Red Bay in Franklin County, Alabama — The American South (East South Central)

Red Bay School

Photographed by Sandra Hughes, October 1, 2013

1. Red Bay School Marker

Inscription. The first school building was built around 1900 by local citizens. The building was located just across from the Methodist Church. The building was a one-room structure & there were 2 teachers who taught at the school. All pupils walked to school & had to walk to a spring to get their water. The next Red Bay School was located where our Bay Tree Park is now. That school was also a white frame building. The school was described as having four rooms downstairs, three rooms upstairs, & an auditorium. By 1910, there were 6 teachers in that school. Red Bay did not have a 12th grade. This school burned in 1926. Classes were held in the churches in town & in the old theater building while the new school was being built. The new building, unlike the buildings before, was brick. In this new school building, grades 1-12 were taught. This was Red Bay's 1st high school. It opened in 1927-28.

In the 1930's the agriculture & home economics building was constructed. As enrollment increased, extra classrooms & a lunchroom were added. In 1949 a gymnasium was added. The junior high building & lunchroom were added in the mid 1950's.

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Nov 27, 1967, the 40-year-old building burned. Again, Classes were held in churches & the Masonic Hall. A new modern elementary building was completed in 1969. The combined acreage of the Red Bay School Campus is approx. 40 acres. Red Bay has an outstanding educational & athletic program. The school lunchroom offers a nutritious breakfast as well as lunch.

Topics. This historical marker is listed in these topic lists: Charity & Public Work • Education. A significant historical month for this entry is October 1945.

Location. 34° 26.471′ N, 88° 8.644′ W. Marker is in Red Bay, Alabama, in Franklin County. It is at the intersection of 1st Street Southeast and 4th Avenue South (Alabama Route 24), on the right when traveling north on 1st Street Southeast. Touch for map. Marker is in this post office area: Red Bay AL 35582, United States of America. Touch for directions.

Regionally, this marker is in North Alabama.

It is also in the American South,

specifically in the Deep South,

in Appalachia,

and specifically in Southern Appalachia. Globally, it is in North America,

a Gulf of Mexico state,

the Western Hemisphere,

the Western World,

Photographed by Sandra Hughes, October 1, 2013

2. Red Bay School Marker

and the Anglosphere.

Historically, it finds itself in what was once the territory of the Mississippian Culture,

one of the Confederate States of America,

and the Antebellum South.

Other nearby markers. At least 8 other markers are within 7 miles of this marker, measured as the crow flies: Red Bay Depot & Hotel (about 300 feet away, measured in a direct line); Yarber Grist Mill (about 300 feet away); Bay Theater (about 300 feet away); Red Bay Ice and Gin Company (about 300 feet away); The Calaboose (about 300 feet away); Pride in Our Past, Faith in Our Future (about 500 feet away); Mac McAnally (approx. 6.2 miles away in Mississippi); Carl Atwood Elliott (approx. 6½ miles away). Touch for a list and map of all markers in Red Bay.

Photographed by Sandra Hughes, October 1, 2013

3. Red Bay School Marker

Red Bay School desk image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sandra Hughes, October 1, 2013

4. Red Bay School desk

Can be seen at Red Bay Museum

Photographed by Sandra Hughes, October 1, 2013

5. Red Bay School desk

Can be seen at Red Bay Museum

Red Bay School Teachers Desk image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sandra Hughes, October 1, 2013

6. Red Bay School Teachers Desk

Can be seen at Red Bay Museum

Red Bay School band uniforms image. Click for full size.

Photographed by Sandra Hughes, October 1, 2013

7. Red Bay School band uniforms

Can be seen at Red Bay Museum

Credits. This page was last revised on June 16, 2016. It was originally submitted on October 3, 2013, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. This page has been viewed 1,355 times since then and 56 times this year. Last updated on May 26, 2015, by J. Makali Bruton of Washington, District of Columbia. Photos: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7. submitted on October 3, 2013, by Sandra Hughes Tidwell of Killen, Alabama, USA. • Bernard Fisher was the editor who published this page.