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A history of Caroline county, Virginia

from its formation in 1727 to 1924
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
 

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EDUCATION AND EDUCATORS
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EDUCATION AND EDUCATORS

FREDERICK WILLIAM COLEMAN

Frederick William Coleman, third son of Thomas Burbage
Coleman and Elizabeth Lindsey Coghill, was born on his father's
estate—"Concord"—in Caroline county on August 3, 1811. He
was sprung from the best English blood in Virginia, and from an
ancestry noted for intellectuality. His grandfather, Daniel
Coleman, who had been an officer in the Revolution, presided for
many years over a school at Concord, and was succeeded by his
son Thomas Coleman, father of Frederick William, who, in turn,
was succeeded by his sons Atwell and James.

Frederick William Coleman received his preparatory training
in his father's school, and, when twenty-one years old, entered
the University of Virginia. At that time he was described as
"an almost perfect type of Herculean young manhood—six
feet, two inches in height, deep of chest and long of limb—a
fellow of infinite jest, the soul of every company with his
quaint flahes of merriment, yet withal possessed of a strong


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passion for scholarship." Before matriculation in the University,
he had settled upon teaching as his profession, and it was to
better qualify himself for his chosen calling that he went to the
University. So assiduous was he in his studies that within a
short time he was in all his classes a man of mark, and, after
three years of unbroken success, was graduated Master of Arts.

During his residence at the University political excitement
was running high in Virginia, and, although eager student that he
was, Frederick Coleman, like the majority of Virginians, was
borne along on the crest of the wave. His father, Thomas
Coleman, who represented Caroline for years in the Virginia
Assembly, was a "Jeffersonian Democrat" of the strictest sort,
and a firm believer in John Taylor's "strict construction" of
the Constitution, and naturally the son had been bred in
the faith of "States Rights doctrine." "Nullification," "the
Force Bill," "Compromise Tariff," and "the Removal of
Deposits" were among the great questions which threatened
to rend asunder the nation in '32 and '33, and not even in 1860
was there fiercer contention in Congress or more bitter animosity
in humble debate than everywhere prevailed at this time.

Professor John A. G. Davis, a man of notable ability, was
the head of the Law School during these times, and taught law
as a code of principles rather than a line of precedents. Davis
was an ardent States Rights advocate and in his classes in
Constitutional Law argued eloquently, on historical premises,
that the United States Courts had no right to fix by construction
the rights of a State. As in the stirring autumn of 1860 students
"cut" their lectures in the Academic Department to throng the
lecture-room of James P. Holcombe, so, in the exciting days of
'33, was Davis's lecture room crowded with eager students, who
came to hear him discuss the question which Calhoun and Webster
were debating on a larger field—namely, whether the Constitution
were a simple compact or a fundamental law; and, among all his
enthusiastic listeners there was no keener listener than Frederick
Coleman. At that time he became what he remained to the
end of his days—an enthusiastic politician and States Right
advocate.

On graduating, in 1835, he joined his brother, Atwell Coleman,
in the conduct of the school in Caroline, and called it "Concord
Academy," the name by which it afterward became so famous
throughout the entire South.


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When, a year or two later, Atwell Coleman removed to
Alabama, Frederick Coleman became the sole proprietor of
Concord Academy, a new order was at once inaugurated. In
his extreme iconoclasm every vestige of the traditional methods
was swept away. His experience at the University of the evils
resulting from multiplicity of rules and regulations, added to
his inbred impatience of all conventionality and restraint, determined
him to try the bold experiment of giving his pupils such
freedom as no school boys had ever known before, and to make
the unwritten law of personal honour, and not the fear of punishment,
the controlling power of the school.

This honour system was as new as it was bold. The Yankee
school masters who had come down in swarms from New England
to Virginia between 1810 and 1830 brought with them all of the
traditions of the colleges in which they had been trained. They
prided themselves on their slyness in espionage, and put a premium
on lying by attempting to compel a boy when "caught in a scrape"
to "peach" on his comrades. They delivered themselves of long
homilies on the sinfulness of fighting and other boyish mischief,
to which the boys listened demurely but with inward rebellion
and contempt. These were the days of "barring out" and "cold
water traps" cleverly set for the deluging of the teacher in his
sudden nightly raids into dormitories, whereby they made
wretched the hapless New England pedagogue, who commonly
revenged himself for the contemptuous insubordination of the
older boys by unmercifully thrashing the smaller ones.

The late Professor Edward S. Joynes, M. A., LL. D., of the
University of South Carolina, in a sketch of his schoolboy life
at Concord Academy, says:

"Concord Academy was a massive brick building, surrounded
by a few log cabins, situated absolutely in the `old fields'—no
enclosure—no flowery walks—no attractions for the eye, such as
I had been accustomed to in the academies I had attended at
the North. Within, all was rude and rough, the barest necessities
of decent furniture—the table abundant, but coarsely served—the rooms devoid of all luxury or grace—no trace of feminine art—nor sound of woman's voice to relieve the first attacks of home-sickness—everything
rough, severe, masculine.

"I looked and inquired after the `Rules and Regulations' of
the School. I found there were none! To my horror I felt


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deserted even by the eye of discipline. It seemed to me the
reign of lawlessness with utter desolation and loneliness.

"But I soon found that there reigned at Concord the one
higher law—Be a man! That what I thought solitude and
helplessness was the lesson of individuality: Be yourself. As
for discipline there was none in the usual sense of the term.
Be a man—be a gentleman—nothing more. Far too little, indeed
nothing at all of those rules, those proprieties, those methods
that belong to the well-regulated school.

"Obedience and truthfulness were the only virtues recognized
or inculcated at Concord—obedience absolute to Frederick Coleman—his
will was law, was gospel, was Concord. There was not
a boy, even those who loved him most, who did not fear him
absolutely. And truthfulness with courage. All else was forgiven
but lying and cowardice. These were not forgiven, for they were
impossible at Concord."

Not less extraordinary was the absence of all rules in regard
to the preparation of tasks and hours of recitation. The boys
studied when and where they chose, and the length of time given
to a class varied from thirty minutes to three hours, according to
the judgment of the instructor. The boys were often aroused
in the night, sometimes long after midnight, and summoned to
the recitation room by "Old Ben," the fathful negro janitor, who
equally feared and worshipped his master. A sharp rap at the
door, and the familiar cry, "Sophocles, with your candles, young
gentlemen," would send the youngsters tumbling out of bed in
the long winter nights, and each fellow, with his tallow dip, would
sit until the small hours of the morning, and never a sleepy eye,
while "Old Fred" expounded Antigones or Ajax.

Professor Gray Carroll, who took a brilliant Master's degree
at the University of Virginia in 1855, relates the following: "On
one occasion, Coleman, in giving out the lesson, inadvertently
announced the wrong day for the next recitation. The class
determined to take advantage of his absent-mindedness and go
fishing. Silently and swiftly they sped away to the fishing hole,
two miles distant, and were just casting their line, with many a
chuckle over their prospective holiday, when their blood was
frozen by the terribly familiar cry: "Ripides, young gentlemen,
right away; Mars Fred is waitin'."

The law of place, continues Professor Carroll, was as uncertain
as that of time, and in the long summer days, "Old Fred," in


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shockingly scanty attire, surrounded by his eager pupils in like
scanty raiment, would lie on the soft sward under the great
trees and "hold high converse with the mighty dead."

Governor John L. Marye, who entered Concord in 1838, writing
to W. Gordon McCabe, said: "My schooling, up to the time I
entered Concord, had been under the tuition of old-fashioned
teachers, chiefly imported from the North. Going from a town
and having been for five years under the instruction of what was
dubbed `The Classical and Mathematical Academy of Fredericksburg,'
I entered Concord with some complacent idea as to my
comparative scholarship with that of the average boy. You will
not doubt that my first experience as a pupil under Mr. Coleman
was a startling and humbling revelation to my young and callow
mind. My recollection is that he succeeded on the very first
day of my appearing in class before him in convincing me that
much which I valued as my acquirements had to be summarily
unlearned. Then followed day by day that exhibition by him of
the elevated, enlightened and philosophical method of instruction,
which marked his teaching and made his school the pioneer in the
grand line of academies, which followed in Virginia."

Professor Edward Joynes further says: "I cannot analyze or
describe Frederick Coleman's teaching. I only know that I
have seen no such teaching since, and I have sat at the feet of
Harrison and Courtney and McGuffey at home, and Haupt and
Boeckh and Bopp abroad. It was just the immeasurable force of
supreme intellect and will, that entered into you and possessed
you, until it seemed that every fibre of your brain obeyed his
impulse. Like `The Ancient Mariner' he `held you with his
glittering eye' and like him `he had his will' with you. If I
should try to define its spirit, it would be by the word of self-forgetfulness.
If I should try in a word to define its method,
it would be concentration. But, indeed, Frederick Coleman's
teaching cannot be analyzed except by saying that it was Frederick
Coleman himself. He was a man of massive power of body,
mind, will. Through this power he dominated his boys—impressed
himself upon them—wrought himself into them—controlled
them by his mighty will-power—roused them by his mighty
sympathy. As a teacher, he was the greatest of his age—there
has been no other like him."

Coleman's temper, says McCabe, was furious when aroused,
and the stoutest lad quailed before it. Against anything that


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savoured of baseness or meanness, his indignation knew no
bounds. Two things he would never forgive—lying and cowardice.
He accepted a boys word implicity, and if he deceived him he
must go. Fighting he allowed, but he was always ready to
mediate, and, if that failed, he was equally ready to see that the
fight was a fair one. Bullying he would not tolerate. If, after
the fight, anything remained unforgiven, he would adjudicate,
and the boys were required to shake hands.

