My second stop on the road to Choctaw was at
Zama Consolidated School, with extant buildings including the 1938 gymnasium, c. 1930 teacher's house, and 1949 Edgar Lucian Malvaney designed school. Check out the post on Preservation in Mississippi for that story.
The return trip enabled me to make a few stops as well, including this former school building in the Cleveland community, Kemper County, not far from DeKalb. This was my first opportunity to venture this direction in the state of Mississippi, so I had an eye-candy day, along with a few bouts of depression at some of the decay and obvious lack of opportunities in areas.
The only extant buildings of the Cleveland school, according to the Mississippi Department of Archives and History, Historic Resources Inventory, are the administration building, 1933, and one of the two teachers' houses. No cornerstone was visible on the building, but photographs from the National Youth Administration 1937-1939 photograph album show the original building and the classroom annex, constructed by the NYA in 1937-38.
I originally thought the classroom annex was the above pictured addition, but I think it might be possible they added both of the ells as classrooms. It is also possible the classrooms were added to the rear of the building, but I could not access that area due to a chain link fence. The building is located on the North side of Hwy.16, between Philadelphia and DeKalb.
In addition, the complex included 2 teachers houses, one of which is still extant, a vocational building, and a home economics building. The remaining building with its National Youth Administration additions is in use as a vocational training center.
7 comments:
I've always said since I moved to this part of the world (Noxubee County) that it's like someone picked up a piece of the delta and moved it. It's like a puzzle piece that's out of place. You have prosperous counties and communities all around us and then there's sad little Macon, Brooksville, Scooba, etc. At least DeKalb will have some industry in the years to come if they get the coal fired power plant up and running.
I thought there were parts of Macon that were interesting, but I kept having sinking spells of depression. Pretty sure I could not live in most towns in Mississippi---well, I could live in them, but I mean and like it. :)
Hate I missed you! Maybe next time you're in the area we can meet up. I love most of the state, but there are definitely places that I wouldn't live either. I have enjoyed moving to Macon but I really do miss my rolling hills of west Clay County. I guess that will always be home to me and the place I will always want to live. Macon is a sad because you can see what used to be there, how prosperous it was at one time. And being friends with people that have lived in the area for most of their lives it's sad to hear them remember Macon in it's heyday.
I thought about you, but was not sure exactly where to find you and thought I might get in trouble for walking up and down Main Street shouting "Lana!" Actually, I was not sure of my timing on any place as I did not have exact times on how long it would take me to get from one spot to the other, and I have found it will always take me longer than Google says it will. It was interesting reading about Macon during the Borden's days. I posted on the other blog about the milk plant.
Great post on the milk plant. Like I say on the other post I'm waiting on the leaves to fall so I can get a good picture of the smoke stack that has Borden on it. I'm always a little leery to go down there by myself but I'm going to enlist some security and photograph down there soon.
And honestly as close knit as Macon is, if you had shouted Lana, someone would have probably given you directions to my house. :)
Okay, that is too funny!
I happened to marry into one of the "premier" families of Noxubee county. LOL When your husband's Daddy owned a store and his grandfather was a mail carrier, everyone knows who you are. It's frustrating and endearing.
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