BAXTER SEMINARY
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1950's News
DR. JOHN FURBAY TO BE GUEST SPEAKER AT BAXTER SEMINARY (February 2, 1950 - The Putnam County Herald) Dr. John Furbay, member of the U. S. delegation to UNESCO (United Nations Educational, Scientific, Cultural Organization) and widely known for his work in promoting international understanding, will speak to the assembled student body at Baxter Seminary on February 21, at two o’clock. An author, educator, lecturer, and photographer, Dr. Furbay has traveled by air all over the world. He has just completed his two-millionth mile of air travel. An ardent internationalist, he will speak to the students at Baxter Seminary about the change taking place in the geographic, economic, social, and political thinking of people all over the world. Dr. Furbay received his Ph.D, degree from Yale University, and among his various activities, has served as president of
the College of West Africa and Liberia. At the present time, he is director of Air World Education for Trans-World
Airlines. NOTED LECTURER TO SPEAK AT SEMINARY (April 6, 1950 - The Putnam County Herald) Dr. Tully C. Knowles, chancellor of the College of the Pacific of which he was president for 29 years, will be on Baxter Seminary campus April 10 as a part of a very extensive itinerary through the south. Widely recognized as a distinguished educator, Dr. Knowles is coming to the Seminary campus as lecturer and an administrative counselor. Dr. Knowles holds the A. B. and A. M. degree from the University of Southern California. He has been the recipient of numerous honorary degrees including a D. D. from the Pacific School of Religion. He is a minister and a member of the California annual conference. He is being brought to the Seminary under the sponsorship of the Division of Educational Institutions of the Methodist Board of Education in Nashville. Dr. Knowles holds membership in the National Education Association; the Southern California Historical Society; and the
American Academy of Political and Social Sciences. He is a member of the Kappa Alpha Fraternity, the Phi Beta Kappa
Fraternity, Pi Bamma Mu, and Phi Alpha Theta. He is a Mason and a Rotarian. Up until 1948 he had held
membership on the General Board of Education of the Methodist church for many years.
BAXTER'S BACHELOR BUGLER, TOWN'S HUMAN ALARM CLOCK, PLANS NEW ROOST FOR REVEILLE
(August 9, 1950 - Nashville Banner)
Hughes, known far and wide as Baxter's Bugling Bachelor and the Human Alarm Clock, started his unique hobby of blowing
reveille at 5 o'clock on the morning of March 15, 1924, and he has continued the practice almost without interruption
since that time.
Upon the invitation of the late Bob Ripley, creator of the world famous "Believe-It-Or-Not" cartoons, Hughes appeared
on "We the People" program in New York City 13 years ago. Notes from Hughes' Sears Roebuck bugle swelled across the
nation on the coast-to-coast broadcast.
Since Hughes was not accustomed to blowing his bugle from the ground, officials of the program erected an eight-foot
ladder on the stage and Hughes climbed to the top and cut loose with the stains of reveille. "I was a little
nervous," Hughes confided, "but the people in the auditorium seemed to enjoy it."
But that was only a small part of the story concerning Hughes' trip to the Big Town. Probably Hughes" biggest
thrill came when the manager of the New York hotel permitted him to climb to the penthouse roof to "blow reveille for the
world's second largest city," The hotel manager also gave Hughes a recording of the radio broadcast, which he plays
today for visitors in his modest home on the outskirts of Baxter.
Now a mail messenger for the post office here, Hughes believes his hobby of blowing the bugle has proved beneficial to
the residents for many reasons. "It's a healthy thing for the people to get up early," he said, "and besides blowing
the bugle is healthy for me, too."
Rain or shine, snow or sleet, Hughes somehow manages to climb to a small platform atop the 20-foot pole for the early
morning ritual which has become as commonplace as the rising of the sun in the eastern skies, "I just brush the ice and
snow off the platform; things like that don't bother me," said the man who has been cartooned in hundreds of the nation's
newspapers and appeared in newsreels in all of the country's theaters.
Postmaster W. V. Cole said, "Hughes always beats me to the office every morning. Why, he walks a mile to deliver
a special delivery letter for only nine cents. You couldn't find anybody else who would do that."
Cole pointed out that Hughes neither drinks nor smokes, "But ever day," said Cole, "Hughes fills his pockets with candy
and chewing gum to distribute to the youngsters in the community." Hughes also has two ponies at his home for the
sole enjoyment of the children.
Hughes, who says he plans to retire from his mail messenger job when he reaches 65, get married and spend the rest of
his life carrying in dry stovewood and water, said a new concrete pole would give the place a "new look," especially after
he has painted the pole bright red. However, the chestnut pole which Hughes has climbed for 26 years is still in excellent
condition. It is studded with railroad spikes which serve as steps to the small platform on top of the pole.
Mayor Will T. Sewell is one of Hughes' most ardent admirers. Hughes declared that the mayor levies a fine on
everyone in Baxter who doesn't get up when he blows his morning reveille.
Hughes, who lives with his mother and sister one-half mile from the business section of the community, believes in
getting his afternoon nap. In a wooded grove near his home, he has built a bed where, every afternoon, he spends a
couple of hours sleeping. he has set out a circular row of trees around his outdoor bed to furnish shade from the
hot afternoon sun.