The whole nature of the man was instinct with honesty and
truth, and his high personal courage was proverbial. One of the
traditions gloried in by Concord boys was of the day, famous
in the annals of Caroline, when he vanquished single-handed
six strapping bullies who had long been the terror of the court
green.

Lewis Coleman, a nephew of Frederick Coleman, came to
Concord in 1846 as Assistant Master, and, under his guidance,
regularity, method and conventionality, with which the Master
was so impatient, came to have a larger place in the school.

In 1849, after fifteen years of phenomenal success, he suddenly
decided to close the school. He urged many reasons for the
step to his intimates, who remonstrated against his purpose,
chief among which was his plan to further the fortunes of his
nephew, Lewis Coleman, who had determined to establish a
school of like grade in Hanover. In this plan he was successful,
for the year in which Concord closed its doors, saw the establishment
of Hanover Academy, which was simply a removal of Concord
to Hanover. This new institution flourished, as had Concord.
In 1859, Lewis Minor Coleman accepted the chair of Latin in
the University of Virginia. His service in the University was
brief. He entered the Confederate Army as captain of a light
battery and rose to be Lt. Colonel of Artillery. He was killed
on the historic field of Fredericksburg. Upon the retirement of
Coleman, Hillary P. Jones became Head Master of Hanover
Academy and remained in this position until Virginia seceded and
actively entered the Civil War, when he, and the majority of
the students, joined the Confederate forces.

The Old Master of Concord Academy retired with an easy
competence, but after a brief period of leisure his energetic spirit
called him again into action. He entered the political arena and
was elected a member of the State Senate, but at the end of his
first term he declined to stand for re-election. Being an ardent


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State Rights advocate he championed the cause of the South
and confidently believed in success of her cause. He did not
live to see that cause lost at Appomattox for he died in Fredericksburg,
Va., in November, 1860.

illustration

Bowling Green Female Seminary

MRS. W. T. CHANDLER

Alice Scott, the daughter of Mr. Francis Woolfolk Scott (1799-1863)
and Ann Maria Minor (1804-1889), was born in Caroline


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county, Va., on the 31st day of August, 1839. She was educated
in the old Buckingham Female Institute in Buckingham county,
then presided over by Dr. John C. Blackwell, a well-known educator,
illustration

Student Body of Bowling Green Female Seminary 1908

who married a sister of Governor Letcher, and was one of the
ripest scholars of his day. She was united in marriage to William
T. Chandler, of Caroline, born May 17, 1832, a young lawyer

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and Civil War veteran, in 1858, and they established their
home at "Sherwood," near the husband's birthplace. Mr.
Chandler now entered upon the active practice of law, driving
illustration

Campus Scene Bowling Green Female Seminary

from "Sherwood" to the county seat each morning and back to
his home each evening. It was not long, before fire destroyed

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"Sherwood" and all their personal effects, leaving them without
shelter in those tragic, poverty-filled days which came to
the South in the wake of the Civil War.

Shortly after the burning of their home Mr. and Mrs. Chandler
settled in Bowling Green, the county seat, Mr. Chandler continuing
the practice of law, and Mrs. Chandler establishing a
private school in a part of their residence which came to be known
as the Home School. Possessing rare gifts of personality and
intellect, and having a genius for the work of teaching and
administration, Mrs. Chandler found no difficulty in gathering
around her a splendid group of students—the daughters of the
representative families of the community. The name "Home
School" was soon changed to Bowling Green Female Seminary,
and a commodius and beautiful building was erected to house the
rapidly growing institution. The faculty was enlarged from
time to time, the school having all the departments usually found
in a high-class female academy, and the institution gradually
took its place among that splendid group of schools which undergirded
the South in the dark days of Reconstruction.

Upon the marriage of Miss Emma B. Scott, Mrs. Chandler's
sister, to the Rev. E. H. Rowe, Mrs. Chandler gradually retired
as head of the seminary and Rev. Mr. Rowe became principal.
Mrs. Chandler purchased the Washington Female Seminary in
Atlanta, Ga., in 1891, and continued the work of education until
her death in July, 1904. Mrs. Chandler's dust sleeps in Lakewood
Cemetery, Bowling Green, where rests also the dust of her
husband. There were no children. The Washington Seminary
in Atlanta still flourishes under the direction of her nephew,
Llewellyn Davis Scott, and her niece, Emma B. Scott, associate
principals.

The Rev. Mr. Rowe moved the Bowling Green Female Seminary
to Buena Vista, Va., in 1901, changing the name to Southern
Seminary, and there the institution founded by this brave and
brilliant woman in the soul-testing days of Reconstruction continues
to flourish—a monument to courageous Southern womanhood.


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illustration

Riding Class in Bowling Green Female Seminary 1908


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SAMUEL SCHOOLER

Samuel Schooler was born in Caroline county, Va., in the
year 1827.

After a very thorough preparatory education, under the
direction of his father, Rice Schooler, and his maternal uncle,
Professor Nelson, of Louisa and Hanover, he entered the University
of Virginia in 1844, and after two years graduated from
that institution, at the head of his class, with the degree of
Master of Arts.

Shortly after graduation he entered upon the profession of
teaching, locating at Millwood, Clarke county, Va. He continued
his work as principal of the school at Millwood until 1850,
at which time he became Assistant Master of Hanover Academy
in Hanover county, Va.

This Academy was established in 1850 by Lewis Minor Coleman,
a nephew of Frederick William Coleman, celebrated educator
of Caroline, and was, in many respects, the successor of Concord
Academy, for it is a well-established fact that Frederick William
Coleman closed Concord in order to advance the fortunes of
this, his favorite nephew who wished to establish an academy
of his own. Lewis Minor Coleman fashioned this academy along
the same lines as old Concord in Caroline, with the additional
improvements incident to the development of higher education.
So successful was he in his endeavors that the new academy won
instant favour at the University of Virginia, and soon became
widely known as "The Rugby of the South."

After a brief period of service here, Schooler established a
preparatory school of his own at Edge Hill in Caroline county,
following to a great extent the methods so successfully pursued
by the Colemans.

While conducting the Edge Hill Academy Mr. Schooler wrote
and published a Descriptive Geometry, which won instant
recognition and was widely acclaimed as being the finest treatise
of descriptive science which had appeared up to that time. Many
other works on that branch of science found their origin in
Schooler's book, but none ever equaled his treatise, which, for
many years, was used as a text book in the University of
Virginia.


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When the Civil War broke out Schooler closed Edge Hill
Academy and entered the Confederate Army. He was soon
commissioned Captain of Artillery for Ordnance duty, and was
assigned to duty at the Richmond Arsenal, where he remained
until April, 1864, when he was ordered to take charge of the
Reserve Ordnance Train of the Army of Northern Virginia under
Lt. Colonel Briscoe G. Baldwin, Chief of Ordnance of the Confederate
Army. He remained in this position until October, 1864,
when he was ordered back to duty at the Richmond Arsenal.

Joseph Packard, a promient attorney of Baltimore, says:
"I was his (Schooler's) assistant, and messed with him during
all the period he was with the train, and derived great benefit
from his conversation, which covered a wide range of accurate
knowledge. I was preparing to take the examination for Captain
in the Ordnance Service and needed to brush up on my mathematics.
I had no text books accessible and he dictated to me
from memory all of the algebraic formulae which I needed to
study. His knowledge of mathematics has seldom, if ever,
been equaled. I often heard him speak of Lewis Minor Coleman
(at that time Colonel), whose half-sister, Mary E. Fleming, he
married, and of the days at Hanover Academy."

Many ideas and suggestions made by Captain Schooler were
adopted by the Ordnance Department, and were acknowledged
as great factors in promoting the efficiency of the Artillery service.
He was also one of the Examining Board before whom all aspirants
to commissions in the Ordnance and Artillery service appeared.

Captain Schooler, in collaboration with his brother-in-law,
Colonel W. L. Broun, head of the Ordnance Department, originated
and worked out a system of Civil Service in the Confederate
Army, from which was taken and applied the first Civil Service
in the United States. Thus Civil Service, as well as the Honour
System in schools and colleges, had its birth in the mind of one
of Caroline's sons.

Schooler possessed marked literary ability and could have
made his mark in the world of letters had he closely applied
himself in that direction. Early in his life he wrote and published
an article entitled: "Wrinkles on the Horns of Toby, or
Confession of an Ugly Man," which won much favourable notice.
Thackeray on his visit to America attended a literary club at


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Hanover Academy, of which John R. Thompson, editor of the
Southern Literary Messenger, was a member and during this
visit Thompson called the attention of the celebrated author to
Schooler's article, which had just appeared. Thackeray was delighted
with the production and pronounced it "the finest piece of
humorous literature ever written by an American."

He frequently wrote verse of a high order; but few, if any,
of his poems ever appeared in print, nor, indeed, were they
preserved in any form. A few lines of verse entitled "Thoughts
of Other Days," and written for his friend, Mr. Thomas W.
Valentine, Clerk of the Circuit Court of Caroline, are in the
possession of Mr. T. C. Valentine, Deputy Clerk of the Circuit
Court of Caroline, are hereto appended.

