As published by the Daily News Journal, Sunday, Sunday, May 20, 2012
By Greg Tucker, President of the Rutherford County Historical Society
“Those years at Central High were the happiest of my life,” remembers Oma Wilson McNabb. “But after Pearl Harbor, the mood at school was usually quite somber.”
The news of the attack was on the radio on Sunday afternoon, Dec. 7, recalls Evelyn Jones Turney.
“I had never before heard of Pearl Harbor, but on Monday, Dec. 8, 1941, I was in Mr. Jones’ history class in a basement room. He had his radio on and we all heard President Roosevelt declare war on Japan.” (War on Germany was declared on Dec.10, 1941.)
“We had classes as usual on that Monday,” according to McNabb, “but the boys were all talking about leaving and joining the military.”
John Womack remembers that the sale of U.S. saving stamps increased dramatically on that Monday.
“The 10-cent savings stamps had been available at school for some time, but on the day after the attack everybody was buying,” says Womack. “Supporting the war effort through purchase of U.S. savings stamps and war bonds was discussed and encouraged at the mid-morning chapel session.”
“We began each day at 8 a.m. in our ‘session room’ where the roll was taken,” explains McNabb. “We then had our first class in the same room. The second hour class was usually in another room, and then we all gathered for chapel. Principal J. C. Mitchell would lead a devotional and read a Bible verse. We would then hear remarks by Mitchell or a guest speaker, usually counseling hard work, study and good character. After a Christian prayer, we would be dismissed for lunch or our next class.”
Principal Mitchell is remembered as a conservative disciplinarian. “He was tall with gray hair and one bad eye,” according to Ida Dunaway Read.
“I was really frightened by Mr. Mitchell, he was so stern. I always avoided him. In four years at Central I never had a conversation with him,” recalls McNabb.
Another faculty member known for her “way of maintaining discipline” was Frances Hobgood, the Latin teacher. “She was a great role model and my favorite teacher,” explains McNabb, “but we knew not to talk or laugh in her class and to always be prepared with our lessons.”
In one class an inattentive boy aggravated Mrs. Hobgood to the point that “she slammed her book on the windowsill and the book slipped from her hand and flew out the window,” remembers McNabb. (The only air conditioning was a wide open window.) “She continued with her scolding and none of us dared crack a smile.”
Another incident in Latin class is remembered by several of Mrs. Hobgood’s 1942 students. The very proper Mrs. Hobgood wore hose rolled at the top and held up by an elastic garter.
“She was in front of the class when her garter and hose suddenly fell down to her ankle,” tells Read. Everyone saw what happened and the teacher’s brief look of distress. “She continued lecturing as though nothing had happened and moved over behind her desk. We of course were painfully straining to keep from laughing. When we finally got out of the classroom, the hallway rang with laughter.”
John Womack recalls feeling sorry for Mary Alice Kelton who taught the math class where most of Mrs. Hobgood’s students went after the Latin class. “After a tense hour with Mrs. Hobgood, we were ready to turn loose and Mrs. Kelton was not a skilled disciplinarian.”
There was no cafeteria or dining hall at the high school on Maple Street. (This building burned in 1944.) The school’s home economics instructor, Mrs. Herman Jackson, ran a modest sandwich counter. Most students brought lunches from home, but some would buy whatever Mrs. Jackson made available.
“In good weather most of us would eat outside on the school grounds,” remembers Elizabeth Jared Becker. “A banana and a peanut butter sandwich made a good lunch while sitting outside with friends,” added McNabb.
“I was a good student (president of the Honor Society) and enjoyed studying, but I was particularly looking forward to the 1942 basketball season since our girls’ team had been champions for several years and we expected another good year,” recalls McNabb. “Virginia Campbell was our coach and we practiced in that awful basement gym. For our home games we used Cox Gymnasium across the street.”
McNabb shared guard positions with Sara Shacklett, Edna Faulkner, and Mary Alice Dostor. The shooting forwards were Betty Brown, Gerry Smotherman and Louise Richardson. Ann Nora Youree played either guard or forward, as needed. The 1942 boys’ team was led by Allen Prince, Butch Young, Bill Nisbett, James Spangler and Junior Cook.
But studies and athletics could not dissipate the long shadow cast by an expanding world war. “We were all affected by the rationing — tires, gasoline, butter, nylon,” recalls Becker, daughter of the new VA hospital administrator. “I remember rolling bandages as a volunteer during study hall at Central.”
The new Office of Price Administration announced retail prices on all goods would be fixed at the March 1942 level. The Rutherford County Office of Civilian Defense was organized and announced that the first “blackout” practice would be on June 9, less than a week after graduation. The local War Bonds committee — T.T. Martin, Harold Earthman, Clyde Fite, Cecil Elrod, Jr. and S. F. Houston—began promoting the Jean MacArthur Bond Cavalcade. The local rationing board permitted new car purchases only when the applicant could show that the car was needed in furtherance of the war effort.
To protect and facilitate military personnel activity, the Army asked Murfreesboro officials to put street signs at every intersection. Prostitution was declared a federal crime ($1,000 fine and one year prison term) in several Middle Tennessee counties, including Rutherford, “to protect military personnel.”
War themes began to dominate the movie screens. Playing at the Princess: “Bugle Sounds” (Wallace Beery); “The Fleet’s In” (Betty Hutton, Dorothy Lamour, William Holden, Eddie Bracken, and Jimmy Dorsey). Spring ’42 titles at the Roxy included “Call Out the Marines,” “Nazi Agent” and “Torpedo Boat.”
Despite the wartime distraction, the 1942 high school basketball seasons continued as scheduled. (High school sports competition was later suspended for two years during the war.) The Central boys ended the season as sectional tournament champions.
The girls were once again the Little Ten Conference champions, according to McNabb, but lost to Westmoreland in the first round of the postseason tournament.
Spring wear for the high school girls in 1942 involved a lot of home sewing. “We all wore saddle oxfords and white anklet socks,” notes Becker. “Hats were popular but only for dress-up — church, wedding or funerals.” Pinafores were popular for school wear. “A pinafore was like a lacy, sheer, ruffled apron worn over a dress. They were often made of ‘dotted Swiss,’ a stiff material.”
“We also wore a lot of skirts and sweaters over button-up, dress style shirts,” adds McNabb.
For senior week, the tradition was for the girls to wear a different new dress for each day of the week, explains Read, but buying and sewing were complicated by rationing and limited funds. “I managed to have three new dresses for the week,” remembers Read.
The graduation day dress code for the girls was white dress and red flowers.
Shortly before graduation, Central chemistry teacher K.W. Wallen became the first faculty member to resign to join the war effort as an officer with the U.S. Army Engineers. He was soon followed by others.
Even the graduation details reflected 1942 wartime conditions. “In previous years the academic award winners received certificates and medals or trophies,” remembers McNabb, the 1942 summa cum laude graduate. “In 1942 we only got paper, but no one was surprised. During the year we had even been asked to save the tinfoil off our chewing gum to help win the war.”
The 1942 Central High School commencement address advised that “the winning of the peace is in the hands of the men and women of tomorrow and the outcome will depend on their character.”
Within a year, the men and many of the women of the Class of 1942 were in the military or working in war production.
Greg Tucker can be reached at [email protected].