Hughes, who has several scrapbooks filled with clippings describing his exploits as Baxter's Bugling Bachelor, said he
plans to place all these writings in a can and seal them inside the new concrete pole, so that generations to come may
some day read the story of the man who blew reveille for New York City's millions and for Baxter's seven hundred.
Baxter's bachelor bugler, Charlie Hughes, shows in the top photo how he has awakened the town of Baxter almost
daily for 26 years. In the lower photo Hughes is shown in action from atop his vantage point, a tall chestnut
pole. Photos: Nashville Banner
BAXTER SEMINARY GRADUATE AWARDED SCHOLARSHIP
(October 12, 1950)
First National Bank's cashier, W. B. Carlen Jr., this week gave the bank's annual
scholarship to Mark E. Steele of Silver Point. He's the son of Mr. and Mrs. John Ambrose Steele. The
TTU freshman is an agriculture major and plans to become an agriculture teacher after graduation. He's a
1949 graduate of Baxter Seminary.
MRS. UPPERMAN IS FIRST SCOUT GUIDANCE SPEAKER (February 22, 1951 - The Putnam County Herald) Mrs. Harry L. Upperman addressed the Senior Girl Scouts at Central High School Thursday afternoon. The topic discussed by Mrs. Upperman was "Public Speaking as a Vocation." This was the first in a series of addresses by outstanding leaders in their field. The following speakers and dates are scheduled: Mrs. Ray Kinslow, "Business Opportunities for Women", March 1; Alard Harding, "Pictures Can Be Fun," March 8; Miss Agnes Mahoney, "Christian Work As a Vocation," March 15; Mrs. Kenneth Haile, "Nursing as a Vocation," March 22; Mrs. T. J. Farr, "Teaching Opportunities," March 29; Mrs. Everett Derryberry,"Opportunities in Voice and Music," April 5; Miss Mary Barbour, "Librarians Needed," April 12; DonKellar, "Veterinary Work," April 26; Miss Nell Kendall, "The Home Demonstration Field," May 3; Mrs. Sam McMurry, "Homemaking as a Vocation," May 10; and Coach Calvin Frey, "First Aid and Water Safety," May 24. BAXTER SEMINARY STUDENTS PARTICIPATE IN ALLSTATE FESTIVAL CHOIR (March 17, 1951 - The Putnam County Herald) A group of Baxter Seminary students were in the AllState Festival Choir that sang for the Tennessee Education Association’s members in Nashville’s Ryman Auditorium this week. They were Hilda Schmidt, Loreta Shields, Anita Cunningham, Elizabeth Locklear and Martha Verdecia. STATE TRADES TEACHERS TRAIN AT BAXTER SEMINARY (June 28, 1951 - The Putnam County Herald) Trades teachers from more than 40 high schools from throughout the state completed a four-week training course at Baxter Seminary last Thursday. The course which was under the supervision of Frank VanEynde, of the vocational training department of the University of Tennessee, was designed to aid the teachers to do a better job of teaching in their trades and industry classes. Van Eynde is district supervisor of Trade and Industrial Education. In the summer work at Baxter, he is associate professor of Trade and Industrial Education. In the summer work at Baxter, he is associate professor of industrial education with the University. The two additional instructors were H. H. Bates of Nashville, and Troy C. Lager, of Benton, IL, who has come to Baxter as a special instructor for a course in masonry.
ART EXHIBIT ON DISPLAY AT SEMINARY (February 14, 1952 - The Putnam County Herald) An Exhibit of Reprints of more than a hundred famous paintings of the great Artists of the World is being shown to the students of the schools and to the public this week on Tuesday and Wednesday at Baxter Seminary. This showing has been arranged for through friends of the Seminary who are interested in giving opportunity to the community as well as the student to see the best in Art. Another advance has also been made at Baxter Seminary this week in the filed of Music, in the securing of an Organo, an organ attachment for the piano which enables one to render organ music by playing of the piano. This will give the students the advantage of learning both to appreciate and to play organ music as part of their Seminary training. BAXTER SEMINARY OPENS EXERCISES (May 24, 1952 Nashville Banner) Baxter, Tenn., May 24 -(Special)- Graduation exercises will begin this evening with the alumni banquet, according to Dr. Harry L. Upperman, president. The baccalaureate sermon will be delivered by Dr. LeRoy Martin, president of Tennessee Wesleyan College, Athens, Vesper services will follow at 6 p.m. honoring the seniors. Everett Derryberry, president of Tennessee Polytechnic Institute, will be the main speaker at graduation exercises Monday at 10 a.m. Class honor awards will be presented at the program. Members of the Graduating class include: Martha Josephine Alcorn, Myra Faye Cooper Anderson, Ilcia Batista Guerra, Minnie Louise Beaty, Clella Burgess, Redith Burton, Regena Carr, Carmen Casanova Rodriguez, Nancy Lytle Cherry,Irma Louise Dyer, Jo Ann Flynn, Polly Ann