After an eventful but not long life, Samuel Schooler died
quite suddenly in Richmond, Va., in 1873 and was buried at
"Locust Grove" (also known as the Fitzhugh Catlett place),
near Guinea, Va. His grave is marked by a stone erected by his
oldest son, George Fleming Schooler, who died in 1907. Samuel
Schooler was married to Mary E. Fleming, half-sister of Lewis
Minor Coleman, and to this union were born five children, two
sons and three daughters. Willa S. Page (Mrs. Frank Page) is
the only surviving child. A granddaughter, Mary A. Ambler, is
now teaching English in the High School of Fredericksburg, Va.

Soft as rays of sunlight stealing
O'er the dying day;
Sweet as chimes of low bells pealing
When evening fades away.
Sad as winds at night that moan
Through the heath o'er mountains lone,
Come the thoughts of days now gone
Over manhoods memory.
As the sunbeams from the heavens,
Hide at e'en their light,
As the bells when fades the even,
Peal not on the night;
As the winds cease to sigh,
When the rain falls from the sky,
So pass the thots of days gone by
Over age's memory.

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But the sunlight, in the morning,
Forth again shall break;
And the bells give sweetest warning
To the world to wake;
Soon again the winds shall breathe
Thru the mountains purple heath;
But man's path is lost in death—
He hath no memory

Note—This poem is used in Professor Schooler's "Wrinkles
on the Horns of Toby," which appears in Volume 19 of the
Southern Literary Messenger.

illustration

Caroline County Court-House as it Appeared 100 Years Ago.
See Legislative Petition No. 4617, Page 57.


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DR. H. T. ANDERSON

illustration

Dr. H. T. Anderson

The Andersons have been prominent in American life for
nearly three centuries. The first members of this family to
come to America were Richard Anderson, Sr., and Richard Anderson,
Jr., who sailed from England in July, 1635. Land Office
Book VII, page 272, shows that Robert Anderson, I, was granted
727 acres of land in New Kent county, Va., in 1683 for the importation
of 15 persons. He married Cecilia Massie, of New
Kent, and was vestryman of St. Peter's parish until the parish
of St. Paul was cut off in 1704. He died in 1712. Robert
Anderson, II, married Mary Overton and had issue as follows:
Richard, James, Garland, Matthew, David, Robert III, and
three others whose names are not known. Garland Anderson
owned much property in New Kent, Caroline, Hanover and
adjoining counties, and was a member of the Richmond Convention
of 1775, by which legislation was enacted placing Virginia
on a war basis. Garland Anderson married Marcia Burbage,
of Caroline, and to this union was born John Burbage Anderson,
who married Martha Tompkins, of Caroline, to whom were born
six sons and three daughters. Henry Tompkins Anderson, the


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subject of this biography, was the sixth son of John Burbage
Anderson and Martha Tompkins, and was born on January 27,
1812. He was brought up in a home of culture and refinement.
His mother was an unusually brilliant woman and taught all
of her sons Latin and Greek. When barely twenty-one H. T.
Anderson united with the Christian Church (Disciples) and was
baptized by his elder brother, Dr. Benjamin Anderson, a widely
known physician, who for many years was an elder in the Antioch
Christian Church at Bowling Green. Within ten months after
his baptism he began to preach the Gospel, and in his twenty-fifth
year removed to Kentucky to accept the pastorate of the
Christian Church of Hopkinsville. Here he met and married
Henriette Ducker, a lady of great beauty and brilliancy. The
Church at Hopkinsville flourished under his leadership and his
labours there are commemorated by a beautiful window placed
in the Church and dedicated to him.

Through the influence of his life-long friend, John Augustine
Williams, President of Daughters College, Harrodsburg, Ky.,
Anderson turned his brilliant mind into educational channels
and for a time, after retiring from the Hopkinsville pastorate,
presided over a classical school in Northern Kentucky.

In 1847 he became the pastor of First Christian Church, of
Louisville (which Church has since been served nearly forty
years by E. L. Powell, another Virginian) and continued in this
capacity for six years. Upon retiring from the Louisville pastorate
Anderson re-entered the field of education as instructor in
Daughters College at Harrodsburg, Ky., and here he lived and
taught and preached for several years. Later he presided over
a classical school at Midway, Ky., where he was assisted by his
son, Henry T. Anderson, Jr., and his daughter Jessie, both of whom
were brilliant Greek and Latin scholars.

Writing his friend, John Augustine Williams, regarding the
school at Midway, he says:

"Seventy-two pupils give me as much as I can do. * * * 
There is a vast amount of work to be done, to which I am
addressing myself with all diligence. There is much good
material on which I shall bestow abundant labour. It is a
saying of the Wise Man that `one sinner destroyeth much good.'
I will ever keep this in mind, and my course will be to keep the
school free from such."


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Anderson also presided over a classical school at Flemingsburg,
Ky., and while in this position wrote to his friend, President
Williams, in the following words:

"The people here are a substantial set. They have looked
more to their bodily than to their mental and spiritual wellbeing.
The field is a great one for labour and much may be
accomplished if the people can be taught that grand secret—
the habit of thinking. It falls to the lot of but few to learn this
secret. * * *  To look on the events of life and see them
working out one grand result, the glory of God and the happiness
of the race, is the lot of fewer still. * * * *  I know not what
will take place on the morrow, but this I know, that He who
put forth his hand and upheld the sinking Apostle from the
depths, can so guide my footsteps as to save me from all evil. * * * * *  If we commit our ways to Him he will so order
our steps that we shall enjoy the greatest amount of good, for
`no good thing will he withhold from them who walk uprightly.' "

The labours of an educator seem to have grown irksome to
Dr. Anderson, for in one of his letters to President Williams he
says:

"Give me a few acres, with a good garden, a small forest
and lasting spring, and I shall be content. The Lord made man
upright but he hath "sought out many inventions," boarding
schools being one of them." * * *  I would go to my little
place in the country, read Hebrew and Greek, translate, write
notes and essays, and beautify the little thirty-acre plot with
trees, flowers, shrubbery, and whatsoever is pleasant to the eyes
and good for food. This nervous affection is my `thorn in the
flesh'—a messenger of satan surely—that will allow me no rest
on earth save that which I find in study, translating, and writing."

In December, 1861, he began to translate the New Testament
from the original Greek and, in a letter to President Williams
about this time, says:

"If I succeed in translating the New Testament will it not give
a reason for my past retired labours in the study of the Holy
Oracles? Surely such a result would be worth a life of labour!
Whatsoever the result one thing is certain: I shall have filled my
own mind and heart with the knowledge of His truth. * * * 
I am here, `like a sparrow on the housetop,' to use one of
David's figures. I have always thought this simile one of


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the most apt and striking in the Bible. Did you ever
see a sparrow upon a housetop? Of all lonely and insignificant
looking things surely this is the most lonely. * * * * * 
I am better this morning and attribute my improvement to a
glass of lemonade. Acids are good for nervousness; if you are
unbelieving, try it. I know you will here exclaim, `What a
descent!—From Hebrew and Greek, and David's similes, to
lemonade!' Oh, well, `Variety is the spice of life.' "

When the Civil War broke out, and young men laid down their
books and took up the sword, Anderson gave up his school work
and devoted his time to translating, preaching and lecturing.
Writing to President Williams about this time he says:

"Tell me what it is within the mind, which sees that a thing
will not be; or, on the other hand, pierces the veil of the future
and lights up some spot, and says we shall be there—sometime?
Benjamin Franklin (a noted Disciple preacher and publicist of
Anderson's day) would have me come to Cincinnati in a short
time, but this `inward something' has told me, and yet tells me,
that I shall not be there. When I look in the direction of Mercer
that `something' seems to say to me that I shall be there—and
that I ought to be there. Is this an illusion? Or is it that a ray
from a better world flashes upon the future and lights it up for
the lonely soul that is to sail out upon an uncertain sea? The
latter, let us believe, for, as the poet said, "We are not all
clay." * * * * .

So the next year finds him in Mercer, as the "inward something"
had foretold. Here he was near President Williams,
between whom and himself existed a friendship like that between
David and Jonathan of old, and here he gave himself wholly to
the work of translating. From Mercer he wrote to President
Williams in these words:

"I have finished the Acts. Have re-written Matthew, Mark
and Luke. I took the Acts next to Luke that I might not have a
change of writers by translating John. I knew I would have but
little difficulty with John, so left this for the warm weather.
The translation is such as satisfies me. I have no fear for
Robinson, Bloomfield and the rest of the critics, as their views,
collected by Trollope, of Cambridge, in his Analytics, sustain me.
Pendleton and Loos—like Aaron and Hur with Moses—will
hold up my hands. I have sent Pendleton two chapters of


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Romans, and he and Loos gave them fulsome praise—almost as
extravagant as that given by Pendleton in his notice of my
version of Matthew. Favourable notice from such scholars as
these adds to my joy. How could I ask for more?"

In July, 1862, he writes to President Williams as follows:

"I am now translating the Second Epistle to the Corinthians,
and intend to finished the New Testament by the first of September,
if health lasts, and publish the whole this fall. You will
say this is doing the work in too great haste, but my work is the
result of nearly thirty years study, and I find that all I have
read and studied has not been lost, but has been in a somewhat
dormant state ready for being used in my present work."

Dr. Robert Richardson, the brilliant President of Bethany
College, said, "H. T. Anderson's knowledge of the Scriptures is
greater than Mr. Campbell's at his best years."

Benjamin Franklin, noted Disciple minister and publicist,
wrote:

"I am pleased with Brother Anderson. He has a mighty
fund of learning and knowledge. He is a great man."

