John Shearer: An Architectural And Historical Look At Threatened Former White Oak Elementary

As I continue to look at the architectural history and general history of various school buildings and even other longtime large structures threatened with demolition over planned or discussed projects, one building with a now-uncertain future has unexpectedly come up in the news.

On Oct. 17, the Red Bank Commission announced at its meeting the possibility of looking at the White Oak Elementary land off Altamont Drive as the possibility of a new school site. While the discussions were preliminary but with plans to look further into the issue, the commission is pondering the possibility of pushing for a new elementary at this school site located about halfway between Hixson Pike and Dayton Boulevard.

Although I did not attend the meeting, the thinking among some commissioners is that if Alpine Crest Elementary is closed as has been pinpointed by the Hamilton County Schools in a consolidation plan, Red Bank would still like to have an elementary school within its boundaries.

At least that seemed to be the theme in various media reports.

And because the closed White Oak/Dawn school has ample space and might be a better place to build a school than the slightly sloping Alpine Crest property, the White Oak site came up for discussion. And it seems like the talk was of building a new school there rather than doing any kind of renovating, if the latter is even feasible or desired.

It has also been discussed because District 6 under school board representative Ben Connor would also lose Rivermont Elementary in the city of Chattanooga in the consolidation plans, although Normal Park is still in the district. And, in an interesting twist that might involve some explaining to outsiders, Red Bank Elementary is now in Mountain Creek within the city of Chattanooga, not in Red Bank.

The Red Bank discussions and planned further investigation are only preliminary ideas, as the Hamilton County Schools department owns the White Oak school property and would make any final decision on what to do with the site.

But since the old White Oak Elementary property came up, I decided to look up some additional information about the school. While I certainly understand the need for the best school facilities, equipment and learning environments possible as a community like Hamilton County tries to properly educate the youth of today into productive and good citizens of tomorrow, I also always like to take a look at what would be lost architecturally or historically.

As I try to just look at the issue from an objective-but-interested distance, the White Oak school to me seems to be among the prettier of the schools built in that particular mid-20^th century style, with uninterrupted windows going on for numerous feet. And at one or two places, the windows even uniquely round the corners without stopping, an effect that even the great Frank Lloyd Wright was known for putting on some of his structures. Windows also sit high at one place, giving an elevated perspective despite the flat lot construction.

Of course, some of these metal windowpanes are rusty, and one does not know the costs to even renovate them or the entire building. Sometimes I would like to investigate the whole issue of detailed school remodeling further, as reports of high costs of renovations are usually mentioned. And there generally seems to be a lack of overall interest locally in renovating schools as opposed to building new schools.

I have seen some former schools easily renovated into housing when I lived in Knoxville, and maybe somebody could do that to White Oak in such a popular residential area of Chattanooga, if no school plans for that land go forward. The windows would aid that, although residents might also have to buy plenty of Venetian blinds.

And in the summer of 1983 while finishing up at the University of Georgia, I once watched some people in Haz-mat suits spend several weeks walking in and out of the fellow mid-century Russell Hall there ably removing asbestos from it. I was interested in it more for survival than scientific reasons, as it was air-conditioned, and I had to stay in the unairconditioned Reed Hall during 100-degree weather that summer as a result. But asbestos is occasionally removed from buildings.

And along the same theme of renovating versus building anew, I did read in Preservation magazine this week that renovating is also much better on the environment, even though sometimes bricks are saved during razing projects.

Regarding the history of White Oak Elementary, it does have a personal connection to the great architecture of old, not to Frank Lloyd Wright personally but to Chattanoogan R.H. Hunt somewhat indirectly. Mr. Hunt is considered the most prominent architect of early 20^th century Chattanooga with such structures as Memorial Auditorium, the Hamilton County Courthouse, and the James and Maclellan buildings in his portfolio of works.

While Mr. Hunt died in 1937, a successor firm named Hunt, Caton & Associates was the architect for White Oak Elementary when it was built in 1959 to replace the previous school nearby that had burned in 1958. William Caton was a key member of that firm and was an Englishman who had worked years before for Mr. Hunt himself.

A detailed personal reminiscence of Mr. Caton was written by Chester Martin in chattanoogan.com in 2016, and Mr. Caton spent the last 10 years or so of his career with Selmon T. Franklin before his death in 1973.

Other works that the Hunt, Caton & Associates firm did about that same time included the former and apparently now-razed Cherokee Area Council headquarters of the Boy Scouts of America at Fourth and Houston streets near the current UTC McKenzie Arena. They also designed about two years after the White Oak school the current and still-standing Orchard Knob Middle School, built as a junior high for grades 7-9.

The contractor for White Oak Elementary was T.U. Parks and Co.