Goggin, Maymie Louise Harris, Ella Mae Keith, Elizabeth Locklear, Ruby Mahan, Anna Ruth Maxwell, Charlie Mae Maxwell, Cora Medlin. Alice Faye Mitchell, Onetta May Jane Montgomery, Wanda Neill, Lueddie Rodgers, Beverly Parrish Smith, Helen Hontas Stout, Edna Elizabeth Stubbefield, Lula Belle Thomas, Ruby Macon Trobough, Ruth Trobough, Corrine Vaughn, Martha Verdecia Hernadez, Gerline Wallace, Betty Wheaton, Frank Evins Bain, Edward Bruce, Edward F. Dorman Jr., Jack H. Dalton. Ernest Carl Dyer, Robert Patrick Fields, Billy Flatt, Jimmy Rhea Garrison, Dow S. Gentry, Pedro Antonio Hernandez Rivera, Garner Holmes, Bob Dale Maxwell, Harry L. Maxwell, John Neal Nash, Vender McCall Paler, Johnny Rhea Phillips, Robert Kenneth Pippin, Solon Perkins Spears, Floyd L. Stewart, Clayton D. Litton C. Way, Raphael Victoria Pint, and Carl E. Pound. SEMINARY OBSERVES BOOK WEEK (November 20, 1952 - The Putnam County Herald) As students entered the library on Monday morning they were immediately aware of Book Week. On every side were posters, made by various students, calling attention in many ways to reading for both pleasure and profit, while across the front of the room on top of the book shelves were striding many books which over the week-end had been supplied with faces, arms and legs, each telling a story of interest. During the chapel hour a radio program, under the direction of Mrs. Vela Hie, librarian, and Miss Rebate Smell age, of the English Department, announced by Dallas Vinson, presented Robert Fields as Dr. I. Q., assisted by Sue Boyd and Rosa Edmonds, who conducted a quiz on book knowledge. Hukleberry Finn (John Mack Huie), Osa Johnson (Wanda Smellage), Gandhi (Ortelio Gallo), Sue Barton (Barbara Ellsworth), Ramona (Galucia Casanova), Ronald Perry (Buddy Wheaton), Old Fashioned Girl (Ann Bacon), Johnny Apple Seed (Harold Fike) and Long John Silver (Bill Cunningham), in appropriate costumes, appeared on the stage as Dr. I. Q. questioned students in the audience as to their identify. Every student checking out a book this week, is wearing a small book shaped tag bearing the words, "I Have Checked Out a Book This Week." Following this presentation reports in the recent Journalism Conferences at Tech were given by Joe Nichols, Elinor Lois Maxwell, Jo Nelda Allison and Sue Boyd, Edd Lynn and LeRoy Wright told of their participation in The Christian Life Conference held recently at Sewanee. BAXTER SEMINARY HOME EC. GIRLS HAVE FASHION SHOW (December 18, 1952 - The Putnam County Herald) The Sophomore, Junior and Senior Home Economics girls of Baxter Seminary had a fashion show Dec. 12 at 1:00 p.m. exhibiting the many attractive garments which they have made this year under the direction of Mrs. Howard Copeland. Guests were mothers of the girls and other friends of the school. The guests were welcomed by Dr. Harry L. Upperman. The girls presented a Christmas skit and style show "There Is A Santa Claus." The garments featured were of corduroy, gabardine, wool and faille, all of which are very popular this year. Favorite winter colors are green, red, purple and blue. After the style show the guests were served tea in the Home Economics Department, which was beautifully decorated for the Christmas holidays.
A. B. McKAY BECOMES HONORARY BOARD OF TRUSTEES MEMBER (1953 - The Putnam County Herald)
Baxter Seminary, a Methodist sponsored school here, has paid a high honor to a Baptist this week. It
made Cookeville attorney A. B. McKay an honorary member of its board of trustees. WONDERS OF ELECTRICITY THIS WEEK AT BAXTER SEMINARY (September 10, 1953 - The Putnam County Herald) "The Wonders of Electricity" is the public program at Baxter Seminary this week. Students will see technological marvels like power transmission without wires. COMING TO BAXTER SEMINARY THIS WEEK (September 10, 1953 - The Putnam County Herald)
Coming to the Baxter Seminary this week is a Southern Schools Assembly Program presentation called "The Electric Parade." It consists of a number of "Popularized" demonstrations showing what science - and electricity - can do for your home and way of living. Included are segments on "freakish frequencies," electricity at high pressures, and power transmission without wires. Admission? There’s no charge. ROBERT HENRY, TO GIVE CONCERT AT BAXTER SEMINARY (October 29, 1953 - The Putnam County Herald) Robert Henry, nationally known young American will appear in a concert at Baxter Seminary next Monday, Nov. 9, at 8:00 a.m., it has been announced by Dr. Harry L. Upperman, president. Mr. Henry is a member of the Young Artist Concerts Group and has appeared in Cookeville under the sponsorship of the Cookeville Concert Association where he was enthusiastically received. He will be soloist with the Memphis Sinfonietta at the opening concert of this season on Nov. 12 and the reason for his 8:00 a.m. appearance at Baxter is that he has to be in Memphis Monday evening.
