Chuckatuck Military Academy
The Chuckatuck Military Academy is one of only 815 military schools to have operated in the United States since 1802. This format of education was popular until the advent of the Vietnam War. With the establishment of the Virginia Military Institute (1839) and, to a lesser degree, the Military College of South Carolina (The Citadel) (1841), the number of military schools in the South expanded rapidly. In fact, between the opening of the Virginia Military Institute and the start of the Civil War, at least thirty military schools were opened in Virginia.
James Jasper Phillips graduated from the Virginia Military Institute’s Class of 1853. He had worked there for six months after graduation as an assistant math professor and went on to teach for a short time at the Glebe School in Norfolk County. In June 1854, he started the Chuckatuck Military Academy with 28 males and 20 females. He adopted the demerit system of VMI “as near as it can be applied to a school like mine and…works like a charm.” Males were uniformed in military cadet gray in a style that appeared to be a combination of the VMI class and dress uniforms of the period. The school was primarily known for its female students as the Chuckatuck Male and Female Institute. In turn, you will see references to the school historically, such as the Chuckatuck Military Institute.
An 1857 letter from Robert Lawrence to his son George Lawrence stated, “The Chuckatuck Military Institute is changed to a Female School under the control of Jas. J. Phillips. Its success is doubtful, with only a dozen or so boarders. He employs Miss Kate (Kate Cowling), who taught at Densons, and Miss Mary Virginia Powell.”
In January 1857, the school became all male, but in the fall of 1857* until June of 1859, the school under James Phillips’s leadership as Principal was operated as a girls’ school. The school was called the Chuckatuck Female Institute and was housed in the Masonic Hall, which James Phillips had purchased. He was assisted by a Miss Powell and a Miss Cate, “ladies of distinguished ability, experience, and popularity.” James Phillips’ library supported the school and a demerit system to maintain “good order and strict discipline.” According to a letter to the Virginia Military Institute superintendent, Phillips found himself in financial problems and reopened the school as a female boarding school, which he stated was needed in the area and would be financially successful. (Chuckatuck Female Institute, 1857, pp. 1,6-7).
On June 26, 1859, the school resumed as a military school and operated as such until approximately May 1861. The Civil War ended the school’s operation, and its principal, James Phillips, enlisted as Captain of Chuckatuck Light Artillery Battery, which later became F Company, 9th Virginia Infantry Regiment.
The effectiveness of the education provided by the schools is reflected in several ways. First, according to the Virginia Research Center for Archaeology of Virginia, the Chuckatuck Male and Female Institute made the town into an “education center” (Virginia Research Center for Archaeology, 1991, p. 11). In 1857, graduates were sent to West Point, Lynchburg College, and Virginia Military Institute. Second, an example of its graduates included Richard L. Williams, a member of the Yale Class of 1863 who later became a math professor at Starville Female Institute in Texas. Other graduates known to have gone to Virginia Military Institute’s Class of 1860 are Oliver H. Butts, Walter A. Lawrence, Charles F. Urquhart, and Joseph Boykin Whitehead. Several other members of the same Chuckatuck graduating class are known only by last names: Murfee, Durfleet, McAlister, and Richardson. Sadly, Walter A. Lawrence, Richard L. Williams, and Charles F. Urquhart all died in Confederate Military service during the war.
James J. Phillips rose to the rank of Colonel and commander of the 9th Virginia. He was wounded twice during Pickett’s Charge at Gettysburg and captured at the last battle of the Civil War, the Battle of Saylor’s Creek. After the war, he was a very successful businessman, moved to New York, was the first President of the National League of Commission Merchants of the United States, and became the President of the New York Board of Trade. In a letter to VMI, he was described as “a man and a soldier who possessed great personal magnetism. Gallant soldier, upright merchant, courteous, cultivated gentleman, and scholar, pure in heart, clear in speech, fearing none but God…” (Phillips, L.E., 1908)
Reference:
Allardice, B.S. (2008) Confederate Colonels: A Biographical Register. Columbia, MO: University of Missouri Press.
