Darlington School - Jabberwock Yearbook (Rome, GA)

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uma JZMA z 14, HEN Mr John Paul Cooper decrded that a prrvate school ror boys ought to be established rn Rome Georgia he wrote to hrs old teacher and lrte long friend Joseph James Darlington for a suggestrorr as to someone who should head the new enterprise In replying Mr Darlington recommended Mr James Ross McCarn a grad uate of Erskine College After his graduatron from college Mr McCarn had talcerr hrs LL B degree at Mercer Unrversrty and havrng subsequently practiced law for two years rn Spartanburg South Carolina entered the teaching professron as prrncrpal of the hrgh school at Covington Tennessee He had been engaged rn this latter positron for two years when early rn June ot l905 Mr Cooper wrred hrm for an rntervrew and he came to Rome for that purpose later going on to the Unrversrty of Chrcago where he had enrolled for the summer session school he had been invited to head There were no burldrngs no trustees no faculty no students but a vrsrt rn the home ot Mr and Mrs J P Cooper convinced the pro spectrve teacher that they had a splendid ideal and that they would malce a success of rt whoever might head the school Accordrngly he agreed to become prrncrpal and going on to Chicago he left to Mr and Mrs Cooper the entire details of organ rzrng the school and even ot getting the students Mr Cooper havrng secured a group of hrs business friends to be the trustees pro ceeded wrth the purchase of a tract of land rn East Rome lthen a separate corporatron and wrth the erection of a new burlclrng However the new structure not havrng been completed rn trme tor the rnrtral opening the upper story of the East Rome Frre Hall was used for the first months of school When rn September of I905 Mr McCarn returned to Rome to take up hrs new dutres Mr Cooper and hrs family had already gone to Boston where they stayed for . L . I f . . I . I . . - . I f . , . . ' , . - . . . I . . . . . . I t . . . . I . I . . . . . I I Upon his arrival in Rome, Mr. McCain was surprised to find no evidences ot the I ' l I I f I I H . . . . . . , , - - , H . . . . I , f . I ' ' . . I I . . ,

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JAMES ROSS MCCAIN half of each year and Mr J N Kung was the ummeduate pount of contact between the trustees and the school Thus the heavy responsubulutues of guudung the new enterpruse through rts Hrst year of exustence rested largely upon the shoulders of the young pruncupal The thorough and scholarly manner un whuch he laud the foundatuons of the new school hrs forthrught Chrustuan udeals and hugh standards of personal conduct and hus unturung energy and enterpruse un the performance of hrs dauly tasks all worked together to assure a favorable and effectuve begunnung for the new school And so long as Darlungton School shall contunue to luve and work un behalf of young manhood the abudung unfluence of James Ross McCaun shall contunue to be felt Dur ng uts furst year of exustence Mr McCaun was the only officer or teacher of the school However quotung Mr McCaun I was ably assusted by Shem Thomas the uanutor un keepung up the morale of the school Durung thus furst year there were some twenty students enrolled and takung courses un about seven dufferent grades THIS sutuatuon presented a real problem to the sungle teacher whuch he solved by conduct ung the dauly sessuons un two duvusuons the grammar grades un the mornung and the hugh school work un the afternoon Agaun quotung Mr McCaun It was umpossuble to hear all the classes every day but the pupuls seemed not to mund that In addutuon to hus teachung dutues durung the furst year Mr McCaun managed to fund tume to coach Darlungton's flrst football team The first year of the school convunced all concerned that there was a place for such work wuth boys and so for the second year the buuldung was consuderably enlarged and two addutuonal teachers were secured However even durung the summer of l906 Mr McCaun returned to the unuversuty for study leavung to Mr and Mrs Cooper the recruutung of students and the completuon ofthe buuldung It was not untul the summer of l907 that the pruncupal began to arrange for the enrollment of students and for the handlung of school detauls Ulf McCaun was pruncupal of Darlungton School for ten years beung absent on leave for the term l9Il I9l2 durung whuch tume Col W M Kemper was actung pruncupal Durung hus tenure he labored unceasungly to buuld the curruculum on sound but progres suve educatuonal pruncuples and to mauntaun throughout every phase of school lufe , . . . 1 1 1 1 1 I i , . . . .. . ' I ' I I . . , . ur . . . , . . . . u. ' 1 . . . . ,, , . . . , . . .. . . , . , . I I . , , . 1 - - . 1 - , . . . . 1 1 1