30 YEARS A BUGLER, CHARLIE TURNS TO SONG (June 1, 1954 - Chicago Tribune, Chicago, IL) Baxter, Tenn., May 31-Charlie Hughes 66, believes that, he will devote a good bit more time to the Fifth Sunday Singing in Cookeville these next few months. "If there's not a five Sundays in the month," said Mr. Hughes, "they don't have it." Charlie Hughes is going to relax a little from his self appointed chore of getting up at 4:30 a.m. each morning and blowing a bugle to wake Baxter up. He has done this for 30 years and is now looking around for other pursuits. "I don't sing very good," he said, "but I'm best at meetin' songs, which is what they sing." Cookeville is at least 16 miles, and a little far for his usual means of transportation, Vallie, a 13 year old mare. He is of a mind to hitchhike back and forth, as Mr.Hughes does not believe in riding railroads, does not hold with whiskey, is allergic to soft drinks, and forgoes tobacco. "I had a bottle of soda in 1905," he said, "and another in 1920. Gave me a headache both times." Mr Hughes was asked if he had ever happened to write any songs of his own. He brightened right up, and said, well, as a matter of fact he did once. "Cass Elrod gave me a horse to break,"he said, "and I was to get him to ride all winter. Then Cass took the horse away from me and he had a brother-in-law, Wirt Leftwich, so I wrote a song." Mr. Hughes ascertained the pitch and began to sing the song. The tune was mostly like Casey Jones, altho at times it got a little aimless and wandered out toward left field. Charlie paused a minute to say that Cass Elrod is dead, his brother-in-law, Wirt Leftwich, is dead, and the horse is dead, so the song is not much good any more. Then he went on singing: "I tell you what happened once comin' from school;
Charlie Hughes finished the song and cleared his throat. "I used to aim to be singin' it whenever Cass would show up," he said. "It made him awful mad." "Did he ever do anything about it?" "No," said Charlie. "He kind of got used to the song after a while."
CHARLIE HUGHES REPLACES FLAG POLE
(September 25, 1954 - The Putnam County Herald)
Charlie Hughes of Baxter is in the news again. The 66yearold 'Baxter Bugler,' or 'Human Alarm Clock' has replaced
the 30 foot pole he has climbed every morning at dawn for the last 30 years to play reveille on his $2.98 bugle.
On crisp, clear days, he can be heard as far as Double Springs to the east and Boma to the south.
Hughes, who has been the subject of numerous national radio and magazine articles, including a 1937 appearance in New
York on the national radio network show, "We the People," says he replaced his old pole because it was getting too rickety.
Hughes never learned to drive. He still rides his pony from home to work at the Baxter Post Office, where he is a
parttime mail sorter.
He observed his 30th year of bugling on Aug. 15.
BAXTER NEEDS HELP IN REBUILDING GYM
(October 12, 1954 - The Tennessean)
Mountain Seminary, That Won't Die Deserves Aid, Gordon Turner Pleads
Somehow they just lingered on but neither had said a word. Despite their death blow the dying embers actually seemed
friendly in the night's chill, and seemed to make a game of shadowing the forms of teacher and student on the big trees.
Student Inquisitive
"I'll see you in the morning," was all Upperman could say. Then they made their way across the campus to try to get
some sleep.
Upperman Cheerful
"Well, we've already begun to rebuild and blueprints are being drafted right now, he beamed so everybody could hear, but
more to the lad who had asked him a few hours before.
And so a bigger fire-proof gymnasium will go up here some way. Except for nominal insurance all money must be given
by friends. But Baxter has nine lives and the last one hasn't been lived yet.
Within hours after the fire, local students were giving a dollar or five dollars and those whose homes are elsewhere had
begun a "letter campaign" for help.
The "Seminary," sponsored by Methodists but serving all churches as well, is a sort of hybrid between old private academies
and modern public high schools. Putnam county pays pro-rata costs of its own youngsters and "dormitory: students pay nominal costs if they can.
Dr. and Mrs. Upperman came here 31 years ago on his 28th birthday to shut down the outmoded school everybody thought. All he found that hot summer day was a good-sized debt, 12 acres of poor land, an old "barracks" for boys, and "Girls' Hall," home of a few girls and the place where all classes were held.
Challenge Accepted
Things went along pretty well for a few years.
But in 1933, when things looked better than ever, the banks closed, leaving the school exactly eight cents in cash.
Then depression was on in earnest and for a year or so Baxter operated mostly on poultry and meat products and vegetables
brought in for tuition. Even the boys cut all fuel from the woods on the new farm.
Things Brighten in 1937
But next years the boy's barracks burned to the ground and it looked bad again. Cots were borrowed within hours,
however, and the boys transferred to make home in the trades building without a minute lost from classes. News of such
a will to live spread fast and soon another friend of offered $10,000 toward a new boys' home if others would match it.
They did, and already two additions have had to be added, making the structure a model for such a school.
During the late 30s, floods of epidemics all but struck down students and teachers here-measles, mumps, chicken pox,
flu. Without even a clinic, bedrooms often housed more sick than well and for a while it looked bad again. About
that time the Daughters of the American revolution were casting about for their Jubilee project and when Mrs. Upperman
suggested a health building for the school here, DAR jumped at the chance. Their $50,000 memorial edifice completed in
1940 is a model with excellent equipment and a full-time nurse.