Chuckatuck Female Institute (1857). Circular of the Female Institute at Chuckatuck, Nansemond County. Norfolk, VA: Southern Argus Office.
Phillips, J (1855-1860). Letters of James Jasper Phillips, unpublished. Virginia Military Institute (VMI) Archives and copies in possession of Mrs. Billie Earnest.
Phillips, L.E. (1908) James Jasper Phillips’ obituary written for VMI. Telephone interviews with Mrs. Billie Earnest and the author.
Rose, L. (2011). Telephone interviews with Mrs. Billie Earnest and the author.
Trask, B. (1984). 9th Virginia Infantry. Lynchburg, VA: H.E. Howard Inc.
VMI Archives (2011) Biographies of Oliver H. Butts, Walter A. Lawrence, James J Phillips, Charles F. Urquhart, Joseph Boykin Whitehead. Retrieved from VMI Archive Roster
Yale Class of 1863 (1889) A History of the Class of 1863 Yale College, New York. Aster Place, NY: J.J. Little & Co.
Virginia Research Center for Archaeology (1991). Notes on Virginia. Issues 36-39.
Chuckatuck Male and Female Institute
Researched and written by Lynn K. Rose
The Chuckatuck Male and Female Institute was formed in 1855. It was founded by James Jasper Phillips, later a Colonel in the Civil War. An 1851 graduate of VMI, he sent many male students there. The school he established was thought to have been located first at his home next to Wesley Chapel Church and later next to the Masonic Hall in Chuckatuck. The latter building came to be known as the Village or Black Hall and was used for school functions as late as the 1930s. At the outbreak of the war, Co. Phillips formed a unit that included young men who had been his students. By 1857, the Institute had become a female boarding school, offering courses that ranged from Italian languages and literature to ornamental needlework. Frank Spady Sr.’s grandmother, Maggie Mae Pitt, and her sister, Mary Lou Pitt, attended a female academy next to Wesley Chapel in the late 1900s. Mr. Phillips’ former home burned, and now, four homes sit on the large lot.
The earliest schooling outside the home for some of my ancestors at Everets came from a neighbor and teacher, Miss Kate Cowling, sister to Miss Mollie. In the early 1880s, my great-grandfather, John J. Kirk, and a neighbor, Mr. Claude Minton, hired a teacher for the children of both families. A small schoolhouse was built near the Kirk home. The teacher, Miss Suzy Gilliam, lived with each family for two years. After the Minton children finished school, the teacher continued teaching my grandfather and his two sisters for two more years. She was provided with room and board, plus $7 or $8 per month. Later, these children attended a school in Isle of Wight County, probably the same one Dr. Newman attended. Miss Gilliam also taught at this school. One of Lynn Rose’s great aunts, Emma Paul Kirk, went to school for two years at the Suffolk Collegiate Institute and two years at the Southern Female College in Petersburg before returning to Everets in 1902 to teach for $25 a month.
Christian Home School
The Christian Home School was built on two acres of land in the eastern part of Isle of Wight County between Longview and Everets. The Isle of Wight County School Board purchased the land from B. P. Chapman in 1921 for $400. Part of the funding for an earlier Christian Home School at this location came from Julius Rosenwald, a former Sears, Roebuck, and Company president, who contributed $4.3 million to build more than 4,000 schools across the South for black students. Black communities raised another $4.7 million in matching funds to build the schools. This 1932 addition was made to the original Christian Home School after community members raised their own money and petitioned the county for money to expand the school. The strong support of the Christian Home community made certain that the educational opportunities would be available for the area youth. Two of the principals who served here were Mr. Elgin Lowe and Mr. Tate. This addition was moved to the historic district of Smithfield in 2004 and has been renovated and opened as a museum. The Schoolhouse Museum, which opened in 2007, is an excellent example of an early one-room school. Additional information about the school, including oral interviews of former students, is available at www.theschoolhousemuseum.org. Credit – The Schoolhouse Museum.
Chuckatuck High School
Chuckatuck High School, completed in 1924, was a consolidated high school built to serve students from Chuckatuck, Crittenden, Driver and Kings Fork elementary schools. The two-story building continued to serve the elementary school students after 1924.