A White Oak grammar school was first built there in 1926. I could not find any old newspapers online or at the Chattanooga Public Library that discuss the original architect, but the school was evidently added on to over the years.

One White Oak teacher during the early years was Etna Etter, the mother of legendary Central and Baylor football coach E.B. “Red” Etter. Her principal was J.E. Brown.

A 1954 story said White Oak was becoming overcrowded as a lot of schools in Chattanooga and Hamilton County were at that time as the earliest members of the Baby Boomer generation were entering elementary school. The article said White Oak had five classes with 40 or more students in them and one that had 48.

That issue was solved in part when a fire ripped through the school during the early evening of Feb. 18, 1958, when it was bitterly cold outside. Controlling the fire had been hindered by lack of fire hydrants near the school.

A fire had also ripped through the old Tyner Junior High just the winter before.

The new White Oak school was completed and opened in mid-September 1959. It was dedicated on Sunday, Sept. 27, of that year, with the Chattanooga Times in the next day’s paper describing the event by enthusiastically writing, “An estimated 600 or more patrons packed the auditorium of the handsome new White Oak Elementary School Sunday for an impressive dedication ceremony.”

County Judge Wilkes Thrasher Sr. was a speaker and asked the audience if they were happy with this new building. They replied with “resounding applause and cheers,” the paper said.

The old White Oak school had been at Memorial Drive and James Avenue, where some ballfields are now, and Judge Thrasher and other officials were evidently able to get the old county workhouse site for the new school.

For whatever reason, perhaps due to its newness, someone or some people had already broken into the school and opened the safe, and an 8-year-old boy who was not a student was found to have broken some of the many windows in an unrelated case.

But the opening was still a happy occasion. Also taking part were principal Edwin Brinkley, who actually lived near Missionary Ridge, and county schools Supt. Sam McConnell. Red Bank-White Oak Mayor J.E. Brown, possibly the former principal, introduced fellow commissioners Jimmy Guess, Dallas Rucker, and Tom Collins, while Bob Lahiere of the American Legion also spoke.

Representatives of the White Oak churches also took part, and students who were involved in the ceremonies were sixth grader Bill Bond and fourth grader Gloria Wilson. Ken Keese gave a vocal solo while accompanied on the piano by Mrs. Mary E. Varner.

The school initially served all white students in that era of segregation, but it slowly evolved to serve a diversity of students over the years. A high moment in the school’s history came in 1989, when Kyoko Arai from Japan spent several days there teaching students Japanese customs as part of the International Internship Program.

One recent article says the school closed before the 2005-06 school year, and it later became the Dawn alternative-learning-style school for a period.

But it now sits vacant. Always looking for a grassy area to jog on not far from my Northgate Mall area home, I occasionally go over there and jog and love the three grassy levels to run on. I have occasionally seen individuals there with their children and/or dogs, and groups playing soccer.

As a younger Baby Boomer myself, I love everything from the mid-century building to all the 1960s-era playground equipment – all of which reminds me very much of my childhood in that period when school buildings like that seemed new and modern and even wondrous.

The school grounds also have some simply beautiful large oak trees – including maybe at least one or two “white oaks” -- standing by themselves in two or three places around the fields, although some invasive brush is also appearing in places.

As for other parts of the building plant, the flat school sits at an L shape with nice views out toward the three-tiered playground – although the view out back toward the asphalt parking lot is not nearly as inspiring.

I also think the school plant is interesting in that it has an entrance facing the front fields and one facing the back parking lots. I am sure the rear side was where people entered in more recent years from vehicles, but the front part seems to have been an inviting and even appealing entrance for perhaps students walking to school in the old days. It was probably also where youngsters entered and exited while playing outside during recess.

Overall, the current school seems to have a great and spacious layout for an elementary school – and that is likely why it is being eyed. It not only is in a popular area of town near mostly nicer homes, including some ranch ones built about when it was, it is also right next to some apartments that probably feature a diversity of incomes and likely have potential students living in them. Its lot also seems great for a school.

And it would certainly make a nice residential complex if not a school. I have more than once imagined being financially able to buy it and then knowing enough about construction to have it remodeled into condominiums, with the exterior being saved and refurbished as much as possible.

Of course, if the county schools ever sold the property, many a developer would like to go in and raze the structure quickly and build some denser and new multi-unit residential facilities for those wanting to live five minutes from downtown Chattanooga.

If one really wants to dream and imagine and make everyone happy, the space is big enough to somehow preserve the current school and use it for residences or offices and then build a school on one of the fields and still have some outdoor space remaining for physical education. Whether anyone would ever like such an idea is not known.

For now, though, at least some Red Bank officials are focusing strictly on seeing a new school built there. That will likely cause one more disappointment for the idealistic historic preservationists of the world, but also plenty of excitement for some potential students, parents, and school officials.

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Jcshearer2@comcast.net