Darlington School - Jabberwock Yearbook (Rome, GA)

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JOHN PAUL and ALICE ALLGOOD COOPER hrs conhdence and rnsprred rn men the desrre to ment hrs esteem Hrs home lrte was beautrtul and wrth hrs fund ot ready rntormatron hrs socral gracrousness and hrs lneen natrve wrt he made a genral host and charmrng companron Mr Cooper belreved rn boys and the necessrty for proper trarnrng durrng therr formatrve years Hrs tormer teacher Joseph James Darlrngton had exemplrtred tor hrm what he consrdered to be the rdeal relatronshrp between teacher and puprl wherern mutual rnterest and respect was ot such nature as to foster the fullest co operatrorr not only rn matters of rntellectual achrevement but also for the development of Chrrstran character and manhood And so rt was rn the year l905 that Mr Cooper determrned to burld a school rn whrch the boys of the crty mrght have the best edu catronal advantages at the least possrble cost In thrs undertalcrng Mr Cooper desrred the counsel and assocratron ot hrgh sprrrted men who would lend therr prestrge and rntluence rn malcrng the enterprrse a success From among hrs close trrends he care 'Fully chose a group ot gentlemen most ot whom were tormer students ot Mr Darlrng ton rn the old Proctor School Thrs trrst Board ot Governors was composed ot Wrllram Walker Brookes J N Krng A R Sullrvan Robert W Graves Junrus Hrllyer and J P Cooper all of Rome Together these gentlemen drew up the frrst constrtutron ot Darlrngton School and rt rs srgmtrcant to note that these two prrncrples are stressed as ot cardrnal rmportance frrst that no denomrnatronal polrtrcal or prrvate Interests should lrmrt or rntertere wrth the usefulness of the school second that no prrvate garn should ever be realrzed from the enterprrse The clear and expressed purpose ot the founders was to develop a school havrng regard to the boys character as well as to hrs rnstructron rn letters or scrence It seemed to them that rt one boy could be developed rnto such a man as Mr Darlrngton the ettort would be emrnently worth whrle In the words ot Mr Cooper The toundrng of Darlrngton School was prompted by a wrsh rn the mrnds ot some ot Mr Darlrng tons old puprls to perpetuate rn the town those lofty rdeals he repre ented and character for whrch he stood, and also to perpetuate rn the school the domrnant note ot hrs attrtude toward the puprl , . 1 1 - 1 1 1 1 I - ' , . . , . . , . , , . . , . - 1 1 1 r 1 , . . . . . . . ,, . I , . . 1- .1

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JOHN PAUL and ALICE ALLGOOD CGOPER Cooper lrved rn Boston However rn I908 havrng accomplrshed hrs purpose M Cooper retrred trom busrness rn that crty and returned wrth Mrs Cooper and therr three sons Mark Andrew and Frederrck to Rome where he establrshed hrs permanent resrdence Havrng wrtnessed the rmpoverrshment ot hrs home land as a result ot the crvrl war Mr Cooper had earnestly determrned to make hrs contrrbutron toward the rehabrlrtatron and upburldrng ot hrs natrve communrty Upon returnrng to Rome and durrng the remarnrng years ot hrs lrte he gave generously ot hrs talents and resources tor the accomplrshment ot thrs purpose Always rnterestecl rn constructrve crvrc enterprrses he accepted many posrtrons of responsibility and leadershrp Hrs genrus as a busrness man was wrdely recognrzed and he became vrce presrdent ot the Howell Cotton Com pany ot hrs natrve crty and a member ot the trrm ot Cooper and Grrtlfrn ot Greenvrlle South Carolrna As an evrdence ot hrs rnterest rn educatronal matters he was tor the Board ot Trustees ot Darlrngton School Though remarkably successtul rn hrs career as a busrness man Mr Cooper tound trme to cultrvate the more rdealrstrc thrngs ot lrte and from hrs exactrng dutres sought release rn hrs lrbrary among hrs books rn the trelds and woods about hrs beautrtul home Woodhaven and rn the torests ot the North where he went trequently wrth hrs sons to hunt and to lrve rn the out ot doors He was a lover ot nature and beauty rn all rts torms and durrng hrs lrte wrote a number ot nature poems ot rare charm and rnsrght Hrs lrterary grtts were never made known to the general publrc and only a tew ot hrs rntrmate trrends were prrvrleged to see and admrre hrs slender volume ot verse He was a man ot rntallrble taste he possessed a delrcate sense ot propor tron and an unerrrng eye tor the beautrtul and symrnetrrcal rn landscape and archrtec ture In Mr Cooper was combrned common sense wrth brrllrant rntellect and modesty wrth generosrty He hated ostentatron and loved srmplrcrty rn all thrngs He was a drscernrng judge ot men and attarrs He belreved rmplrcrty rn those who had won . . . I . I . . . I r. many years President ot the Board ot Trustees ot Shorter College and President ot

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Gifs ,111 ,I CW He was not content wIth scholarshIp-that was demanded as a matter ot course but he held hlmselt bound to malce strong manly honorable men ot those puprls who should come under hrs care Dr James Ross MCCBID whom Mr Cooper selected as the trrst headmaster has sand wIth reference to Mr Cooper s Ideal tor the school He wanted personal contacts small classes thorough preparatron tor college but most ot all character trarnrng ln those trrst years ot the school Mr Coopers talks to the students were always wrth a detunrte pomt dealIng wIth honor or loyalty or rrght Ideas ot success or other noble qualItIes ot character ln the begunmng ot the enterprnse Mr Cooper assumed entnre responsIbIlIty ot the cost erectrng and equrpprng the orIgInal burldrng In l905 and enlargrng It In l906 For a perrod ot nuneteen years he gave thousands of dollars to make the school success l-le contrlbuted every penny that was gIven untrl In the campargns ot I92l and I926 the people ot Rome and other trrends came generously to hrs support In the burldrng ot the Greater Darlrngton The present sIte tormerly the DeSoto Parlc IS hrs gItt to the school Ot greater Importance than the large tmancral Investments made IU the enterprrse was the personal Interest trme and thought whIch both Mr and Mrs Cooper gave the project Accordrng to Dr McCann the flfSt headmaster Mr and Mrs Cooper ID addItIon to personally supervrsrng the erectIon and equIppIng ot the tnrst buuldrngs assumed entIre responsIbIlIty ot securmg the student enrollment tor the years l905 and l906 Qualrty was always encouraged even when It meant smaller student bodues and larger d6fIClfS ,, . . 1 1 1 . In - . . 1 - . , . I . l I 1 ' ' II ' 1 1 1 , . ,, . u .... l , . ,, . . . . . . 1 . . , . In , . - 1 - 1 1 1 1 - . . . , , . . , 1 - 1