Four students were in the first graduating class in 1925: Kathleen Brough, Eugenia Eley, Marion Saunders, and Alice Lee Underwood.
The 1925 annual was professionally printed and contains many pictures by Hamblin’s Studio. The next annual that I saw was handmade for the Class of 1940. The school complex eventually included a gymnasium, built in 1927, a cafeteria, a shop, and a bus garage. Eleven grades were expanded to twelve grades after the 1957 graduating class.
Principals between 1911 and 1919 included B. P. Tillery, G. W. Booth and W. S. Brent. Herbert L. Duff was principal for one year, 1924-1925. Mr. Christopher then served from 1925 to 1947. He was followed by Gordon Brooks (1947-1949), Turnbull Gillette (1949-1951), Lewis F. Morris (1951-1964) and Lewis Melton (1964-1965).
Mr. Christopher and Mr. Morris were firm disciplinarians who stayed in Chuckatuck long enough to mold many young minds. One of those young minds was that of Drex Bradshaw, who learned that throwing an eraser was unacceptable in school. Although Drex was punished by having to throw an eraser from Chuckatuck to Sandy Bottom and back, noting how many times he had thrown the eraser, it was not his fault, according to Drex, but that of his best friend, Arthur Raine.
While some schools in Virginia closed due to integration in the late 1950s and early 1960s, Nansemond County schools remained open. In the fall of 1965, when Nansemond County started the “Freedom of Choice” program, students were able to select the school they wanted to attend. However, most schools remained segregated, and zoning and busing were implemented in the fall of 1972 to achieve full integration as required by law. Integration in the Chuckatuck area was completed without much fanfare.
The class of 1965 was the last class to graduate from Chuckatuck High School. In the fall of 1965, John Yeates High School near Driver replaced Chuckatuck. At that time, Mr. W. N. Rippey retired with the longest tenure, having been with the school since 1927.
The school was then converted into Chuckatuck Middle School, which closed in 1977.
The complex was bought by Saunders Supply Company in 1981 and reopened in 1982 as a lumber and hardware supply store. The gymnasium is used as a warehouse, and the City of Suffolk uses the cafeteria as a branch library. The early two-story school was demolished in 1987. The community is very appreciative of Mr. Al Saunders and his business partners for their vision, which allowed Chuckatuck High School to remain in more than just our memories.
Chuckatuck School (< 1924)
Researched and written by Lynn K. Rose
The original Chuckatuck School is believed to have been built between 1890 and 1900. The Biennial Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction of the Commonwealth of Virginia for the School Years 1903-1904 and 1904- 1905 listed the Chuckatuck Graded School as a “Public Graded School Teaching Some High School Branches.” The principal in 1905 was Mrs. Kate S. Byrd. This older two story building once served area students in all grades who often arrived by horse and buggy, housing their horses in a stable at the school. Ercile Beale Haughwout said she and her siblings would carry horse feed in the cart for the middle of the day.
To show modes of transportation for early students, we quote from an article published by the Daily Press on May 7, 1961, about the retirement of Lucien Hall, Isle of Wight superintendent for 40 years. “The first bus or truck used, in 1917, was a rented vehicle and the first modern bus was purchased in 1927. Previously, wagons were used. The ‘kid wagons’ were canvas-topped farm vehicles drawn by one auto or two teams transporting up to 20 students”. Nansemond County would have used similar vehicles. There is a picture of such a wagon in our Chuckatuck High School pictures.
Of course, many children did not have the luxury of riding to school. I’ve been told of students who walked from near Longview to Chuckatuck, taking a shortcut across the ravine between what is now Longview Drive and Route 10. Often, paths from the homes on the rivers and creeks were very long, and children had to walk to the highway to catch the bus. I was told of little Marion Saunders, CHS Class of 1925, keeping her school shoes in a hollow of a tree near what is now Everets Road so she would have clean shoes to put on after walking from her family home on Everets Creek. Until the 1950s, it was not uncommon for students to work on farms during part of the school year, often remaining at home. In 1943, there were two freshman classes, but only one class for each of the upper classes, mainly because the older students were old enough to go to work. Even in the 1950s, Nansemond County buses still had to travel over many dirt roads. It was not uncommon for classes to be dismissed early on rainy days due to concerns about the safety of the buses and the children.
