HISTORY OF ALEXANDER SCHOOLS, INC.
1935-1945 – THE SECOND DECADE – Part 2
One of the best things that came to Union Mills and
Alexander Schools back in 1937 was the paving of the
highway through the village to Highway 221. Mr.
Sweatt and some of the community men had worked
hard to get the county to do this and what joy when the
job was done! No more mud holes, no more ruts to
almost stick vehicles, no more slick roads when a light
rain fell, no more dust in dry weather! We today can’t
think what it was prior to 1937.
The school had no swimming pool at this time, so
the boys went to nearby streams – mostly at “slick rock”
– or to the river for swimming. This privilege was
“officially” denied to the girls, but more than a few of
them still managed to find their way to the river from
time to time. When Coach Lance came to the school in
1938, one of his first projects was the construction of a
swimming pool. Selecting a spot in the woods at the
bottom of a hill behind the dining hall, and near a small
stream where the water flowed swift and clear, “Pop”
Lance and the older boys began construction of a cement and rock pool. Water for the pool came from the
stream, after first flowing through an extensive run of
rock-bottomed filtering and settling trenches. This pool
was used first in the summer of 1941, and continued in
use until 1960, when a more modern pool was constructed at its present site on the upper campus.
drivers because they were so kind to them. Mr. Keck
built a house on the hill beyond the pastorium, and in
the fifties he left the school. He now works as a typesetter for a daily paper in Shelby.
What use does a bachelor have for a big, two-story
house? Bachelor Sweatt began to build one in 1941,
and much suspicion was aroused if he was not paying
too much attention to one of his teachers, Miss George,
for there not to be some meaning behind it. In the
middle of the summer, invitations were sent out to their
wedding in August. The house was rushed to completion by the end of July, and he moved his belongings
from the dormitory room in the Morris Home for Boys
he had occupied since coming to Union Mills to his new
house. Of course Miss George was all a twitter as the
day approached. The wedding was in Round Hill Church
in the evening of August 3, the hottest day Union Mills
ever had, it seemed. They were married by Pastor, and
had a reception in the Community Club House immediately before they left on an extended honeymoon.
In the late thirties two young men came together to
the school. They were over age, but so were many others in those days. These were Arnold Keck, a cripple
because of an injury he received playing football in Junior High School. The other was Russell Lit
tle, who worked as an assistant cook in the kitchen after
he graduated. Only two years ago, without ever marrying, he died on the same morning Rex Hargrove did. He
was in Hickory and Rex was in High Point. After Arnold
graduated (he was secretly married before this time),
he went back to Hickory to live. He had taken the full
business course under Miss Reid and secured work
there as a secretary. About 1942 Miss Reid had worked
too long as secretary and teacher too; hence she gave
up the secretarial work. Then Mr. Sweatt turned to Arnold. After bringing his wife to look over the school situation, they decided they would come. Arnold proved
very efficient and faithful so that when Mr. Sweatt died,
the trustees made him Assistant Superintendent.
During several of those years when he was secretary,
Arnold, Mr. Ed Nanney, and Mr. Howard Monteith
drove the school buses. The children loved all of these
Mr. and Mrs. W.E. Sweatt – August 3, 1941
A tragedy that took place in ’44 was of widespread
results. That was the burning of the administration
building. On December 15 a Christmas program was
given in the chapel. This chapel was on the second
floor, and about eleven o’clock fire was discovered on
the second floor. Since there was no means of extinguishing the flames except by hand extinguishers, the
building burned. The office was on the first floor at the
front of the building, so some of the men saved a part
of the papers and equipment, but much was lost.
School books, library books, science equipment, etc.,
went into flames. Every teacher lost valuable personal
things. Effort was put forth immediately to refurnish
the things that were needed for graduation of the seniors of that year including library books, etc. The school
work continued by finding places to substitute for classrooms. It was a most inconvenient arrangement, but
everybody “stuck to his guns” and as soon as possible a
frame temporary school building was erected.
Pat Bentley and David
Hampton on walk – c. 1940
Mrs. W. E. Sweatt
Superintendent’s Home – home that Mr. Sweatt built
Administration building which burned in 1944
N. Newsome as teacher
in play, “The School of
Long Ago”

Receiving line at Senior Tea in Community Club House,
April 25, 1939. L to R: Miss George, Mr. Holler. Mr.
Cooper, Miss Newsome, Miss Reid, Miss Johnson, Mrs.
Holler, Mrs. Mashburn
Billy Kistler and Stuart
Henderson, 1940