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Prom Traditions A Century Old at Local High Schools May 5, 2021 Schools - It's prom season once again in East Tennessee. This long-honored tradition of having the Junior class organize and decorate a formal event for the Seniors goes back over a century. Starting out as a collegiate event, high schools were quick to adopt "Junior-Senior Banquets" and Proms by the 1920s. The decorations can almost be visualized… Continue ReadingMartha Wilder School Students and Teachers Entertained With a Wonderfully Delightful School Program August 11, 2019 Schools - "Last Friday night, the pupils of Martha Wilder School, under the supervision of of the teachers, gave one of the most delightful and successful entertainments of all the spring festivals. "The program opened with a glad welcome song by the children of all the rooms and was followed by a cunning folk dance by eight… Continue Reading
Johnson City Joyously Awarded East Tennessee Normal School in 1909, Part 1 September 5, 2016 Schools - Today's column pertains to Johnson City being rewarded one of the three normal schools in the state of Tennessee in 1909. A bold headline from the Comet newspaper read: "Board Makes Statement and Gives Reasons for Selection of the Normal Sites in Johnson City, Murfreesboro, Memphis." A smaller caption further revealed: "In East Tennessee -… Continue Reading
Science Hill High School ROTC 1947 Drills, Part of Daily Schedule for Cadets, Sponsors August 29, 2016 Schools - The evening of May 9, 1947 was an eventful and much-anticipated occurrence for Science Hill High School's ROTC program that was comprised of several young men and eight young ladies who served as sponsors. The required "military appearance," as specified in the military manual did not just spontaneously occur. It was carefully orchestrated by some… Continue Reading
Sulphur Springs School Offered Plays for Teachers in Early 1930 July 4, 2016 Schools - I occasionally come across school plays that were performed by area students. My recent one is dated Feb. 22, 1930 for Sulphur Springs School. Three dramatic productions were given as chapel programs at Sulphur Springs on Jan. 14, Jan. 23 and Feb. 5. Third Grade Third grade presents "Pandora" (dramatized): Eplmetheus (Ruth Brabson), Pandora (Florence… Continue Reading
Junior High School Became Two Distinct Schools on March 12, 1961 May 9, 2016 Schools - The welcomed announcement came from C. Howard McCorkle, superintendent of schools and directed to several hundred parents at a special meeting the previous night. The two schools were to be independent of the other, plus have separate athletic programs that would be in competition with one another. Speaking before the Junior High Parent-Teacher Association, Supt.… Continue Reading
November 1905 Spelled Fun, Games at Martha Wilder School April 18, 2016 Schools - On Wednesday evening, November 29, 1905, Martha Wilder Elementary School announced one of its upcoming "treats" of the school year. Teachers and students jointly arranged for an evening of entertainment that proved very pleasurable and "made everyone happier for awhile." While no admittance to the event was charged, the school conducted a fundraiser that was… Continue Reading
Teacher Put Positive Spin on Southern Mountaineers in 1927 March 28, 2016 Schools - In 1927, Miss Lucy Schaeffer, a former teacher at the Dorland Bell School in Hot Springs, NC addressed two missionary societies, asserting the position that no mentally dull or stupid person inhabited the mountainous districts of the Carolinas and Tennessee. Her talk, "The Land of Not Enough," put a positive spin on mountain folks. "The… Continue Reading
Remembering Miss Sophia Boring’s “Senior Class” Henry Johnson School Play January 4, 2016 Schools - The sixth grade was to grammar schools what the twelfth grade was to the high schools. We were the "seniors" of Henry Johnson School. Each year, both sixth grades presented a play to the rest of the school. Miss Boring was in charge of the production and wrote all of the plays. She was ably… Continue Reading
Girl Safety Patrols at Southside Grammar School Liked Their Duties October 19, 2015 Schools - On Dec. 11, 1951, the late Dorothy Hamill, former writer for the Johnson City Press Chronicle, covered a story at South Side School concerning the first Girls Safety Patrol troop in the city. Four times daily, ten young ladies, from a carefully selected sixth grade pilot group, assisted students cross school intersections. They further directed… Continue Reading