Moments in Black History: C.C.T.S./Thompson High School
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The Coosa County Training School Elementary/Rosenwald Building. Photo submitted by Mamie Ellis
Booker T. Washington addressing an audience of educators and school agents outdoors in Coosa County at the July 12, 1915, event held at the old school in Cottage Grove. Photo submitted
Pictured at left is the Coosa County Training School/Rosenwald School, at center is the John Reuben Savage Bell Tower, and on the right is part of the old J.D. Thompson School building. Photo submitted
The bell tower located on the school grounds in front of the former J.D. Thompson High School building is a memorial for the school’s founder, John R. Savage. The C.C.T.S./J.D. Thompson Alumni Association has worked to upgrade the bell tower by adding bricks on the tower with the names of former students. Photo submitted by Mamie Ellis
Special to the News
The month of February is designated as Black History Month, a time when we look back and reflect on historical moments.
This is the perfect time to share some history about the Coosa County Training School – J. D. Thompson High School.
In 1899, Mr. John R. Savage came to Cottage Grove, Alabama, to start a school. When he arrived, there was a one-room log cabin school at Peace & Goodwill Baptist Church and a one-room log cabin school at New Home Baptist Church.
After meeting with residents in the area a committee was appointed to raise funds and purchase land to build a school. The Cottage Grove Industrial Academy opened in 1899. Savage died in 1910 before he could witness the completion of the work he started.
The important work started by Savage was realized in 1915, when the first county training school in the state of Alabama and the south was established at Cottage Grove.
That same year “…on July 12, about 2,500 people, many of them white, attended the dedication ceremony at Cottage Grove of two buildings at the Coosa County Central Training School for negroes. Mr. James L. Sibley, State Agent of Public Schools, provided the automobiles to transport dignitaries that were visiting from New York, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Alabama to witness the event in Coosa County. The building used as a dormitory for teachers and girls was dedicated ‘Margaret Washington Hall’ in honor of the wife of Dr. Booker T. Washington. The other building which was used for academic studies with a spacious chapel on the second floor was dedicated ‘The John R. Savage Hall.’ The principal of the school of Coosa County, Professor A. R. Jones, introduced Dr. Booker T. Washington, the speaker for the occasion, as thousands of negroes watched.” (Dedication of School at Cottage Grove Draws Large Attendance, “The Montgomery Advertiser,” July 13,1915, page 10)
In 2003 the Alabama Historical Commission listed Coosa County Training School on the Alabama Register of Landmarks and Heritage. The elementary building is an historic Rosenwald School built with funding provided by Julius Rosenwald, the then CEO of Sears, Roebuck and Company. There were many funding sources for southern schools such as philanthropic support from John Slater and the Rockefellers.
Three of the more memorable principals of the Coosa County Training School – J. D. Thompson High School included founder, John R. Savage; Mr. James Daniel Thompson, who the high school was later named for; and James D. Bennett, who was the principal when the high school closed in 1969.
There are several school structures that remain on the historic campus. Currently the white elementary building is the location for all inside events.
Savage is buried in a cemetery located on the school property, and the house he lived in and used as a post office is also in the area. The house that Thompson and Bennett lived in is also near the school.
The J. D. Thompson High School Alumni Association continues to honor our founder, educators and community leaders by “Preserving our Legacy while Restoring our Community.” We are committed to keeping the memories, heritage and history of the school and community alive with events and programs that educate, enrich and motivate all citizens and age groups.
Please help us in this effort by volunteering, attending community events and providing historical school information. Contact us at J. D. Thompson High School Alumni Association; P. O. Box 365; Rockford, AL 35136, or you may also visit our website at https://cctsjdtalumniassoc.wixsite.com/cctsjdtalumniassoc.
