Greenfield Training School
Southern Weakley County, Tennessee



 Newspaper Article from Dresden Enterprise
Written by Joel H. Clark

Courtesy of Mrs.Lennon McAdams

History of Greenfield Training School
***


The Greenfield Training School is completing its fifteenth year on Friday, May 2. There are to be two graduates this year, namely, Misses Stella Mae BRASFIELD and Winnie PATTERSON. These young ladies have selected as their motto, "To Thine Own Self be True." Their colors are lavender and silver and the flowers are sweet peas. 

The Greenfield Training School began its interesting history Sept. 14, 1909. The opening address was delivered by Hon. Finis J. GARRETT at the Methodist Church The idea of having the training school here .was originated by Dr. W. T. SMITH. He talked to some of his friends concerning it and in a short time had aroused much enthusiasm. Friends were soon subscribed for the building. Profs. R. K. MORGAN of Petersburg and ,T. B. CLARK were called to Greenfield and a contract made with Mr. CLARK to take charge of the school. 

The next epoch in the history of school was its mysterious burning on the. night of Feb. 12, 1915. The present building was ready for use in August of the same year. 

Messrs. A. J; BARTON, R. B. BRASFIELD, John WEST, J. N. RAY, E. H. ELAM, Judge Robert A. ELKINS, W. E. McADAMS, W. C. DEUBERRY and T. M. EARLS were elected the first board of trustees. Only two or three changes were made in this board until March 24, 1923, when an entirely new board was elected. They are Messrs. E. M. SHANNON, Dr. G. C. THOMAS, B. F. ADCOCK..:..A,-KEEL, John B. MCADAMS  and W. A. BARTON. 

The Greenfield Training School looks with an enviable pride upon its graduates.. There have been 66 thus far, 36 of whom have attended university. This is a record that very few schools in the state can equal. It will possibly be of interest to the ardent readers of the Enterprise to know who the graduates may be, where they are and what they are doing as a life work. The following is a complete list of the graduates of this school and their present location, according to the best information that has been afforded me: 

1911-Tillman PETERS, holding a government position at Dyersburg. Alma PETERS, teaching in the city schools of Blythesville, Ark. 

1912-Mary SHARP, now Mrs. G. H. EDMUNDSON, of Martin. 

1913-Dorman G. STOUT, county :farm demonstrator of Hamlin county. Clarence ABNEY, manager of a lumber concern at Detroit. Harrison ABERNATHY, the only graduate of the school to take an M. A. degree, is professor of English in the Duncan School, Nashville; Mamie BRASFIELD, now Mrs. S. L. MAIDEN, of Greenfield; Nannie SHARP, now Mrs. Jesse CAMPBELL, of Greenfield. 

1914-The students who were supposed to have finished this year were for some reason not granted a diploma. Some of them came back the following year. Some of them finished the following year and others took their diplomas from other schoo1s. It has been impossible to obtain accurate information concerning those who received diplomas and who did, not. For this reason we are publishing the names of the entire class. Barnett HUMMEL, Ripley; Huron BARTON, principal of a school in Gibson county; Harvey KIMERY, in the employ of the J. C. Ross Company, Greenfield; Walter HORNBUCKLE, with the Independent Life Insurance Company, Memphis; Will Ed AKIN, opening a dairy in Greenfield, Ruby BROCK, now Mrs. Roy MCUMBER, Glendale, Calf. ; Carrie BARTON, now Mrs. Hamilton S. SHARP, Greenfield; Mary WEST, Mrs. C. C. DOYLE of Macon, Ga. 

1915-May CAMPBELL, now Mrs. Barnett HUMMEL, of Ripley; Mabel CUTLER, now Mrs. Marshall WHITIS, of Boaz, Ky.; Ella ELAM, now Mrs. Huron BARTON of Gibson county; Homer AKIN, dentist, Paris; Lucy BROCK, teaching at Hartsville; Lora BROCK, now Mrs. Bernard MCDEARMON, Cleveland, Miss. 

1916-Mary Lee SWAIM, now Mrs. Artie ESTES, of Dresden; Kate HUMMEL, now Mrs. JONES of Brunswick, Ga.; Verda ABERNATHY, attending the Middle Tennessee State Normal; Leonidas HOLLAND, head of music department of the Freed-Hardeman College, Henderson; Priestly DEUBERRY, farming and making a specialty of highly bred poultry at Greenfield; Brown MILLER, manager and owner of a pressing establishment at Holly Springs, Miss.; Eleanor DEUBERRY, now Mrs. L. D. MCADAMS of Chattanooga; Mary BROCK, now Mrs. Homer AKIN, of Paris; Lyndelle BRASFIELD, now Mrs. W. D. HARRIS of Greenfield. 