The "great man's" opinion of himself may be learned from
the following extract from a letter to President Williams regarding
certain complimentary notices which had appeared concerning
his translation:

"Whatever merit it may possess is only the reflection of the
image of my Master, to whom be all the glory and honour. * * * 
I am poor and weak, and in my weakness and poverty I have
taken refuge under His wing. I have felt His power and, apart
from men, I have lived in His presence."

Dr. Anderson, while of a deeply spiritual nature, was not
without his humourous side. Referring to some complimentary
review of his Translation, by one Dr. Rice, he writes as follows
to his friend, President Williams:

"If others think as Dr. Rice thinks then my work will enable
me to buy a horse and ride around some. Don't you think that
a man who has made such a Translation, as you know mine to
be, ought to have a horse?"

Again he writers in the same vein to President Williams:

"Double thanks for your wonderful essay on `To Be and to
Live.' I know of nothing that excels it save my Translation."


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In 1864, he completed and published his Translation, which, he
said, was intended to open and illuminate the Scriptures for the
masses, and the work found instant favour in both America and
Europe. Writing from Louisville, Ky., in 1865 he says:

"But now I am, and that is about all of me. I am in the
right place, no doubt, for my mind must rest for future motion
and life. A new world opens before me for a full play of all
my powers, whatever they are. Isaac Errett wishes me to
deliver lectures on the Greek Testament—principles of interpretation—and
this will suit me very well, but the presidency of a
college in Iowa has been offered me, and my wife is inclined to
that region. * * *  The presidency of a college presents no
pleasing anticipation to me. * * * *  I have no desire to
accept. * * * * 

Contemporaneous with Dr. Anderson's labours of translation
was Tischendorf's discovery of the Codex Sinaiticus. Writing to
Dr. Williams, regarding this discovery, he says:

"I feel as if my fortune was made. I have the Codex Sinaiticus,
the most ancient of the Codices. This crowns my joy. I know of
nothing I wanted so much. * * * * . It is wonderful how
works flow to my hand—the very works I want. The Lord is
surely with me in this, and sends me what I want, both in books
and in a friend to help me."

From Washington, D. C., he wrote to Dr. Williams in August,
1868, in the following words:

"I have made a version for the masses which, I believe, will
illumine and make plain many obscure passages, heretofore
hidden to the multitudes; and now, here in the East, I shall make
a version for scholars which will defy all the efforts of fault-finders."

Writing again from Washington, in 1869, he says:

"Do you know a sound man? If you do let me hear from you.
I believe in God, the Father Almighty, maker of heaven and
earth; and in Jesus Christ, His only begotten Son, our Lord:
and also, I am persuaded that all who so believe, and live
righteous lives will be saved. I believe in one Baptism for the
remission of sins, to all who have sufficient knowledge; but I think
man's obligation is limited by his knowledge. `To him that
knoweth to do good, and doeth it not, to him it is sin.' Well,
I want to see a man who has a soul, a large soul, a soul full of
the love of God and of man. I am sick, John Augustine, of small


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souls, of cold, narrow souls. I want to see a man with a soul
that burns with divine fire, a man who soars to heaven like an
eagle, and who can guide me in my solitary way. * * *  Daniel
was a great man, better than kings, yet he was in Babylon and
lived and loved God, without a temple, an altar, or a sacrifice.
I tell you, "J. A." that I am of the Scribe's opinion, that to
love God with the whole soul, heart, mind and strength, and
one's neighbor as himself, is better than all burnt offerings and
sacrifices. There is salvation in the love of God, and the love
of God is the supreme law."

This letter was probably called forth by certain strictures of
the "legalistic" and "ceremonially minded" leaders in Dr.
Anderson's communion, who thought that he did not place enough
emphasis on Church ordinances, and did not sufficiently stress
the dogma, then held by a few leaders among the Disciples, of
the absolute necessity of immersion for the remission of sins.

Dr. Anderson preached for the Disciples in Washington during
the year 1868 and the early part of 1869, after which he returned
to Caroline and spent two or three years at the old home, near
where his brother, Dr. Benjamin Anderson, lived, and here for a
short time his wish for "a few acres of land—a forest—and a
lasting spring" was realized to some extent. Here, amid the
scenes of his childhood and youth, he spent many hours in
translating and other literary pursuits.

After this brief sojourn in Caroline he returned to Washington,
where he died on September 19, 1872. The "dust and ashes"
of this distinguished son of Caroline rests in Glenwood Cemetery
near the National Capitol.

REV. E. H. ROWE

Rev. E. H. Rowe, son of Rev. John G. Rowe and Margaret
Ann Purcell, his wife, was born on September 17, 1857, in Westmoreland
county, his father at that time being pastor of the
Methodist Churches of that county. Shortly after the Civil
War the family returned to Bowling Green and here the subject of
this sketch grew to manhood.

Rev. E. H. Rowe received his preparatory training in private
schools of Caroline, after which he attended Randolph-Macon
College, the University of Virginia, and Princeton University.
He attended the last named institution after he had entered the


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ministry of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South, withdrawing
temporarily from the active pastorate for this purpose. The
following quotation from a letter written by Professor Thomas
R. Price, M. A., LL. D., Professor of Greek in the University of
Virginia and sometime Professor of English in Columbia, of New
York City, which letter was for some time in the possession of
the author, indicates the high standing of Mr. Rowe in the
University of Virginia.

"My dear Rowe:

"It was a grief to me to learn that you had made up your mind
not to return to us. I shall miss you from your place in my
class, and, as I had hoped, in my list of graduates. But I do not
doubt that you have acted wisely: and your education is already
ample for you to make of yourself whatever you wish to become.
If, as you propose, you go into the Church, your excellent English
style, accurate and simple, will be your best outfit: and your
knowledge of Greek, and, as I believe, of Latin, will enable you
to carry on your professional studies to any extent, and to become
a distinct force in giving to our somewhat narrow and
degraded forms of religion a wider, truer and nobler development.
One man now who is capable of dealing with the sacred texts of
Christianity and with the early records of the primitive Church,
as an accurate and scholarly interpreter of what they mean, is
worth an hundred who in their blind ignorance go on narrowing
and degrading the faith into erroneous perversions. * * * 

"(Signed) Thos. R. Price."

In 1879, Mr. Rowe was licensed to preach by the Bowling
Green Quarterly Conference, Rev. L. Rosser, Presiding Elder,
and became a member of the Virginia Conference in 1884. His
first appointment, as pastor, was to the Church in Murfreesboro,
N. C., where he served for two years, resigning at the end of the
second year to enter Princeton University for special courses.

On returning from Princeton Mr. Rowe was appointed to the
Boydton (Virginia) Church, but after one year of service he retired
from the itineracy, on account of increasing ill health, and was
given an educational appointment, by his Conference, to the
Bowling Green Seminary, Bowling Green, Va., of which institution
he became principal in 1888.


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In 1894, Mr. Rowe was elected President of Wesleyan Female
College at Macon, Ga., the oldest female college in the South,
and served in this capacity for two years. On his acceptance of
the presidency of this school Bishop A. G. Haygood, a member
of the Board of Trustees, said, "I believe you are the providential
man for our college." Upon his retirement from the presidency,
Rev. W. P. Lovejoy, also a member of the Board of Trustees,
wrote, "I believe you have proved to be the providential man for
us," and the Board of Trustees, as a body, passed resolutions in
"appreciation of the able, faithful, and successful services"
rendered to the institution. While President of Wesleyan Female
College Mr. Rowe was a member of the South Georgia Conference
of the Methodist Episcopal Church, South.

Mr. Rowe was elected President of Martha Washington College,
Abingdon, Va., upon his retirement from Wesleyan in 1896, but
before entering upon his duties resigned the position to take up
again the presidency of Bowling Green Seminary. Upon returning
to Bowling Green larger plans were made for the Seminary, and,
in keeping with the enlarged plans, the name of the institution
was changed to Southern Seminary.

The Southern Seminary prospered in Bowling Green until
1901, when it was moved to Buena Vista, Va., where it still
flourishes. An editorial in the Baltimore and Richmond Christian
Advocate
of June 4, 1914, said in part: "We most cordially
congratulate Rev. E. H. Rowe upon the completion of twentyfive
years as the head of the Southern Seminary. During that
period Dr. Rowe has rendered faithful and efficient service in the
field of education, and so wisely administered the affairs of the
institution over which he presides that it has grown to be one of
the largest and most prosperous schools for young ladies in the State.

"The pupils of the Southern Seminary come from every section
of the country, and its patrons render most unqualified endorsement
of its work. The commencement exercises of this year (1914)
were of special interest, marking the closing of the forty-seventh
session and commemorating the twenty-fifth year of Dr. Rowe's
administration. Addresses were delivered by Dr. Joshua Stansfield,
pastor of the Meridian-Street Methodist Church of Indianapolis,
and by Senator Robert M. LaFollette of Wisconsin."

In 1922, Dr. Rowe sold Southern Seminary, and, at the Annual
Conference of Virginia in 1922, addressed the presiding Bishop
(W. A. Candler, of Georgia) as follows:


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"Though I have severed my connection with Southern
Seminary, I have not retired from the field of education. I have
mapped out work enough to fill my time even though I shall live
to the green old age of my mother, who died in her eighty-fourth
year; and, whether so or not, it has seemed to me more important
than any other work of the Church."

The Bishop accordingly appointed Dr. Rowe to such a relationship
in the Conference as would enable him to continue his
work of education in a new field, whereupon he (Dr. Rowe)
retired to his plantation—"Holly Hill"—to give himself to the
task of working out the principles of his proposed reforms in
education, and for the publication of the same under the title
"A New System of Complete Education."

