Castle Heights Military Academy was a private military academy in Lebanon, Tennessee, United States. It opened in 1902 and became a military school in 1918. The school closed in 1986. Its former campus was placed on the National Register of Historic Places as the Castle Heights Academy Historic District in 1996.
| Castle Heights Military Academy | |
|---|---|
| Address | |
 | |
200 North Castle Heights Avenue , , 37087 United States | |
| Information | |
| Former name | Castle Heights School |
| School type | Private Military |
| Founded | 1902 |
| Closed | 1986 |
History
editThe academy was founded in 1902 as Castle Heights School outside of Lebanon, Tennessee.[1][2][3] Its founders were David Mitchell, president of Cumberland University; Isaac W. P. Buchanan, a mathematics teacher at the recenlty defunct Cumberland Preparatory School; Amzi W. Hooker, a resident of Lebanon; and Laban Lacy Rice, a former English instructor at the Cumberland Preparatory School.[4][5][2][6][1]
Rice served as the school's headmaster and was later president of Cumberland University. Buchanan taught mathematics at the school and was later its business manager and headmaster.[7] The academy was initially coeducational and had 96 boarding students.[3][2] It became a military preparatory school for boys in 1918 as a response to World War I.[2][1] By the next year, the military academy had 415 cadets.[3]
In 1928, Castle Heights Military Academy struggled financially and was bought for $100,000 by Bernarr Macfadden, a millionaire publisher. physical trainer, and nationally known fitness advocate.[3][8] He hired Harry L. Armstrong as the academy's superintendent, and Daniel Taylor Ingram, a Virginia Military Inistitute graduate and former assistant commandant of Fishburne Military School, as its commandant.[3] Macfadden required the students to eat salads every day, not to use condiments or pillows, to participate in sports, and to drink so much milk that the school acquired a dairy.[8] He also introduced boxing and wrestling programs.[3] Students' height and weight appeared on their monthly report cards.[8]
In 1954, the school had grown to almost 500 students and operated a summer camp.[2] After Mcfadden's died in 1955, the academy was operated by The Bernarr Macfadden Foundation.[8] Sanford Naval Academy was founded in Sanford, Florida, as a sister institution in 1963.[9] In 1965, Ingram became the academy's superintendent, after serving as its commandant since 1929.[3]
In 1973, the school began admitting female day students.[1] The Castle Heights Foundation purchased the school in 1974.[1] The school ceased operations in 1986 in the face of declining enrollment and debt.[4][10] Cumberland University maintains records and other school memorabilia.[4]
Many of the former academy's buildings have been restored and now house the Lebanon City Hall, Lebanon Museum and History Center, and other small businesses. Previously undeveloped areas of campus have been subdivided and now are the location of businesses, such as banks and nursing homes. The Mitchell House served as the headquarters of the holding company for Cracker Barrel Old Country Store from 1998 to 2013. It was purchased by Sigma Pi fraternity in 2013 and served as its international headquarters until 2017.[11]
Campus
editCastle Heights Academy's administrative building was designed by architect Tom Chamberlain in the Gothic Revival style in 1902.[12][1] The Queen Anne style president's house was building in 1902, west the administrative building.[1] Rutherford Parks Library and Mildred Armstrong Hospital were added in 1905, both in collegiate gothic style.[1]
An auditorium and gymnasium were built in 1928 and named for the school's owner, Bernarr Macfadden. The Mitchell House, the former home of founder David Mitchell, was purchased by the school in 1936 and used to house the junior school; it was called Macfadden Hall.[1] Behind the Mitchell House was a springhouse that was used for gun storage.[1] The campus included 150 acres and was expanded to 225 acres in the 1930s.[2][1] The McFadden Foundation Auditorium was added to the campus in 1941.[1]
The campus was added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Castle Heights Academy Historic District in 1996.[13]
Notable alumni
edit- Duane Allman (1961) founder and member of The Allman Brothers Band[14][15][3]
- Gregg Allman (1963), founder and member of The Allman Brothers Band[14][15][3]
- Rex Armistead, investigator of the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission and controversial private detection involved in the Arkansas Project
- Lynn Bomar, professional football player
- J. Wyeth Chandler, Mayor of Memphis, 1972-1982
- Wesley Clark, general in the United States Army and U.S. European NATO commander[2]
- Herb Covington, football player of Centre College