All was on the up an up in the early 50s. Then last year, on the Upperman's 30th wedding anniversary to an hour, an
automobile accident all but took them away. They were taking five students to Career day at Tennessee Tech when the
wreck killed the driver of the other car and sent them to the hospital all broken up. Back on the job this fall after
months in bed and wheel chairs and on crutches, the grand and beloved couple were helping make Baxter seminary shine again.
Then on the night of September 13 last, the gym burned!
BAXTER SEMINARY GRADUATES COMMISSIONED AS MISSIONARIES TO BELGIAN CONGO (January 5, 1955 - The Putnam County Herald) Mr. and Mrs. Billy M. Starnes of Baxter were among 62 commissioned as missionaries by the Methodist Board in Cincinnati, Ohio, this week. The former Baxter Seminary student and his wife are now bound for the Bengian Congo. NORMA HILL WINS BAXTER DAR AWARD (February 8, 1955 - The Nashville Banner) Baxter, Feb. 7 -(Special)- Norma Ann Hill, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Norman Hill, has been chosen DAR representative of Baxter Seminary for this school year. She is co-editor of The Highlander, the Baxter Seminary annual. She has been a member of the Beta Club for the past three years. She was selected last year as the outstanding junior girl of Baxter Seminary. The DAR representatives are selected on a basis of dependability, honor and loyalty. HONOR STUDENTS NAMED AT BAXTER SEMINARY (March 17, 1955 - The Putnam County Herald) Baxter Seminary announced its honor students this week. Class valedictorian was Paul Scarlett, son of Mr. and Mrs. Edward Scarlett of Rt. 1, Baxter. Marie Dilldine, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Winton Dilldine of Rt. 2, Baxter, has been named the class salutatorian. Norma Ann Hill, daughter of Mr. and Mrs. Norman Hill of Baxter, has been named the third honor student. BAXTER SENIORS HEAR KEFAUVER (May 28, 1955 - The Nashville Banner)
The senator pointed out the necessity of participating in government, saying "What happens in the world is a sum total of what happens in the crossroads and small towns of the nation. Kefauver was introduced by Dr. Harry L. Upperman, president of Baxter Seminary. receiving special honor at the program were Lawrence Grace of Baxter, who has been a member of the Board of Trustees of Baxter Seminary since its origin in 1908, and the Rev. H. P. Keathley, a retired Methodist minister who was pastor of the Baxter church for many years. Scholastic honor students who appeared on the commencement program were Paul Scarlett, Norma Hill and Marie Dilldine. - 1951 phote of Estes Kefauver: public domain CAMPAIGN STARTS TO RAISE $5000 FOR NEW BAXTER GYM STARTS (July 15, 1955 - The Rutherford Courier, Smyrna, TN) Baxter-Plans are underway to begin a campaign on July 1st, to raise $5,000 toward financing the erection of a new gymnasium at Baxter Seminary. Dr. Harry L. Upperman said he has assurance from a good friend of the Seminary of a gift of $5,000 to be matched in money, labor, or materials to be donated by only the school community of Baxter and students of Baxter Seminary. BAXTER SEMINARY GRADUATE LEAVES FOR TWO YEARS ARMY SERVICE (October 24, 1955 - The Putnam County Herald)
Johnnie Reba Smellage leaves next week for two years as a librarian with the US Army
in either France or Germany. BAXTER SEMINARY TO HOST CONFERENCE (November 3, 1955 - The Nashville Banner) Cookeville - Baxter Seminary will be host to a Christian Life Conference for students of the Mid South Association of the Secondary Schools Saturday and Sunday. Dr. Harry L. Upperman, president of Baxter Seminary, said representatives to the conference would come from Tennessee Military Academy, Sweetwater, Miss. Hutchinson's School, Memphis, Sewanee Military Academy, Castle Heights, Lebanon, Battle Ground Academy, Franklin, Baylor, McCallie and Girls Preparatory School, Chattanooga, Webb School, Bell Buckle, Williams School, Montgomery, Alabama, Darlington School, Rome, Georgia, Columbia Military Academy and Westminister Schools, Atlanta, Ga. Saturday, ministers from Cookeville and Baxter will join with visiting faculty and delegates for a program consisting of several panel discussions of better ways of having Christian concern. The conference will end Sunday after a luncheon in the school dining room. BAXTER SEMINARY HOME ECONOMICS TEA AND FASHION SHOW (December 15, 1955 - The Putnam County Herald) The girls of the Home Economics Department over at Baxter Seminary are planning a special tea and fashion show in the home of Dr. Harry Upperman this week. It's for the mothers of girls in the program. Featured will be a skit with Dorothy Denny and Sylvia Fields showing off some of the latest fashions. It's directed by Mrs. Helen Copeland. (December 30, 1955 - The Putnam County Herald) Mr. and Mrs. Billy M. Starnes of Baxter were among 62 commissioned as missionaries by the Methodist Board in Cincinnati, Ohio, this week. The former Baxter Seminary student and his wife are now bound for the Belgian Congo.