The proposed reforms embraced in the "New System of Complete
Education" were first definitely set forth by Dr. Rowe
at the Annual Virginia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, South, in 1916, in the following resolutions:

"While rejoicing in the inauguration of a Conference-wide
evangelistic movement, which we heartily endorse, * *  we are
coming, at the same time, to see more and more clearly that
Christ came not simply to `pluck brands from the burning,'
but rather to build up an order of spiritual life and character
that will exemplify the spirit and ideals of the Sermon on the
Mount * * * . And since the chief hope for such a type
of character is out of the first and unspoiled life of childhood
and youth * * * ; therefore,

"Resolved, First, That we will give ourselves to the spiritual
education of the young life of the Church through all of the
Church organizations, especially through the Sunday school.

"Second, That we will endeavor to influence all institutions of
learning to establish a distinct department of spiritual education
* * *  which shall have for its great aim the systematic development
and training of the spiritual nature * * *  using the
same definite, sustained and philosophic methods which are being
used by our modern educational system for the development of
the physical and intellectual nature * * *  that the faculties
of the soul may thus be given an equal chance with the mental
and physical to come to their full perfection."

(See Virginia Conference Annual of 1916).


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No further action was taken on this matter by the Virginia Conference
during the next four or five years, notwithstanding the
fact that the question was constantly kept to the front by Mr.
Rowe, who regularly presented resolutions and memorials touching
the matter to Annual and General Conferences. The idea made
progress, however, and won the approval of many leading educators
and churchmen.

In 1921, the Virginia Conference definitely placed its approval
on Mr. Rowe's proposed reforms, and memorialized the General
Conference of 1922, in the following words:

"The Virginia Conference memorializes the General Conference
to create a commission of five or more, for investigations and
recommendation for such a reform in the existing system of
education as will give to the spiritual nature of man a place of as
much prominence at least as the intellectual, and will provide
that the education of the spiritual nature shall begin at the same
time as that of the intellectual, and shall continue co-ordinate to
the end of the course of education. Second, that the Methodist
Episcopal Church, and other denominations, be requested to
co-operate by the appointment of like commissions."

A still more notable advance of this educational idea was made
in the Annual Virginia Conference of the Methodist Episcopal
Church, South, held in Norfolk in 1922, when this Conference
created the commission for which Dr. Rowe had so long contended,
placing thereon such eminent educators as Dr. R. E.
Blackwell, President of Randolph-Macon College; Dr. Dice
Anderson, President of Randolph-Macon Woman's College, and
Dr. J. W. Moore.

Dr. Rowe married (1) Miss Emma B. Scott, of Bowling Green,
in 1861, who died in 1884, leaving one child, Scott Rowe; (2)
Mary Winslow Shaw, of Massachusetts in 1888, by whom he had
four children, two of whom—Orra Curtis (Mrs. F. E. Coyne, Jr.,)
and Edgar H., Jr.—still survive; and (3) Frances Walker Hunter,
of Tennessee, in 1908, by whom he has a son and daughter,
John Rufus and Frances Hunter. Dr. Rowe has one brother,
Mr. Purcell Rowe, who lives in California, and three sisters,
Mesdames J. T. Richards, B. F. Smoot and A. A. Anderson, who
reside in Caroline.


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HENRY WISE TRIBBLE

Henry Wise Tribble was born in Caroline county on February
8, 1862, and was educated in Richmond College and in the
Southern Baptist Theological Seminary, Louisville, Ky. He won
the Frances Gwin Philosophy Medal at Richmond College at
the time of his graduation in 1884, and on June 15, 1885, he was
ordained to the Gospel ministry in Carmel Church, Caroline
county.

His first charge was in Appomattox county, Va., where he
served Liberty and Hebron Churches for one year before his
graduation from the Seminary. Upon graduation he became
pastor at Jackson, Tenn., where he remained until 1895 when he
became the pastor of First Baptist Church, Charlottesville, Va.
Here at the seat of the University he duplicated the splendid
work he had done in the college town of Jackson.

After five successful years at First Church, of Charlottesville,
Dr. Tribble led in the organization of High-Street Baptist Church
which he subsequently served as pastor for eight years. During
this period High-Street Church grew from a congregation of fifty
to three hundred and fifty, and acquired an excellent house of
worship. During the High Street pastorate Dr. Tribble had upon
his shoulders the additional burden of the presidency of Rawlings
Institute, which school he kept full of students and in flourishing
condition. While in Charlottesville he frequently preached in
the University Chapel, whose pulpit is filled from Sunday to
Sunday by distingushed men of all States and all denominations,
and was regarded by the University community as the peer of the
ablest visitors.

After thirteen years in Charlottesville Dr. Tribble became
President of Columbia College, Lake City, Florida. While
serving in this capacity he attended the Florida Baptist Association
at Ocala, and, returning home by way of Rodman, Florida,
where he was preaching in connection with his college work, he
met with the tragic accident which resulted in his death. An
auto truck, using the tracks of a logging road, crashed into the
rear of a logging train which had no lights, and crushed Dr.
Tribble's leg from which injury he died on February 6, 1912. He
was buried on the campus of Columbia College, Lake City, Florida,
on February 8, 1912. His wife was Miss Belle Estelle Rawlings,
of Augusta county, who, with six children, survived him.


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J. A. C. CHANDLER

illustration

Dr. J. A. C. Chandler

The son of Dr. Joseph A. Chandler and Emuella Josephine
White, was born at Guineys in Caroline county on October
29, 1872. He was educated in the College of William and Mary
and in Johns-Hopkins University, receiving the degrees of A. B.
and A. M. from the former and Ph. D. from the latter. Richmond
College, now University of Richmond, conferred the honorary
degree of LL. D. upon him in 1904.

Dr. Chandler's life has been devoted to the cause of education.
On graduating from the College of William and Mary he became
principal of the public schools of Houston, Va., from which
position he was called to a professorship in Morgan College,
Baltimore. Here his superior talents were quickly recognized
and he was made dean of the faculty and a little later acting


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president. Returning to his native State in 1900, Dr. Chandler
became an instructor in Richmond Woman's College, from which
position he was called to a professorship in Richmond College.
In 1909 Dr. Chandler was made superintendent of the public
school system of the city of Richmond, which position he held
until he was called to the presidency of his alma mater in 1919.

In the midst of his busy educational career Dr. Chandler
has found time to write and the product of his mind and pen
has been of a high order. Among his books may be mentioned,
Representation in Virginia (1896), History of Suffrage in Virginia
(1899), Geography of Virginia (1902), Makers of Virginia History
(1904), Makers of American History (joint author) 1904, Our
Republic (joint author), 1910. Dr. Chandler also has the distinction
of having been editor for Silver, Burdett & Co., editor of
The Virginia Journal of Education, Director of History for the
Jamestown Exposition in 1907, and Chief of the Rehabilitation
Division for Disabled Soldiers under the Federal Board for
Vocational Education.

Dr. Chandler was married to Lenore Burton Duke, of Churchland,
Va., on July 10, 1897 and had issue three sons. His wife
died in 1920. He is a member of the Virginia Historical Society,
American Historical Association, Society for Preservation of
Virginia Antiquities, National Education Association, Kappa
Alpha, Phi Beta Kappa, Westmoreland Club of Richmond and
other distinguished societies.

In every educational movement in Virginia during the past
twenty-five years Dr. Chandler has been an acknowledged
leader. His experience as the head of a great public school
system, as professor, as editor of school text books, as editor
of the Virginia Journal of Education, and as President
of the College of William and Mary have phases of the educational
life of the State. The development combined to
give him an unusually wide acquaintance with all of the
public school system of Richmond under his guidance was
an outstanding achievement, and marked him for the high honor
of the presidency of William and Mary. As the head of this
ancient institution his labours have been as fruitful as were his
efforts in the Capitol City of the State. From an enrollment of
130 in 1919 to nearly one thousand in 1924 is but one item in the
story of the remarkable progress of the college under his guidance.
Finances, faculty, and standards have kept pace with the growth


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of the student body. His enthusiasm has inspired all with whom
he has been associated.

Believing in progressive ideals and methods, he has been
among the first to sense the deficiencies of the old regime and
lead in a reform. As a result his influence has been felt far and
wide in the United States, and as an officer of the National
Educational Association, his counsel has been sought in the
questions vitally affecting the educational policies of the country.

Dr. Chandler was one of the few who, two or three decades
ago, took an active interest in the preservation and study of
Virginia history. He is one of the leading authorities on the
constitutional history of Virginia, and his treatises on the History
of Suffrage in Virginia, and Representation in Virginia are most
comprehensive and exhaustive. As Director of History at the
Jamestown Exposition in 1907 he prepared one of the most
attractive exhibitions on the grounds, due to his familiarity with
the history of the State. It is not too much to say that he has
been as great a factor in the upbuilding and development of education
in Virginia as any other man of his time.

A. B. CHANDLER, JR.

Algernon Bertrand Chandler, Jr., the eldest son of Algernon
Bertrand Chandler, Sr., and Julia Yates (Callahan) Chandler, was
born at Bowling Green, Va., May 12, 1870.

His elementary education was received in the public schools
of Bowling Green; the Bowling Green Academy, under the direction
of Professors Coleman, Rowe and others; the private school
of Prof. J. P. Downing, Bowling Green; the Virginia Midland
Academy, Culpeper, Va., under the direction of R. R. Powell
and John Hart, Sr., and John Hart, Jr., and the Bowling Green
Academy, under the direction of Professors Hart and Bain.

