Castle Heights Military Academy
Castle Heights Military Academy was a private military academy in Lebanon, Tennessee, United States. It opened in 1902, became a military school in 1918, and closed in 1986.
The Academy was founded in 1902 as Castle Heights School by David Mitchell, President of
In 1928, Castle Heights Military Academy was struggling financially and was bought for $100,000 by Bernarr Macfadden; the Bernarr Macfadden Foundation operated it until 1974. An auditorium and gymnasium were built and named for Macfadden, and Mitchell's house, purchased from his heirs in 1936 and used to house the junior school, was called Macfadden Hall. 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. Students' height and weight appeared on their monthly report cards.[5] In 1954 the school had grown to almost 500 students, had a 150-acre campus including a hospital, and operated a summer camp.[3] In 1963 Sanford Naval Academy was founded in Sanford, Florida, as a sister institution.[6]
Despite a return to coeducation in 1970,
Prominent alumni
- Gregg Allman and Duane Allman, founders and members of The Allman Brothers Band[9]
- Rex Armistead, investigator of the Mississippi State Sovereignty Commission and controversial private detection involved in the Arkansas Project
- Wesley Clark, general in the United States Army[3]
- Dan Evins, co-founder of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store[2]
- Lance W. Lord, general in the United States Air Force[10]
- Pete Rademacher, heavyweight boxer[11]
- Herbert S. Walters, US senator[3]
- John Wyeth Chandler, Mayor of Memphis, 1972-1982
- Rich Roberts, Entrepreneur, Franklin TN
- Roger Davis, (born April 5, 1939) is an American actor and entrepreneur.
References
- 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 "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.
- ^ a b c d e f "Preparatory Academies and Vanderbilt University: Castle Heights Military Academy, 1902–1986". Vanderbilt University Special Collections. August 24, 2006. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
- St. Petersburg Times. St. Petersburg, Florida. Associated Press. December 26, 1943. p. 2.
- ^ 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.
- Cox News Service. p. 17.
- ^ "Sigma Pi buys Mitchell House". The Wilson Post. Lebanon, Tennessee. November 6, 2013. Retrieved August 7, 2017.
- ^ Beck, Ken (March 1, 2013). "Gregg Allman lets it all hang out". The Wilson Post.
- ^ "Heights National Alumni Association Newsletter" (PDF). Castle Heights Military Academy. June 2015. Retrieved September 5, 2016.
- Park City Daily News. Bowling Green, Kentucky. p. 13.
13. Roger Davis biography. https://www.dfwretroplex.com/rogerdavis2.html
External links
- Alumni association
- National Register of Historic Places entry for Castle Heights