The following is quoted from the journal of Stokes Kirk. “While I was in high school at Chuckatuck, we had very good teachers – F. H. (“Cutie”) Christopher, Miss Ames (sister of Ed Ames), Miss Shreves and Miss Douglas. Some of the teachers roomed with the Dr. L. L. Eley’s. Students drove the three school buses. W. G. Saunders, Jr. drove the first bus from the Everets area to Chuckatuck. It was no more than a flatbed truck with a side and top and benches. Later, Bus #2 was bought by the school board and was driven by a Spivey girl from Milner’s Neck. Evelyn Saunders drove it during the school year 1927-28. 1928-29, I drove the bus until December when I broke my arm trying to crank it. I lost about three weeks. Dad put a starter on it out of his pocket and I had no more trouble. The 1929 Chuckatuck graduating class had two girls – Mary Holland and Mildred Godwin, seven boys – Alec Moore, Charles Gwaltney, Richard Rhodes, Norman Carson, Jack Gayle, Ray Furman, and me.”
EvereTt’s Bridge School
Researched and written by Lynn K. Rose
The Everett’s Bridge School building still exists today and is owned by Lewis Morgan. This building was once located in the yard of the T. J. Saunders’ home and also across from the home near the current Lake Burnt Mill. Lynn Rose has two desks from the school, a picture of the school that was taken about 1913, a picture of students, and a report card. Some of the families that attended the school were the Prudens, Edwards, and Saunders (W.G. and T.J., Jr.). The Nansemond County High and Graded Schools included Everett’s Bridge School as late as 1916. It had closed by 1924.
Oakland School
The village of Chuckatuck is fortunate to still have one of its first schools. The current Oakland Elementary School is built around an earlier Oakland School, a former school for blacks in Chuckatuck. In addition to serving our young people as a school, it also offers after-school activities in the community for all ages. (pics of Oakland School and activities)
After a conversation with Mrs. Clarice Graves Whitfield, the information revealed that there was a one-room school for Black children to attend in Oakland. Mrs. Maude Graves, her mother, attended such a school. John Lee Wilson was born in 1917 in Oakland, Nansemond County, Virginia. He attended school until third grade. During that time frame, the school that he, Mrs. Graves, and other children attended was not part of the Nansemond County School system. According to an article in the Virginian Pilot, dated 8-28-97, “New Oakland Elementary School keeps some roots to its history.” In 1929, the Nansemond County School Board built a four-room school, Oakland Elementary. This school was opened for African American children in the Oakland Community. The school had potbelly coal stoves for heat; windows were open, and notebook fans helped keep cool in warm and hot weather. Water was supplied by a pump at Mrs. Bland's house next door when the school pump broke down. Eventually, the school hooked up to the community water system.
The school had plenty of clear ground and wooded areas close by. The children played games such as baseball, hide and seek, running races, bobby jacks, hopscotch, cowboys and Indians dodgeball, jump rope, and other activities. In the early 1950s, the Parent-Teacher Association designated a committee to approach the school board to request playground equipment for the children. The request was granted, and a swing, slide, and merry-go-round were installed. A daily exercise done by all of the community children was walking to and from school. Until the new Oakland Elementary School was built, the students went home for lunch or brought a bag lunch to school. On special occasions, the class members would bring hot dogs with all the fixings, potato chips, cookies, Kool-Aid, and so forth to have a class party. At other times, they would bring canned milk, sugar, eggs, and flavor to make and freeze ice cream (made by Mary Wilson-Copeland).
The classes would put on plays for Christmas, school closing, and Black History Week programs. Every school morning began with School Devotions, which included Singing, Bible Verses, and Prayer. Since two grades were in the same room, students could listen in on the other class's lessons. Sevella Wilson-Barcliff did this. She was proficient enough to do her class work and that of the class ahead of her, and she passed from fourth grade to sixth grade (she was tested entirely before such a move was made).