Thus, with thorough preparatory training, he entered the
University of Virginia in 1889, and was soon a man of mark in
all of his classes. He retired from the University at the end of
four years, having won brilliant B. A. and M. A. degrees. During
his residence at the University he won the Orator's Medal in the
Washington Literary Society and otherwise distinguished himself
on the platform.

Following his graduation from the University of Virginia Mr.
Chandler entered upon the profession of teaching (in Locust


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illustration

A. B. Chandler, Jr.

Dale Academy), but after a brief period he took a course in law
in Washington and Lee University, Under John Randolph Tucker
and Charles A. Groves, noted professors of law, and was licensed
to practice in 1895. Upon his admission to the bar he formed
a partnership with his brother, John W. Chandler, also a graduate
from the University of Virginia, and together they practiced in
Atlanta, Ga., for a few years.

While practicing law in Atlanta, Mr. Chandler, upon invitation
of the Virginia Society of Atlanta, delivered the Annual


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Oration (on the Life and Character of Robert E. Lee) before that
Society, being at that time only twenty-six years of age and the
youngest man ever accorded that honor. During the same year
he delivered the commencement address before the Georgia
State Normal School at Milledgeville, an unusual honor for a
man of his years, and an eloquent testimonal to his ability on the
platform.

The call of the school soon proved stronger than the call of
the bar, and after a few years he returned to the profession of
teaching, becoming principal of the elementary schools of Richmond,
and later State School Examiner. While principal of the
elementary schools in Richmond Mr. Chandler edited the School
Page of the News Leader and also served as Professor of English
in the Virginia Mechanics Institute, a night school which has given
many a poor young man an opportunity to equip himself for
greater usefulness in the world.

When the Fredericksburg State Teachers' College was established,
Mr. Chandler retired from his position as State School
Examiner to become Professor of Latin in the new institution,
and so largely did he contribute to the growth and development
of the school that, after three years, he was made dean of the
institution. His service in this capacity further demonstrated
his ability as an educator and executive, and marked him for
further promotion. So when the office of president became
vacant in 1919, he was chosen to preside over the destinies of the
institution.

The school, under his direction as president, entered upon an
unusual period of prosperity, and the first three years of his
administration brought remarkable expansion and development.
A 50,000 gallon steel water tank was constructed; an independent
gas line was laid to the kitchens and Home Economics Department;
a moving picture machine was installed, new seats added
to the auditorium; a Faculty Home Annex was erected; many
concrete walkways and asphalt driveways were built; a cold
storage and ice manufacturing plant added; a central program
clock, auxiliary clock and gong system were installed, and the
most beautiful open air theatre in Virginia was constructed.

The educational standard of the school kept pace with the
external improvements. All high school studies were eliminated
and the school placed on a strict professional basis; a commercial
teacher training course was added—the only institution of its


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illustration

Birthplace and Old Home of A. B. Chandler, Jr.

kind in Virginia offering such a course; four differentiated four-year
degree courses were added, summer school extended to
12 weeks, a full quarter, with both junior and senior courses;
four differentiated practice schools were secured; several new
professors were added to the faculty; a splendid athletic program

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was inaugurated; the enrollment doubled, and a distinctive school
spirit built up.

In his work as President of the Fredericksburg institution,
and in other fields of endeavor as well, Mr. Chandler has been ably
assisted and encouraged by his wife, a woman of rare grace and
charm, fitted by birth and training to adorn any circle of society,
and who, before her marriage, was Miss Blanche Montgomery,
of Warsaw, Va.

In addition to his outstanding work as educator, Mr. Chandler
has made splendid contributions to the life of Virginia, both on
the platform and with the pen. He is the author of the Virginia
Supplement to Frye's Higher Geography, "Rappahannock River
Country," a monograph published by Fredericksburg State
Normal (1915), "An Appreciation of Matthew Fontaine Maury,"
"Christian Education the Hope of the World," "The Philosophy
of Reading," and numerous articles in various educational journals.

Possessing unusual oratorical powers Mr. Chandler is much
sought after by schools, churches, clubs and civic organizations,
and frequently addresses meetings held under the auspices of such
bodies. His lectures on "Robert E. Lee," "Woman in History,"
and "Mother and Home," have been delivered in many places
in Virginia, and in other States, and have been enthusiastically
received wherever heard. His address at the laying of the cornerstone
of the Matthew Fontaine Maury monument in Richmond,
Va., won wide and favorable notice, and was published, with other
addresses, in 1923.

Mr. Chandler is a member of Antioch Church (Disciples) of
Bowling Green, Va., of which his father was elder for over one-half
century, and is in great demand as a speaker by the churches
and general conventions of his communion. He is also a member
of the Westmoreland Club of Richmond, and the Rotary Club
of Fredericksburg. As an indication that his fame is more than
local, it may be pointed out that he is one of the two men of his
city whose names appear in Who's Who in America.

CHARLES PICHEGRU WILLIAMSON

Charles Pichegru Williamson, son of Gabriel Galt Williamson
and Gabriella Winston Woolfolk, was born in Caroline county
at "Holly Hill," the home of his maternal grandfather, Pichegru
Woolfolk, on August 6, 1848.


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His father, at the time of his birth, was a lieutenant in the
United States Navy, and shortly before the outbreak of the
Civil War, was promoted to the office of Commander and placed
in charge of the S. S. Fulton and ordered to Cuba to watch for
"Slavers." While serving in this capacity he was shipwrecked
off Santa Rosa in 1859, during an equinoctial gale, and one month
later died of yellow fever at Pensacola, Fla.

The family of Commander Williamson had residence in the
historic Wythe house at Williamsburg, Va., at the time of his
death, but at the outbreak of the war returned to "Holly Hill,"
in Caroline. On returning to "Holly Hill" John, the eldest son
of the family, then sixteen years of age, was commissioned midshipman
in the Confederate Navy, and Charles Pichegru, who was
four years younger than his brother John, was sent to a school
in the lower part of Caroline which was taught by his uncle James
Woolfolk.

"Holly Hill" was sold in 1863, upon which the Williamson
family removed to Richmond. Here Charles Pichegru, though
barely past fifteen, was given a position in the Ordnance section
of the Confederate War Department. During the last months
of the war he enlisted in the Confederate Army and served until
the evacuation of Richmond.

After the close of the war he, with his mother, lived for a
few months at Elk Hill, Goochland county, Va., in the home of
his brother-in-law, Randolph Harrison, who had been a distinguished
Colonel in the Confederate Army. In the fall of 1865,
the family returned to Williamsburg, where Charles Pichegru
attended the College of William and Mary for two years. After
leaving William and Mary he decided to enter the ministry in
the Christian Church (Disciples) and so, after working for Dean
& Somerville, of Richmond, and others, until he had accumulated
sufficient funds, he matriculated in the Bible College of
Transylvania University, Lexington, Ky., from which institution
he graduated with second honors of his class.

While a student in Transylvania University he met and married
Betty Johnson, granddaughter of John T. Johnson, a famous
pioneer preacher of the Disciples, and a great niece of Richard
M. Johnson, at one time Vice-President of the United States.

Upon graduation the Rev. Mr. Williamson accepted the
editorship of The Apostolic Guide—a church paper of the
Disciples—and also the presidency of the Madison Female Institute,


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of Richmond, Ky. He served this school as president
for ten years and while here became known as one of the foremost
educators of Kentucky. He also preached frequently during his
presidency of the school. Mrs. Daniel Coleman DeJarnette (nee
Willis), of "Spring Grove"—the ancestral home of the DeJarnettes
of Caroline—was a student of the Madison Female Institute during
Mr. Williamson's presidency.

After ten successful years as an educator President Williamson,
upon the advice of his physician, retired from the presidency of
the Madison Institute for rest and recuperation, his health having
become impaired, but after a very brief rest he accepted the
pastorate of First Christian Church, Atlanta, Ga., and in connection
with the pastorate, the editorship of The Southern
Christian,
which was at that time the official organ of the
Disciples of Georgia and adjoining States. Here he served for
ten years in the dual office of pastor and editor, winning for
himself a large place in the life of the city. A physical breakdown
made it necessary for him to retire from the Atlanta pastorate,
and he returned to his native State once more for recuperation.
While in the State he purposed to re-enter the field of education
and so, after sufficiently regaining his health, he became the
head of the old Powell School of Richmond, Va., in which position
he remained for two years. At the end of the second session of
the Powell School under his presidency, Doctor Williamson (he
had received a doctorate at this time) went to New York to
consult a specialist, and caught a severe cold on the boat between
Norfolk and New York which developed into pneumonia, from
which he died on July 16, 1903.

In recognition of his scholastic ability, and his splendid contribution
to the cause of education, both Bethany and William
and Mary colleges conferred honorary degrees upon him. He
was a member of the parent chapter of Phi Beta Kappa, and owned
a very superior library, which was loaned indefinitely to his
alma mater, Transylvania University.

Dr. Williamson was survived by his widow, and three children:
Clarence Linden, attorney-at-law; Sadie Gabriella (afterward
Mrs. Robert M. Kent) and Elizabeth Cary, and one adopted
daughter, Gay Braxton, the child of his only sister, Mary Gay
Williamson, who married Charles Braxton.

His widow, Betty Johnson Williamson, still survives and has


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seven grandsons, four of whom are the children of her son
Clarence, and three the sons of her daughter, Mrs. Robert Meredith
Kent, of Richmond.

