Cedar Knob School, c. 1932
Annie
Delzie Jackson
Cedar Valley School
Elm Springs School (Gooseneck), c. 1929
Prairie Dell School, c. 1929
Willingham Springs School
A Brief History of Salado Schools
In 1924, after a third fire, the walls of the old Salado College had begun to crumble and it was decided not to rebuild.
In order to fill the need for a school, the heirs of William K.
Hamblen gave 4.611 acres of the
Young Williams Survey on the condition that it would be used for educational
purposes or the land
would revert back to the Hamblen family. The 4.611 acres was the site of the
Hamblen home at the
corner of Main Street and Van Bibber Lane. The Hamblen family donated the land
in memory of Mr. Hamblen.
Construction was completed on a two-story brick building in 1924
and the cornerstone was laid on
September 20 that same year. Trustees at the time were J.T. Douglas, president;
Charles E.
Johnson, secretary; Carl Aiken, Harry Allamon, Arthur W. Capps, B.B. Dunlap
and W.J. Tyson.
Unfortunately, the transfer of deed for the land to the Salado Public School
was never recorded and
when the building went unused for classrooms in the early 1980s, there were
legal maneuverings to
allow the school to retain title to the land. As a result, in February 1985,
the transfer of deed was
made from the heirs of William K. Hamblen to the Salado Independent School District.
(1)
The Salado Rural School District #120 was formed on July 23, 1929,
consolidating Salado with the rural
districts of Amity #1; Bell Plains #73; Elm Springs #17, also known as Gooseneck;
Prairie Dell #65;
and Willingham Springs #14.
Cedar Knob, Cedar Valley and Union Grove consolidated later.
The consolidated districts were declared the Salado Independent School District
on May 19, 1934 by the
Bell County School Board.
The old Union Grove School building was moved to Salado and used for high school
ag classes
from 1950 until the school was closed. The old Willingham Springs school building
is presently at
the site of the Willingham Springs Baptist Church. (2)
The old Union Grove school building currently houses The Salado
Art Center, which sits on
Salado Civic Center (The “Old Red School”) property.
The Thomas Arnold Elementary School was built in 1967 at a cost
of $105,000. The Salado High
School building, costing $1,183,474, was opened for classes in the fall of 1979.
Additional
classrooms and a cafeteria were added to the elementary school and completed
in 1983.
In 2008, a new high school was dedicated northwest of Salado at the corner of
FM 2484 and Williams Road.
(1) Story of Bell County, Texas, Vol. 1, Bell
County Historical Commission, E.A. Limmer Jr., editor-in-chief, 1988, p. 181.
(2) History of Bell County Public Schools 1854-1976, Temple-Bell
Retired Teachers Association Bicentennial project, 1976.
Additional information was obtained from the minutes of Salado School Board
meetings and other sources,
which was researched and compiled by Patricia A. Barton.
Click on the Link for each school to see more pictures and information.
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Cedar Knob School, c. 1932 |
Annie
Delzie Jackson
Cedar Valley School |
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Elm Springs School (Gooseneck), c. 1929 |
Prairie Dell School, c. 1929 |
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Willingham Springs School |
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