HUGH WAYNE DENNY NAMED TO ACADEMY (January 24, 1956 - The Putnam County Herald) Joe L. Evins, Representative of the Fourth Congressional District of Tennessee, has announced the nomination of Hugh Wayne Denny of Buffalo Valley for appointment as midshipman to the United States Naval Academy for the year 1956. Denny is the son of Mr. and Mrs. John Henry Denny of Buffalo Valley. Mr. Denny is now serving his second term as Trustee of Putnam county. Hugh Wayne is currently a student at Baxter Seminary where he will graduate this spring. In announcing the nomination, and speaking of Denny’s qualifications, Congressman Evins stated that Hugh Wayne had also been highly recommended to me by our good friend Dr. Harry L. Upperman, President of Baxter Seminary, as an outstanding young man, a brilliant student with definite leadership ability. Hugh Wayne is graduating with highest honors at Baxter Seminary and will make the valedictory address at the graduation exercise. Denny is now awaiting orders concerning qualifying examinations for admission to the Academy. BAXTER GRADUATION PROGRAM OPENS MAY 13 (May 10, 1956 - The Nashville Banner) Cookeville-The Rev. J. Fort Fowler, president of Martin College at Pulaski will deliver the baccalaureate sermon at Baxter Seminary on May 13 at 10:30a.m. At 5:30 o'clock that afternoon community vespers will be held on the campus with the Rev. S. Dewey Organ, superintendent of the Cookeville methodist district and the Rev. Gordan Maland, an exchange minister from Preston, England, to participate in the service. Dr. Quill E. Cope, commissioner of education of Tennessee will deliver the address at the graduation program to be held Friday morning, May 18, when 58 seniors are scheduled to receive diplomas. BAXTER SEMINARY NAMES HONOR STUDENTS (May 28, 1956 - The Putnam County Herald) Awards, prizes and merit winners at Baxter Seminary are announced today by Dr. Harry L. Upperman, president. Seniors elected to the National Honor Society were Hugh Wayne Denny, valedictorian; Robert DeLozier, Salutatorian; Hugh McHenry, third honor; Roberta Trobough, Glen Maxwell, Sue Henley, Peggy Lee, Florentino Mir, Mary Elizabeth Cole, and Helen Delozier. Honor Students for the eleventh grade were Dorothy Nell Denny and Eugene Gentry; tenth grade students are Mary Martha Smith and David Dyer; ninth grade students were Ophelia Kirklin and Joe Ferrell. Old Walton road DAR citizenship medal was received by Helen DeLozier and the Old Walton road history medal to Ida Pearl Maxwell; Balfour Key to Hugh McHenry; Bausch and Lomb science medal to Hugh Wayne Denny; Simmons biology medal to Mary Martha Smith; J. A. Harris award to Sue Bryant; Morris home economics award to Peggy Lee; Caruthers trade medal to Kaye Lowe; commercial medal to Peggy Lee; and Betty Crocker home economics prize was won by Roberta Trobaugh. In the essay contest "What Baxter Seminary Means to Me" Sue Bryant placed first; Betty Jo Chaffin, second; Carolyn Wallace and Florentino Mir received third place. In the essay contest "Why I Believe in Total Abstinence," Dorothy Nell Denny placed first; Gordon Hall, second; Mary Jane Gill and Hugh Wayne Denny tied for third place. In the Turnley Bible Memory Contest, Dimple Smith placed first; Alberta Goolsby, second; and Nancy Maddux placed third. In the Bible Reading Contest, Charlene Boyd won first prize; Mary Jane Gill, second; and Wilson Scarlett, third. In the Hymn Reading Contest, Peggy Davis place first; Dorothy Nell Denny, second; and Ophelia Kirklin, third. In the speech department, National Forensic League membership was earned by Robert DeLozier, Charles Crumbaugh, and Carolyn Ann Wallace, who received the first degree. Sue Henley, Rebecca Denny, Ophelia Kirklin, and Patricia Archie received the second degree. Outstanding members were Hugh Wayne Denny and Hugh McHenry who were also the best debaters. Rhoda Rebman became a National Thespian member; Eugene Gentry, Star Thespian. The dramatic speech medal was won by Rhoda Rebman. The Fred Taylor Wilson medal was received by Hugh Wayne Denny. The Readers Digest subscription was given to the valedictorian, Hugh Wayne Denny. The "I Dare You" awards were given to Ida Pearl Maxwell and to Lloyd Keith. In the county original poetry, Helen DeLozier won second place in the senior division, and Charlene Boyd won honorable mention in the senior division. In the junior division, Barbara Cole won honorable mention. The citizenship medals of the Cumberland Chapter DAR were received by Hugh Wayne Denny and Hugh McHenry. The Fort Nashborough history medals went to Sue Bryant and Gordon Hall. Boys athletic medals were given to Lloyd Keith and Robert Vinson; girl's athletic medals were given to Peggy Boyd and Dorothy Nash. "B" letters in girl's basketball were earned by Dorothy Nash, Peggy Boyd, Mary Elizabeth Nash, Mary Jane Pardue, Ernestine Austin, Joan Hedgecough, Sandra Bradford, Jenelle Harris, Peggy Davis, and June Nash. "B" letters in boy's basketball were earned by Joe Bruce, Jimmy Harris, Robert Vinson, Dewey Moss, Morgan Smith, Jerry Fields, and Lloyd Keith. The boys who earned letters