JOHN VAUGHAN KEAN

John Vaughan Kean was the son of the famous Dr. Andrew
Kean, of Goochland county. His mother was Kitty Vaughan.
He was born in 1802, and was educated at the University of Virginia.
His father was offered the Chair of Medicine in the
University of Virginia by Thomas Jefferson, but, high as the
honor was, he declined it, and kept the offer such a secret that no
one knew of it until the Jefferson letter was found among his
papers after his death.

John Vaughan Kean married Caroline Hill, of Caroline
county, and established "Olney," in Caroline, and entered upon the
profession of teaching. Dr. L. B. Anderson, of Caroline, who
practiced medicine in Norfolk for many years, published in
Richmond a volume, entitled "Brief Biographies of Virginia
Physicians," in which he writes in part as follows: "When seven
years of age I was sent to school to Mr. John Vaughan Kean at
Olney, Caroline county, Va., about two miles from my father's
residence. Mr. Kean had recently lost his wife, Caroline Hill,
leaving him with two sons, Lancelot Minor and Robert Garlick.
Lancelot Minor Kean died of typhoid fever while a medical
student in Philadelphia, and Robert Garlick Hill Kean became a
distinguished barrister in Lynchburg. * * *  In John Vaughan
Kean, my first preceptor, were strongly blended suaviter in modo,
fortiter in re.
I have seen him weep like a female in reading a
little poem in my spelling book, entitled "A Mother's Gift to Her
Only Boy." Under other circumstances, though it was never my
misfortune to feel its impress, I have had my little heart to bound
and flutter and pause and tremble as his ponderous hand would
fall with sharp concussions on the ears of truant boys. He would
preserve a stern dignity in school hours, and in `play time'
would mingle with the boys in playing marbles, cat, bandy, and
a favorite game called in our school vernacular `chumny.'
During these social hours he would relate anecdotes, grave, sad,
and amusing, some of which were illustrative of the life and
character of his distinguished father, Dr. Andrew Kean."


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LEE-MAURY HIGH SCHOOL

Lee-Maury High School is located at Bowling Green, the
county-seat of Caroline. It was established in 1913 and was
named in honor of two of Virginia's most distinguished and
beloved sons—Robert E. Lee and Matthew Fontaine Maury.
The grounds on which the building stands were donated to the
school authorities by Dr. C. S. Webb and Mr. O. P. Smoot, of
Bowling Green. Mr. John Washington, County Superintendent
of Public Instruction for Caroline, Col. R. L. Beale, Dr. C. S.
Webb and Mr. E. B. Travis conducted the campaign through
which the funds were subscribed for the erection of the building.
One of Caroline's native sons, Rev. Granville Burruss, was Lee-Maury's
first principal. He served in this capacity until his death
in 1918. The school made great progress under his wise and
efficient leadership, and his untiring efforts and splendid spirit
greatly endeared him to the community. A bronze memorial
tablet was placed in the main entrace hall of the building shortly
after his death to commemorate his unselfish life and services.

There were only two graduates the first year of the school's
existence, and only one the second year, but since that time there
have been not less than five in any graduating class. There
were over fifty graduates in the first nine years of the school's
history, and all of these, with one or two exceptions, have continued
their scholastic work in colleges. Among Lee-Maury
graduates are lawyers, dentists, teachers, nurses, bankers and
professors.

The school has a fair laboratory equipment for Domestic
Science, General Science and Chemistry, and a library of six or
seven hundred volumes. Other improvements, chiefly on building,
will give Lee-Maury one of the best equipments in the county.

The first year of the school's history the enrollment was
approximately 150 with a faculty of six teachers. The number
has steadily increased until the beginning of the tenth session
found approximately 275 enrolled, of whom about 80 were in the
high school department.


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GRADUATES OF LEE-MAURY HIGH SCHOOL FROM ITS INSTITUTION
TO DATE (1924)

    1914

  • Frances D. Glassell,

  • Frank Smoot.

    1915

  • Hermine Coghill.

    1916

  • Thomas H. Blanton,

  • Joseph Willis DeJarnette,

  • Bernard Mahon,

  • Louisa Glassell,

  • Nellie J. Carter,

  • Mary Martin.

    1917

  • Lola Bruce,

  • Dorothy Cave,

  • Madge Rixey,

  • Charlotte Taliaferro,

  • Mary Dudley Williams,

  • Recer Farmer,

  • Mary Elliott.

    1918

  • Blanche Broaddus,

  • Pattie Martin,

  • John Julius Dratt,

  • James Pelham Broaddus,

    1919

  • Mary Cook

  • Gladys Bruce,

  • Agnes Butterworth,

  • Mary Burt,

  • Elizabeth Jordan,

  • Marion Motley,

  • Maude Boulware Motley,

  • Mason Sale,

  • Lee Scripture,

  • Marion Smoot,

  • Alice Dunnington,

  • Mary Lyell Smoot.

    1920

  • Florence Finch,

  • Theresa Bruce,

  • Richard Moncure,

  • Marion Walker Glassell,

  • Louise Gill,

  • Ruby Chenault.

    1921

  • Frances Henderson,

  • Helen Scripture,

  • Charles Webb,

  • Heloise Finch,

  • Lucille Jones,

  • Cordie Lee Moncure,

  • Louise Dunnington,

  • Charles Brooks,

  • Virginia Wright.

    1922

  • Elliott Campbell,

  • Doris Barlow,

  • Margaret Brooks,

  • Mae Campbell,

  • Eugenia Coghill,

  • Margaret Comfort Dorsey,

  • Elsie Gray,

  • Elizabeth Sottesz,

  • Ada Smith,

  • Fannie Taliaferro,

  • Margarett Webb,

  • Thelma Woolfolk,

  • Betty Wright,

  • Russell Wright.


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    1923

  • Walter Dunnington,

  • Perry Penny,

  • John Smoot,

  • Esther Campbell,

  • Esther Eagle,

  • Bessie Motley,

  • Louise Motley,

  • William Webb.

    1924

  • Garnett Martin,

  • Gwen Martin,

  • Susie Broaddus,

  • Gladys Andrews,

  • Linda Broaddus,

  • Laura Jordan,

  • Nettie Taliaferro,

  • Arlie Borkey,

  • Corbin Ridgely Dorsey,

  • Joe Leonard McKenney,

  • Robert Holberton,

  • Jean Broaddus.

EDMUND PENDLETON HIGH SCHOOL

Edmund Pendleton High School was established at Doggett's
Fork in 1914, with Mr. Henry T. Louthan as the first principal.
The school was first named for its location, but shortly afterward
the name was changed to Reedy Church High School, after the
name of the magisterial and school district in which it was located.
Later the patrons set all other schools in Carolina good example
by naming the school in honor of Edmund Pendleton, Caroline's
most distinguished son (See chapter on Statesmen of Caroline).

The building originally consisted of that part of the present
structure which faces the Bowling Green-Richmond Highway, a
three-story structure with two rooms on each floor, the top floor
being a double class-room, capable of being converted into an
auditorium.

In 1916 an addition was built back of the original, and with it,
formed an L facing the South. The addition was also three
stories high, with one room on each floor. The basement room
of the addition was later completed by the students and fitted up
as a Science Laboratory.

In 1921 an auditorium was erected back of the main building.
The two dressing-rooms back of the stage, being quite large, are
used for class-rooms, thus giving the school altogether eleven
class-rooms. Below the auditorium is a concrete basement
90 × 30 which may be used for many social festivities. There is
a small music room in the school yard where piano is taught.

In 1920 there was erected, about 200 yards from the school
buildings, a commodious and modern eight-room house as a home
for the teachers. This building is known as the Teacherage and
is the only building of this kind owned by any school in the
county.


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The buildings, lands, desks, pianos, and other equipment
represent a value of approximately $25,000. The school opened
with four teachers and a small enrollment, but so prospered that
within seven years the faculty had doubled and the enrollment
increased to 200, of whom over 50 were in the high school department.
Twenty-nine were graduated from the school during
the first five years, the greater number of whom have continued
their education in higher institutions of learning. Much of the
success of this school has been due to the efficient administration
of Mr. H. T. Louthan and Rev. W. D. Bremner who presided
over the school for many years; and also to Messrs. L. J. Head,
J. R. Blanton, George Burruss and J. C. Haley of the local school
board.

A LIST OF THE GRADUATES OF EDMUND PENDLETON HIGH SCHOOL
FROM ITS INSTITUTION TO THE PRESENT (1924)

    1917

  • Halbert Covington.

    1918

  • Ivy Dale Andrews,

  • Ellis Bowers,

  • Ashton Carneal,

  • Mabel Chiles,

  • Julian Coleman,

  • Hilda Green,

  • Hattie Robinson,

  • Clyde Southworth,

  • Gladys Southworth,

  • Janie Young.

    1919

  • Benjamin Jeter,

  • George Jeter,

  • Wheeler Simpkins,

  • Emma Burruss.

    1920

  • Pauline Bowers,

  • Lucy May Freeman,

  • Robert Freeman,

  • Eugene Jeter,

  • Lillian Sanford,

  • Franklin Southworth.

    1921

  • Eula Andrews,

  • Madeline Allport,

  • Edith Chiles,

  • Kester Freeman,

  • Edith Gibson,

  • Early Peatross,

  • Horace Taylor,

  • Clarice Coleman.

    1922

  • Durward Campbell,

  • Estelle Campbell,

  • Floy Head,

  • Ruth Hutcheson,

  • Alma Green,

  • Bernice Pitts,

  • Boyd Samuel,

  • Eugene Southworth,

  • Alberta Taylor,

  • Estelle Young.


