| initial
idea behind the school was that of an experiment station where new ideas
could be tried, proven and recorded. According to an early handbook, the
school had 12 acres of land set aside for such experimentation.
Demonstration
Farm
In 1927,
according to Goggans, the state legislature passed a law that state
secondary schools were to have demonstration farms.
A farm
consisting of 120 acres was purchased from the Burleson family.
Appropriate buildings and facilities were constructed on the premises.
The dollar amount for purchasing the land and making the necessary
improvements was approximately $30,000.
The farm
remained in use until 1941, when it was purchased by the Guyton family.
Continuing
Education
Not all
of the students went back to work on their family farms when they
graduated from the agricultural school.
Many of
them went on to enroll at Alabama Polytechnic Institute, which is now
Auburn University. Through his research, Goggans learned that graduates
of the West Alabama Agricultural School were permitted to enter the
Institute’s junior class without examination.
In 1914,
approximately 20 graduates of the Hamilton school were enrolled in
Auburn.
New
Building, New Name
The 1917
school year saw a new building for the ever growing number of students
at West Alabama Agricultural School. The first building burned the
previous year. The new building, recalled Goggans, was three stories
tall and was made of brick and concrete. It had 21 rooms and cost
approximately $30,000 to construct.
In 1919,
the name of the school was changed from West Alabama Agricultural School
to State Secondary Agricultural School. Not much information is
available concerning the name change. The curriculum did not see any
obvious changes.
Goggans
said that the state began to have more involvement in governing the
school as the state’s education department was evolving.
The name
changed again in 1936 to its present name, Hamilton High School. At this
time, Goggans noted that the school’s focus shifted to a more academic
and vocational purpose.
The
second building burned in 1959. The current building was completed in
time for the graduation of the Class of 1961.
Aggie
Football
Many
suspect that the nickname of "Aggies" came about when the
school began a football team in 1911.
Goggans
noted in his history that Principal Harvey Owen Sargent organized the
team, which did not play a game during their first season. In fact, the
team’s only endeavor was marching in a parade in the rain. The team
went on to become more organized and well-known.
Goggans
recalled that the present stadium at the high school was constructed in
the 1940s and was named for the founder of football at the school.
Consolidation
As
transportation became more reliable and more readily available, many of
the smaller schools in Marion County began to close.
At first
only the upper grades were consolidated with the secondary school in
Hamilton and other schools in neighboring towns. Many of the elementary
schools remained open for decades. Goggans said that at one time there
were approximately 80 schools located in Marion County.
As it now
stands, there are schools located in each of county’s six larger
municipalities—Bear Creek, Brilliant, Guin, Hackleburg, Hamilton and
Winfield.
"Famous"
Graduate
Many
Co-op folks know Steve Lann, the manager of the Marion County Co-op in
Hamilton. He graduated from Hamilton High in 1988. Lann was the 2006
recipient of the E.P Garrett Award, otherwise known as AFC’s Manager
of the Year award.
Contact
Information
Goggans
was a teacher, an assistant principal and the principal of Hamilton High
School for 36 of his 39 years as an educator.
Persons
interested in learning more about the school or those with information
to share may contact Goggans by calling (205) 921-3633. His mailing
address is P.O. Box 1684, Hamilton, AL 35570.
Susie Sims is a
freelance writer from Haleyville. |