in football were Robert Anderson, Joe Bruce, Aaron Dyer, Johnny Alcorn, Odell Anderson, Jerry Jared, Robert Stout, Roy McHenry, Kenneth Maynard, Morgan Smith, Jimmy Harris, Robert Huddleston, Joe Jared, Robert Vinson, Prentice Anderson, Mickey Leftwich, Edward Herren, Florentino Mir, Earl Stout, Gerald West, Dallas McDonald, and Darrell Carr. "B" letters in cheer leading were given to Mildred Herd, Charlene Boyd, Dorothy Nell Denny, Billie Carolyn Medley, Barbara Mullins, and Jobie Starnes. Letters for basketball managers were given to Lou Allison and Harold Lee. "B" letters for speech work were awarded to Hugh Wayne Denny, Hugh McHenry, Sue Henley, Rebecca Denny, Ophelia Kirklin, Robert DeLozier, Rhonda Rebman, and Bob Urbon. Athletic medal for boys was given to Robert Vinson. Peggy Boyd received the athletic medal for girls. Membership was granted to the National Athletic society to Lloyd Keith and Robert Vinson. Dorothy Nell Denny received a State Future Homemakers degree. Glen Maxwell earned his State Future Farmer degree. In the Future Farmer creed contest, Kenneth Brown was given a medal. The DeKalb agricultural accomplishment award was won by Glen Maxwell. Eugene Gentry won first place in the Cumberland Plateau regional science fair senior division of physical science division. In the senior division of biological science, Dorothy Nell Denny placed second. For the best kept room in the girls' dormitory, Bertha Chaffin and Faye Davis won the prize. Best kept room for boys was by Jerry Lokey and Jimmy Langford. Jimmie Ethel Fields was elected to attend Girls' State; Jenell Harris was the alternate. For boys state it was Billy Rhea Flynn; the alternate was Eugene Gentry. The president's merits went to Kaye Lowe for skilled craftsmanship in woodworking; Ellis Crawford for general improvements over the campus; Kenton Cooper received the president's merit for journalism. Merits for work in the library were given to Jimmie Ethel Fields, Helen DeLozier, Jean Jared, Eugene Waller, Charlene Boyd, Judy Harding, Elma Herren, Joanna Keith, Joan Newman, Mildred Herd, Sue Ford, Joyce Scarlett, Dimple Morgan, Polly Ferrell, Joyce Thomas, and Bill Smith who also received one for trades work. Jerry Lokey received a merit for putting out Hymn Books in chapel each day; Morgan Smith for general helpfulness and best all round boy in trades. A merit was earned by Robert Gerard for work in the heating plant. For ringing of the bell, merit was given to Hugh Wayne Denny, Eugene Gentry, Joyce Herren, Dorothy Nell Denny received a merit for general helpfulness about the school. Avery Roberts received a merit for checking the chapel roll and for helpfulness in woodworking; Kenneth Cooper, chapel roll checking; Kate Clemons for checking the chapel roll and working in the general office; Peggy Lee received one for checking the chapel roll and for work in the president's office. For playing the piano in chapel, merits were given to Peggy Davis, Mary Martha Smith, and Ernestine Austin. Mary Martha Smith and Ernestine Austin helped in the general office. For helpfulness in the trades merits were given to Webster Lewis, Jr, David Dyer, Aaron Jones, Donald Franklin, Ellis Crawford, and Glen Maxwell. James Trobaugh received a merit for work done in woodworking. Mr. W. L. Cunningham gave a medal to Morgan Smith for all round best work in the trades department. Gordon Hall and Mary Jane Pardue received merits in the athletic work. Mary Jane Pardue for help in the Ivy Hall for girls. Others who received merits for work done in Ivy Hall were Barbara Mullins, Linda Myles, Angele Scott, Carol Pennington, and Mildred Herd; Angele Scott did work in the president's office also. Sue Henley, Bobbie Sue Keith, Peggy Boyd, Mary Elizabeth Cole, Ida Pearl Maxwell, Betty Jo Chaffin, Willodene Spears, and Alberta Goolsby received merits for work done in the president's office. In the general office merits were received by the following: Faye Roberts, Carolyn Wallace, Emogene Anderson, Sue Bryant, Pat McLeod, Dorothy Nash, Helen Geer, Daisy Clemons, Diane Pullum, and Wilma Denny. Wilson Scarlett received a merit for commendable attitude and uplifting of ideas. Certificate of perfect attendance were given to the following; Gary Leftwich, Vanas Medlock, Charles Pardue, Betty Dyer, Helen Geer, Elma Herren, Ann Herren, Roberta Maynard, Margaret Petty, Marie Phelps, Geraldine Stewart, Reba Tucker, David DeLozier, Dale Flowers, Charlie Haller, Billy Stewart, Robert Williams, Ruth Ashburn, Sue Brewington, Rebecca Denny, Louise Harris, Bobbie Sue Keith, Mary Martha Smith, Carolyn Wallace, Martha Winchester, Byrd Clemons, Bill Rhea Flynn, Mickey Leftwich, Betty Jo Chaffin, Dorothy Nell Denny, Joyce Herren, Robert DeLozier, Hugh McHenry, Sue Bryant, Ida Pearl Maxwell, Gary Palmer, Bob Urbon, and Eugene Gentry. BAXTER NAMES STATE DELEGATES (June 2, 1956 - The Nashville Banner - with photos)
Girls State will open Sunday at Middle Tennessee State College, Murfreesboro, and the boys' session will begin June 10 at Castle Heights Military Academy, Lebanon. Both Miss Fields and Flynn are Baxter residents.