1917-Joe Terry HATCHER, member of the staff of the Nashville Tennessean, Nashville: Iva AKIN, teaching in the city Schools at Chattanooga: Flossie WEST, teaching at Logan College, Russellville, Ky. 

1918-Ruby Lee KEEL, now Mrs. E. B. WRIGHT, Greenfield: Mattie B. KEEL, .now Mrs. Charles. ARGO, near Newbern; Charles ARGO, teaching near Newbern: Erma BERRY, now Mrs. Curtis HOLDER, of Akron; Ruby EARLS; Cyrena ELAM. 

1919-Lola MANESS, Greenfield: Bonnie MANESS, teaching at Idlewild. 

1920-Mary HOLLAND, attending Union University at Jackson: Iona SWEARINGEN, now Mrs. Robert GALLIMORE: Joel H. CLARK, member of the faculty of the Greenfield Training School and special correspondent to the Dresden Enterprise and others. 

1921-Charles WILSON, attending the University of Missouri at Columbia: Joe AKIN, with the Warner- Baker Drug Co., Memphis: Fred AKIN, attending the University of Missouri: Aurelia PERRY, Greenfield: Ruth MOSELEY, assistant cashier of the Fruit Growers Bank, Greenfield : Mary Lee MCDEARMON, bookkeeper for a lumber company at Martin; Walter POPE, attending Vanderbilt University at Nashville. 

1922-Marion TILLMAN, attending Vanderbilt University: Richard PETTIGREW, attending Vanderbilt; Dean DREWRY, attending University of Tennessee at Knoxville; Russell BROCK, with the Columbia Wholesale Grocery Company, Columbia, Miss: Auverene ABERNATHY, farming near Greenfield; Dewitt PERRY; office manager for a Concern in Mississippi; Lucille LETT, teaching at Caliac, Va. 

1923-Zed AYDELOTT, attending Union University at Jackson: Ruth PRIESTLEY, now Mrs. David C. BELL, Bastrop, La.; Herbert BROCK, attending Cumberland University, Lebanon;  Glennie HUFFSTETLER, teaching near Greenfield; Jean COATS, attending University of Tennessee, Knoxville; Raymond BROCK,  employed by the R. M. Fowlkes Tobacco Co., Greenfield; George MCADAMS, attending Vanderbilt University; Elizabeth EDMUNDSON, studying piano and voice at Chattanooga; Lloyd PERRY, with the Fuller Brush Company. 

As stated above, 36 of these have attended University. 

One of the most interesting and valuable assets of the Greenfield Training School is its four literary societies; These societies were organized in the year 1909. They are; The Crown Literary Society and its sister society, the Crescent Literary Society; The Jefferson Literary Society and its sister society, The Platonian Literary Society. From the time of their organization they
have attracted attention and created much enthusiasm. The officers of these societies are for the Crown : Hiram HATCHER, president; Lauden MANESS, vice president; Neal TILLMAN, secretary; Thompson MITCHELL, marshal. For the Jefferson : Thomas Blake CLARK, president; Z. W. GROOMS, Vice President; John B. WILLIAMS, Secretary; Wayne BROCK, marshall. For the Crescent: Opal ROBINSON, president; Helen HATCHER, vice president; Lucille GROOMS, secretary; Ruth MCUMBER, critic; Virginia MCUMBER, pianist. For the Platonian: Stella Mae BRASFIELD, president; Mary AKIN, vice president; Marion MULLINS, critic; Winnie PATTERSON, secretary; Ruth AKIN, pianist 

An annual contest is held between the two boys' societies, known as the trophy contest. It is always held on the Friday night of commencement week. A silver cup is given to the winning society and this cup stays in the possession of the society for one year. This cup was presented to the societies by Prof. T. B. CLARK at the time of the organization. The same old cup is still in use. The students and a majority of the townspeople take active interest in this annual event. The cup was won in 1910 by the Crowns, in 1911 by the Crowns, in 1912 by the Jeffersons, in 1913 by fhe Jeffersons, in 1914 by the Jeffersons, in 1915 by the Jeffersons, in 1916 by the Crowns, in 1917 by the Jeffersons, in 1918 by the Crowns, in 1919 by the .Crowns, in 1920 by the Crowns, in 1921 by the Jeffersons, in 1922 by the Crowns, in 1923 by the Jeffersons; making a total of seven times to win for each society. The tie must be untied this year and this is promising to be the most interesting contest in the history of the school. The speakers for this year have not been selected. This is done in preliminary contests one week before the contest. 

Prof. T. B. CLARK, then of Howell, Tenn., was elected first principal of the school. He taught for two years and was forced to RETURN to Middle Tennessee on account of the health of his family. The faculties for the Greenfield Training School from 1909 to 1924 are as follows: 

1909-10-Principal, T. B. CLARK, A. C. WILEY, Rev. Ed WOOLDRIDGE, Mrs. Mable A. HEARN, Miss Mary GRISSOM. 