Many students completed Oakland Elementary School and attended East Suffolk High School. Some of those who attended college and/ or received college degrees were Miss Ira Johnson, Mr. George Lewis Cowling, Ms. Dorothy Cowling, Ms. Helen Glover, Dr. Bernard Glover, Mr. Lindwood Edwards, and Mr. Shaderick Brown. Dr. Thomas Brown, Mr. Leroy Porter, Lawyer Leslie Smith (who was murdered in Washington, D.C., in the prime of his career), Savannah Williams, Mary N. Wilson-Copeland, Larry Boothe, Joan Boothe-White, Sevella Wilson-Barcliff, Lorine Wilson-Watkins, Azurea Robinson-White, S. Eugene Porter, Rev. Ollie Wilson, and others.
Some of the teachers who taught at the school were: Ms. Lena Bonds, Ms. Mary S Lawrence, Ms. Dorothy Diggs, Mrs. Evelyn K. Chapman, Ms. Ruth Steward, Ms. Clara Lee, Mr. Lindwood Edwards, Rev. Willie F. Evans (Principal), George Lewis Cowling, Ms. Ira D. Johnson, Ms. Simons (Principal), and others.
A Special Note: At the four-room Oakland Elementary School, Miss Leona Sevella Copeland, daughter of Mrs. Mary Wilson-Copeland, taught a fourth-grade class in the same room where her mother had been a student in the fourth grade.
Oakland Elementary School
Oakland Elementary School was the school the local children attended. According to records, it is known to have been open in the early 1900s. Many residents completed the Oakland Elementary School and then continued their education at East Suffolk High School in Suffolk. Some of those who attended college and who received Bachelor's Degrees were Miss Ira Johnson, Mr. George Lewis Cowling, Ms. Dorothy Cowling, and Ms. Helen Glover. Dr. Bernard Glover, S. Eugene Porter, Leroy Porter, Lawyer Leslie Smith (who was murdered in Washington, D.C., in the prime of his career), Savannah Williams, Mary N. Wilson-Copeland, Sevella Wilson-Barcliff, Lorine Wilson-Watkins, Azurea Robinson-White, Joan Boothe-White, Larry Boothe, Lindwood Edwards, Shaderack Brown, Thomas Brown, PhD, and others.
Sandy Bottom School
As the Diamond Grove Baptist Church and the Sandy Bottom community began to grow and flourish, the children needed to be formally educated. The parents and other members of the community came together to establish the first school. This school was located directly behind the church. As enrollment grew, a larger building was required, therefore, one was erected across the road in front of the church.
The teachers were the same at both schools: Ms. Daisy Ricks, Ms. Clara Banks, and Ms. Bertha Blizzard. The student enrollment also outgrew the second building. A community committee of citizens contacted the Nansemond County School Board, seeking to have an adequate structure built—one that would sufficiently accommodate the growing population. After some time, this dream became a reality. Sandy Bottom Elementary School, grades 1-7, was constructed and remained in existence for many years.
Sandy Bottom Elementary School was a haven for most students. They met their friends, played games, and enjoyed other activities while also completing their required subject matter. Through the years, the teachers were Ms. Annie Roberts, Ms. Bernice Owens, Ms. Priscilla Bullock, Ms. Cora Boone, Mr. Leroy Porter, Ms. Della Lawrence, Ms. Ruth Darden, Ms. Georgia Williams, Mrs. Bynum, and Mr. Lindwood Edwards.
Eventually, the Nansemond County School Board deemed it feasible to consolidate the schools in the Sandy Bottom, Hobson, and Oakland communities. The new school was located in Oakland and was named Oakland Elementary School to include grades 1-7. Later, Oakland Elementary was changed to accommodate grades K-5.
The students said their farewell to Sandy Bottom Elementary School in 1961. In 2011, the school remained in good condition and is currently owned and used by the Diamond Grove Baptist Church as its Fellowship Hall.
