I grew up in Surry County, which neighbors the county where we now live. And I am a member of the Surry County Historical Society. Last week, as I was reading their quarterly newsletter, one article, in particular, caught my eye.
It seems that, last year, for her 90th birthday, a county resident was given a high school diploma belonging to her mother. It was dated 1915, and was from the Joseph E Johnson High School in the Bacon’s Castle area. (I blurred out the last name of the graduate, since I didn’t ask permission to post this.)
The article was asking for possible information anyone may have regarding where the school was located, if the building is still standing, who the teachers may have been, etc.
The name of the school immediately rang a bell with me, so I went searching in the “historical” drawer of my old desk.
Sure enough, back in 2005, this postcard was up for auction on E-bay. I don’t recall why I didn’t win it: perhaps the selling price was higher than I wanted to pay, perhaps the auction slipped by without me bidding? But I made sure to print a copy of it for my records.
Marshall and I made the 30-minute trip to the Historical Society earlier this week to give them a copy of the E-bay listing photo. They were pleased to learn the location of the building and that it’s still standing.
Its location is between my childhood home and my Grandmother’s house. I can’t begin to imagine how many times I’ve passed this old building through the years. When I was a young teen, I remember a family living there, and Mom and I visiting a few times.
My Mom’s family lived all around Surry County (as well as neighboring Isle of Wight County) during her early years. BUT, they moved to the Bacon’s Castle area in 1923, when my Mom was 13. So, most likely, she attended this school.
Oh, if only she were here for me to ask….
~These Days Of Mine~
these days of mine 