1910-11-Principol; T. B. CLARK, C. T. MOORE, R. H. BROCK, Mrs. Mable A. HEARNE, Miss Margaret BUTLER. 

1911-12-Principal, W. Lee HARRIS, J. J. INGLE, Mrs. W. Lee HARRIS, Mrs. Mable A. HEARNE, , Miss Annie OWEN. 

1912-13-Principal, W. Lee HARRIS, G. G. HARRIS, Guy CRAWFORD, Mrs. Mable A. HEARNE, Mrs. W. Lee HARRIS. 

1913-14-Principal, W. Lee HARRIS, G. G. HARRIS, .Guy CRAWFORD, Mrs. W. Lee HARRIS, Miss MOORE. 

1914-15-Principal, G. G. HARRIS, D. G. STOUT, Mrs. HARRIS, Miss MOORE, Miss Ora SMITH. 

1915-16-Principal, Prof. Thurman, Mr. MURREY, Miss Ora SMITH, Miss Van HOOSIER. 

1916-17-Principal, G. G. HARRIS, Ernest BURNETT, Mrs. STEVENS, Miss Van HOOSIER. 

1917-18-Principal, Mr. HENDRICKSON, Miss WASHBURN, Miss Van HOOSIER, D. G. STOUT, Mrs. HENDRICKSON. At the beginning of the second term the faculty was changed. Prof. T . B; CLARK and D. G. STOUT were elected as co-principals; others of the faculty for this term are Miss WASHBURN, Miss Van HOOSIER, Huron BARTON. 

1918-19-Principal, T. B. Clark, Miss Janie MORROW; Miss Iris WELCH, Miss Hester STONE, Miss Van HOOSIER, Miss Mary SHARP. 

1919-20-Principal, T. B. CLARK, Miss Janie MORROW, Miss Iris WELCH, Miss Hester STONE, Miss Lora BROCK, Miss Mary SHARP, Miss Van HOOSIER, Leonidas T. HOLLAND. 

1920-21-Principal, T. B. CLARK, W. W. WAKEFIELD, Miss Grace BRUCE, Miss Belle ATKINSON, Leonidas T. HOLLAND, Miss Mary WEST. 

1921-22-Principal, , T. B. CLARK, W. W. WAKEFIELD, Miss Grace BRUCE, Leonidas T. HOLLAND, Miss Belle ATKINSON,  Miss Myrtle BAKER. 

1922-23-Principal, T. B. CLARK, Joel H. CLARK, Mrs. Priestley DEUBERRY, Miss Myrtle BAKER, Leonidas T. HOLLAND, Miss Jane BAKER. 

1923-24-Principal, T. B. CLARK, Joel H. CLARK, Mrs. Priestley DEUBERRY, Miss Myrtle BAKER, Miss Virginia BELL, Mrs. Wade BARTON. 

The Commencement Sermon will be preached this year by Rev. Ernest RAMER, pastor of the Cumberland Presbyterian church of Milan, Sunday morning at 11 o'clock, April 2. 

The speaker for the class address has not been selected. The address is to be delivered Wednesday morning, April 30. The primary and intermediate grades are .to furnish the program for Monday evening April 28. 'The program for Tuesday evening will be furnished by the intermediate students. The program for Wednesday evening will be furnished by the music department. On Thursday evening the high school students will give the play, "Out of Court". Intensive preparation is being made on this play and it is anticipated to be the best play that has been reproduced by the students of this school. Friday evening will be the feature of the week of entertainment. On that evening half the building will be decorated in purple and gold and the other half in red and white. On that evening the Crowns and Jeffs meet for their annual contest. All interested before and after points to that event. 

This will conclude. the program for this year. We are planning to have the largest attendance next year that the school has ever enjoyed. There is already evidence that more interest will be manifest by the patrons and the people of this community. Some changes will be made in the faculty. These have not been determined. 

 We have labored many hours preparing the facts, that collected make the history of the Greenfield Training School. The foregoing paragraphs have not been clothed in the cloise words of the masters. We have made an honest endeavor to collect the true incidents and accomplishments of the Greenfield Training School. Every day we read in the papers of murders, robberies, wrecks and have been made to realize of late that there is oil in other places than lamps. These things sicken the minds of pure-thinking people and we think it will have been well worth the time we have employed in preparing this article in affording the readers of this paper an account of the achievements of an institution that has had its beginning and has been supported for the uplift of our youth. 
 

Scanned by Joe Stout
Edited by MaryCarol

BACK to School Page

RETURN to Weakley County Home page

webpage & photo graphics  by MaryCarol