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    1923

  • Wesley Freeman,

  • Henry Jeter,

  • Albert Long,

  • Claude Thomas,

  • Maggie Adams,

  • Pearl Adams,

  • Thelma Andrews,

  • Margaret Bremner,

  • Gladys Dyson,

  • Dorothy Head,

  • Ethel Thomas,

  • Madge Thomas,

  • Evelyn Peatross.

    1924

  • Lillian Beasley,

  • Berlyn Blanton,

  • Gertrude Bowers,

  • Roper Bowers,

  • Dorothy Campbell,

  • Henry Carneal,

  • Henry Chinault,

  • Lois Chiles,

  • Laura Christian,

  • Wickham Coleman,

  • Oswald Covington,

  • Arthur Gravatt,

  • William Hobbs,

  • Irma Peatross,

  • Marvin Peatross,

  • Louise Taylor,

  • Hawes Terry,

  • Charles Tribble,

  • Mary Tribble,

  • Annie Williams.

MICA HIGH SCHOOL

Mica High School is located at Mica in the Port Royal District.
This school building was erected in 1918 at a cost of approximately
ten thousand dollars. To Mr. W. H. Vaughan belong much
credit for supervising the work of erecting the building. It is
seldom that a school building of the proportions of Mica school
is erected in shorter space of time. It was not decided until
June of 1918 that a high school should be erected in the Port
Royal District. The specifications were received, the lot surveyed
and the work begun late in August, and the building was
completed and occupied November 1, 1918.

Mr. R. L. Rosenbaum, of Southwest Virginia, was the first
principal. The school opened with 70 pupils and 4 teachers. Of
the 70 pupils 23 were in the high school department. There was
only one graduate the first year of the school's history—a young
lady, Miss Estelle Sale, who came to this school from the junior
class of Lee-Maury at Bowling Green. The second year there
were 8 in the graduating class, the third year there were 6, and
the fourth year there were 18. Within four years the enrollment
of the school increased from 70 to 173 of whom there were over
70 in the high school department. Over one-half of the graduates
of Mica have sought higher education in colleges.


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Laboratory equipment has been installed and the school is
prepared to do laboratory work in three of the sciences. A
library of no mean proportions has been added and the school
made a fully accredited high school.

GRADUATES OF MICA HIGH SCHOOL FROM ITS ORGANIZATION TO 1924

    1919-20

  • Estelle Sale.

    1920-21

  • O'Neal Broaddus,

  • Gladys Gray,

  • Louise Bullock,

  • Minnie Samuel,

  • Madge Klock,

  • Theresa Vaughan,

  • Eugene Vaughan,

  • Henry Buckner,

    1921-22

  • Lucille Lewis,

  • Ruth Klock,

  • Ruby Dratt,

  • Eloise Garth,

  • Mary Denson,

  • William Denson.

    1922-23

  • Ursula Kay,

  • Lucy Ellen Kay,

  • Victorine Garth,

  • Mattie Bullock,

  • Lucy Hearn,

  • Evelyn Mothershead,

  • Ruby Lee Blaydes,

  • Anna Vaughan,

  • Alvin Vaughan,

  • Emma Vaughan,

  • Erwin Pepmeier,

  • Jack Palmer,

  • Arthur Douglass,

  • Haley Taylor,

  • Everett Sale,

  • Milton Sale.

    1923-24

  • Gordon Beazley,

  • John Brooks,

  • Judson Dillard,

  • A. D. Sale,

  • Elliott Vaughan,

  • Billy Vaughan,

  • Hazel Colbert,

  • Alma Dillard,

  • Ella Marshall,

  • Nina Marshall,

  • Irene Pepmeier,

  • Dorothy Smith,

  • Mary Kay Vaughan.

SPARTA HIGH SCHOOL

The Sparta High School has the distinction of being the
oldest high school in Caroline. This school is located at Sparta,
ten miles east of the county-seat, and was established in 1909.
An interesting fact in connection with this school is that the
building was erected by the citizens of the community, without
any outside help whatever, completely furnished with desks and


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stoves, and presented as a gift to the school board. The school
board added two rooms to the building four years later, making
it large enough to meet the rapidly increasing attendance.

In December, 1917, the building was completely destroyed by
fire and the remainder of the session held in Salem Baptist church.
The old building was replaced at once by a large, modern, twelve-room
building, costing $12,000. One-half of this amount was
raised by the patrons. The session of 1918-19 opened in the
new building

In January, 1919, the Board of Education established in the
school, under the Smith-Hughes provision, departments of
vocational agriculture and home economics. The basement of
the school was fitted up for the installation of these departments,
and an adequate agricultural laboratory, equipped with all
necessary apparatus for the teaching of practical agriculture was
installed. A separate shop, equipped with all tools essential to
the teaching of practical construction and repair of farm implements,
and conveniences of iron, wood, leather and concrete was
also added to the equipment. Two large rooms in the basement
were equipped for the teaching of home economics. One of these
rooms was fitted up as modern kitchen in which domestic science
students are taught how to plan, prepare and serve appetizing
and wholesome meals. The other room is equipped with sewing-machines,
cutting tables and fitting closets. Here girls are taught
how to design, cut and make their own clothing, and many other
articles which are indispensable to every well ordered home.
The equipment in these two departments cost $3,000, of which
the State contributed $2,000 and the patrons $1,000.

This school has a faculty of 10 and a student body of about
150, of whom approximately 50 are in the high school department.
In an essentially agricultural county, such as is Caroline, the
value of such an high school as this cannot be estimated.

GRADUATES OF SPARTA HIGH SCHOOL FROM ITS ORGANIZATION
TO 1924

    1912-13

  • Henry Garnett,

  • Mattie Carter,

  • Aubrey Carter,

  • Bernice Jordan,

  • Everett Jordan,

  • Latimer Beazley,

  • Roland Beazley,

  • Mabel Kay.


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    1913-14

  • Percy Fox,

  • Reuben Rolph,

  • Ashby Kay,

  • Mamie Carter,

  • Annie Broaddus,

  • Bessie Brooks,

  • Alma Brooks,

  • Ida Kay.

    1914-15

  • Ethel Kay,

  • Mary Kidd,

  • Margarett Collins,

  • Estelle Harris,

  • Clement Harris,

  • Ben Carter,

  • Butler Wright.

    1915-16

  • Nelson Fox,

  • Frederick Sirles,

  • Frank Beazley,

  • Calvin Phippins,

  • Lottie Kay,

  • Bowie White.

    1916-17

  • Annie Kay,

  • Rogers Harris,

  • Overton Brooks.

    1917-18

  • Eugenia Pitts,

  • Mary Wright,

  • Edith White,

  • Hilda Brooks,

  • Frank Broaddus,

  • William Gravatt,

  • George Collins,

  • Walker Pollard.

    1918-19

  • Elizabeth Head,

  • Bettie Broaddus,

  • Maxie Broaddus,

  • Harvey Seal,

  • Floyd Kay,

  • Louise Fraughnaugh.

    1919-20

  • Hilda Faughnaugh,

  • Aubrey Harris,

  • George White,

  • Lucy Farmer,

  • Herbert Adams,

  • Linda Brooks,

  • Sallie Chinault,

  • Lucile Broaddus,

    1920-21

  • Margaret White,

  • Everett Puller,

  • Phoebe Broaddus,

  • Clarice Kelley,

  • Gladys Beazley.

    1921-22

  • Rebecca Collins,

  • Marion Derieux,

  • Kate Fraughnaugh,

  • Virginia Harris,

  • Elizabeth White,

  • Louise Moore,

  • Edward Trice,

  • Olive Parr.


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    1922-23

  • Malcolm Andrews,

  • Gladys Chenault,

  • Vera Wright.

    1923-24

  • Helen Moore,

  • Myrtle Wright,

  • Annie Shaddock,

  • Virginia Fraughnaugh,

  • Mildred White,

  • Alma Taylor,

  • Lucy Motley,

  • Lucy Faulkner,

  • Wilburn Fuller.

CHESTERFIELD JUNIOR HIGH SCHOOL

Chesterfield Junior High School was established in 1920, and
thus has the distinction at this time (1923) of being the youngest
high school in Caroline. It also has the distinction of being the
only junior high school in the county.

The citizens of Ruther Glen and McDuff communities had felt
the need of a high school for a long time prior to 1920, so when the
matter of consolidating the Ruther Glen and McDuff schools, and
building a high school, was actively taken up by Mrs. J. R.
Blanton, of McDuff, the patrons responded generously and soon
five thousand dollars were pledged to the enterprise. Other
funds were secured from the State, and from local "benefits"
and an adequate building was erected near old Chesterfield, from
which place the school derived its name.

Mr. A. B. Chandler, Jr., President of the State Normal School
for Women at Fredericksburg, upon being consulted regarding
teachers for the new school, visited the community and placed
before the local School and Civic League a plan for organizing
the school as a junior high school under the supervision of the
Normal School over which he presided.

Then plan was accepted, President Chandler organizing the
school and supplying teachers, in return for which his school was
given the privilege of sending its seniors to Chesterfield for
practice teaching and observation.

The school opened with approximately ninety pupils. Miss
Margaret Jeffries was the first principal. The school has prospered,
and with the establishment of a school truck system and
the closing of one-room schools, as in other sections of the county,
the enrollment will be sufficiently increased as to enable the
school to qualify as an accredited high school.