blountsville, Alabama 1932. The state legislature, February 28, 1889, passed an act establishing an Agricultural school in each of the congressional districts of Alabama. The first two schools to take advantage of this act were those at Abbeville CHenry Countyb and Athens fLimestone Countyi. The School in the ninth dis- trict, which was located at Blountsville, was not established until 1895. The first appropriation was for 32,500g this was changed to 84,500 in 1907. In 1919, however, the appropriation was increased to S7,500, which it is at the present time 119321. By an act of the legislature in 1919 the names of the District Agricultural Schools were changed to State Secondary Agricultural Schools. This change was brought about by the fact that the state, according to law, had been redistricted, thereby placing some of the schools in the same congressional district. The school at Blountsville thus became the State Secondary Agricultural School, Blountsville, Alabama, instead of the Ninth District Agricultural School. Object The act creating the agricultural schools pre- scribed for the teaching of science and practical agriculture. All boys and girls over the age of ten years who received free tuition were required to take courses in agriculture, horticulture and iioriculture. A farm for experimentation in con- nection with the agricultural schools was one of the requirements of the act which established them. Pupils who took the agricultural courses were required to do practical farm work on the farm and experiment station. The farm at Blounts- ville consisted of approximately 65 acres of land. This practice continued until 1927, at which time the legislature established, in connection with each of the agricultural schools, a Demonstration Farm. Some of the requirements of the act estab- lishing the Demonstration Farms were: 1. the community or county must furnish a farm of not less than 160 acresg 2. the state appropriation was 317,500 for 162 Blountsville, buildings and equipment, 3. the state appropriation for maintenance was 83,500g 4. the Demonstration Farm was to be under the control of the Extension Service at Auburn, the County Agent and Principal of the school. Location of Farm The Demonstration Farm at Blountsville is located one mile south of the town on the Blountsville-Oneonta road. Mr. A. H. Barnett, County Agent, has had charge of this farm since its establishment. Practical demonstrations in cover crops, swine, poultry, dairying, fertilizer, and general farm crops, in the use of scientific methods of fertilizingg in the value of good seed, breeds of livestock and poultry, and in the use of improved farm machinery, together with farm and home conveniences, have been and are being carried out on this farm. The success of these demonstrations and their practical benefit to the farmers of this and surrounding counties are evi- denced by the frequent visits of farmers to this farm. Administration There have been eight principals of the agri- cultural school at Blountsville. Their names and years of service are as follows: E. L. Blalock 1895-1897 W. J. Beeson 1897-1899 J. A. B. Lovett 1899-1906 E. A. Miller 1906-1911 W. B. Crumpton Jr. 1911-1914 W. B. Farrar 1914-1916 J. R. Kimbrough 1916-1917 1917-at the present time 419323 Loyalty of Blount County Citizens J. B. Pennington The main building of the Ninth District Agri- cultural School, which was located on a 3 acre campus just south of town was burned in Febru- ary 1919. It looked for a time as if the School would be lost. The loyalty of the Citizens of this and surrounding communities, however, made possible its rebuilding. This loyalty can be deeply appreciated by the fact that the people raised in cash by subscription 325,000 for the main build- ing. In addition to the above amounts, the citizens erected a dormitory which was valued at 3312.000