-Chapter IV- TOWNS, COMMUNITIES, AND MILITIA DISTRICTS (1880-1980)
Schools in Chatsworth
Chatsworth Elementary School can trace its origins back eight decades and is actually older than the town. The first businesses in what became Chatsworth were the Brick Plant and the Georgia Talc Company. They brought a number of workers to the area and during the 1905-06 school year Martha Holbrook opened the door to the children of these workers. The log building was near the brick plant at the south end of First Avenue.
On December 22, 1906 the Chatsworth Land Company deeded property to school trustees E.W. Markin, W.H. Pendley, J.N. Stanford, B.C. Keith, and S.M. Bamett. The two-room wooden school, located on Fifth Avenue andPeachtree Street, opened in 1907. Miss Lula Gladden was the first principal. Mathis Hoi-brook had done the actual construction of the building which was soon enlarged to four classrooms. Teachers were John Carney, Mae Camey, and Josie Waters. Other instructors during these early years included H.H. Anderson, Jessie Wells (1919-20), Jennie Cantrell, S.L. Jackson (principal 1916-18), Martha Holbrook (1916-18), Esther Crowe (1916-17), and Nettie Gladden (1917-18).
Talk of a new school began in 1920 and a new facility became a necessity in 1921 when the old building was destroyed by fire. A bond issue passed and financing for the new school was secured. Elementary students attended classes in the Chatsworth churches while high school students went to Spring Place. In 1922 an 18-acre tract of land was purchased from T.H. Moreland for $1,700 and additional property was obtained from Mrs. W.W. Mullinax in 1924 the same year that Mt. Zion school was consolidated with Chatsworth. The new three-story brick structure featured an auditorium on the third floor and opened in 1923. It also housed the new Chatsworth High School as well as the Grammar School. The school was accredited in 1925.
Murray County Heritage