- Roger Davis, (born April 5, 1939) is an actor and entrepreneur[16]
- William Dudley, competition swimmer who represented the United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics
- Dan Evins, co-founder of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store[5]
- Gary Gannaway, businessman, entrepreneur, and philanthropist
- Max Hardberger, adventurer, ship recovery specialist, admiralty lawyer, and author of maritime fiction and nonfiction adventures
- Allison B. Humphreys, justice of the Tennessee Supreme Court
- Dewey Lambdin, novelist[17]
- Lance W. Lord, general in the United States Air Force[18]
- Thomas P. McKenna, United States Army officer and author
- Gilbert S. Merritt Jr., United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 1977 to 2022[19]
- Reid Moseley, All-American college football for Georgia Bulldogs football
- Pete Rademacher, heavyweight boxer[20]
- Victor R. Steeh, member of the Michigan House of Representatives
- Willard Steele, college football player and physician
- Steve Stephens, broadcasting pioneer in Arkansas
- John Tidwell, member of the Tennessee House of Representatives
- Banks Turner, member of the Tennessee General Assembly
- Herbert S. Walters, member of the United States Senate[2]
See also
editReferences
edit- James A. Crutchfield, Hail, Castle Heights! An Illustrated History of Castle Heights School and Castle Heights Military Academy, Castle Heights Alumni Association (2003). ISBN 0-944275-12-5
- ^ a b c d e f g h i j k l Stager, Claudette. "Castle Heights Military Academey". SAH Archipedia. Gabrielle Esperdy and Karen Kingsley, editors. Society of Architectural Historians/University of Virginia Press. Accessed June 16, 2024.
- ^ a b c d e f g h "Preparatory Academies and Vanderbilt University: Castle Heights Military Academy, 1902–1986". Vanderbilt University Special Collections. August 24, 2006. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
- ^ a b c d e f g h i Coulter, John A. (2017-03-24). Cadets on Campus: History of Military Schools of the United States. Texas A&M University Press. pp. 203–204. ISBN 978-1-62349-521-3 – via Google Books.
- ^ a b c "Lebanon, Tennessee: A Tour of Our City" (PDF). Lebanon/Wilson County Chamber of Commerce. Archived from the original (PDF) on June 15, 2007. Retrieved February 5, 2007.
- ^ a b "Meet Your Neighbor". The Wilson Post: Wilson Living Magazine. January 4, 2009. Archived from the original on September 14, 2016. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
- ^ "Military Academy Founder Dies". St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Associated Press. December 26, 1943. p. 2.
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places Inventory--Nomination Form: I.W.P. Buchanan House". National Park Service. United States Department of the Interior. Retrieved June 16, 2024.
- ^ a b c d Beck, Ken (April 29, 2009). "The fanatical millionaire who saved Castle Heights". The Wilson Post (Mark Adams, Mr. America: How Muscular Millionaire Bernarr Macfadden Transformed the Nation Through Sex, Salad, and the Ultimate Starvation Diet).
- ^ Langdord, David L. (December 22, 1970). "Military Schools Are Facing Problems, Some Close Doors". Ludington Daily News. United Press International. p. 7.
- ^ Eblen, Tom (September 3, 1986). "Military schools enjoying comeback in South". The Tuscaloosa News. Cox News Service. p. 17.
- ^ "Sigma Pi buys Mitchell House". The Wilson Post. Lebanon, Tennessee. November 6, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places - Tennessee (TN), Wilson County". National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
- ^ "National Register of Historic Places - Tennessee (TN), Wilson County". National Register of Historic Places. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
- ^ a b Beck, Ken (March 1, 2013). "Gregg Allman lets it all hang out". The Wilson Post.
- ^ a b "Castle Heights: Inside the Allman Brothers' formative years in Tennessee". WKRN News 2. 2024-03-14. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
- ^ "Roger Davis Biography". www.dfwretroplex.com. May 2023. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
- ^ "Dewey Lambdin, II Obituary 2021". Walters Funeral Home. Retrieved 2024-06-16.
- ^ "Heights National Alumni Association Newsletter" (PDF). Castle Heights Military Academy. June 2015. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
- ^ Hunt, Keel (2023-01-17). A Sense of Justice: Judge Gilbert S. Merritt and His Times. Turner Publishing Company. ISBN 978-1-5131-4136-7 – via Google Books.
- ^ Borrone, Bert (July 31, 1957). "Suspicion Grows That Marciano Is Using Role As Coach Of Rademacher As Stepping Stone To Comeback Try". Park City Daily News. Bowling Green, Kentucky. p. 13.
External links
edit- Alumni association
- National Register of Historic Places entry for Castle Heights