FOOTBALL COACH SERVES WITH NATIONAL GUARD (September 5, 1956 - The Putnam County Herald) A photo on page one this week shows why Bob Maxwell, an assistant football coach at Baxter Seminary, is missing this week’s key game against Monterey. He’s shown in his National Guard uniform checking over his gear before shipping out to Clinton, Tenn., where race riots broke out this week over attempts to integrate the high school there. It made the national news. Pictured with Maxwell are Charles Langford and Charles Cunningham, who are also making last minute checks before leaving. FOUR TEACHERS STILL SERVING AFTER 38 YEARS OF SERVICE (September 10, 1956 - The Putnam County Herald) The newspaper has discovered that four Putnam women on the list of teachers here for 1918 are still teaching. They are Bessie Gentry, who was at Board Valley School 36 years ago and who is now principal at Twin Oak; Zola Wiggins, who was at Bangham in 1918, and is now principal of Pippin School; Etta Leftwich, who taught at the Thomas School and is now principal of Uffelman Elementary; and Lena Plunkett who, in 1918, was assigned to the New Salem School and who now teaches at Baxter Seminary.
BAXTER SEMINARY PRESIDENT CITED (February 13, 1957 - Nashville Banner) Cookeville-Dr. Harry L. Upperman of Baxter Seminary, has returned from a trip made in the interest of the seminary. While on the trip Dr. Upperman was honored on two occasions. On Feb. 4, he attended the luncheon and dinner in Washington, D. C., which were a part of the third national reorganization conference of the citizens committee for the bipartisan Hoover commission report on federal reorganization. For 30 years Dr. Upperman has been a member of the American Relief Association, with which Honorable Herbert Hoover is associated, and has been a member of the Citizens Committee for the Hoover Report for the past six years. Before coming to Washington on Monday, Dr. Upperman was the speaker at the Overiea Methodist Church in Baltimore, where about 150 of his old friends were a part of the audience of 800. A dinner in Towson, Md. on Saturday complimented Dr. Upperman. Dr. Upperman has been president of Baxter Seminary 34 years. The Seminary was founded in 1908 by the Methodist Board of Christian Education. UPPERMAN RESIGNS AT BAXTER SEMINARY (February 25, 1957 - The Putnam County Herald) Bristol Man Is Named President: Reverend Paul A. Barker, pastor of Trinity Methodist church at Bristol, VA, has been elected president of Baxter Seminary at Baxter. The announcement was made today by William T. Sewell of Baxter, president of the school’s board of trustees. Mr. Baker will take his new position June 1. He succeeds the Rev. Dr. Harry L. Upperman, who is retiring after more than 30 years as head of the school. Dr. Upperman has been elected president emeritus and will continue to reside in Baxter. The institution is one of seven secondary schools related to the board of education of the Methodist church. Mr. Barker, 51, has been a Methodist minister for 20 years. He also has had experience as a high-school teacher. A native of Alabama, ... .to be continued. UPPERMANS WILL BE HONORED AT BAXTER; NEW BUILDING OPENS (May 15, 1957 - The Nashville Banner) Baxter--In the 34 years Dr. and Mrs. Harry Lee Upperman have been at Baxter Seminary they have won many victories and seen a remarkable growth in the institution On Monday, May 20, they will be cited in special ceremonies preceding the 1957 graduation, the last at which Dr. Upperman will officiate as president of the institution. Dr. Upperman, at Baxter since 1923, is retiring at the end of the school year. "Truth, Honor, Loyalty and Service" are the words that mark the chapel door at Baxter Seminary and these have been the watchwords for Dr. and Mrs. Upperman as they have served the youth in this Methodist-supported school. The County also contributes funds to the support of Baxter and the school serves as a public high school for the Putnam Countians in the area of Baxter. Talking about retirement, Dr. Upperman says "we hope to be of service to all phases of community life." They will continue to live in Baxter in a residence built on the Seminary campus by boys in the general building trades classes. Speaking at the ceremony will be Dr. John L. Seaton, retired, who sent Dr. and Mrs. Upperman to Baxter. Dr. Seaton, in 1923 and several years afterwards, was executive secretary of the General Board of Education of the Methodist Episcopal Church with offices in New York. At the story goes Dr. and Mrs. Upperman, while on their honeymoon, went by the office of Dr. Seaton about a job and were sent to Baxter. Arriving on his 28th birthday anniversary, the Uppermans found 12 acres of land, an old barracks for boys and "Girls Hall," which provided dormitory space for girls and classrooms for all students. The school had started in 1908 with one building and five acres of land. Today, Baxter Seminary, a co-educational secondary school, has grown to include almost a dozen modern brick buildings, eight other smaller buildings and more than 200 acres of land. Thursday a Health and Physical Education Building will be dedicated. It will include a gymnasium with shower rooms, classrooms, and office space. The gymnasium replaces a building destroyed by fire Sept. 13, 1954, and, like all the other buildings on the campus, has been built from funds which came as gifts from friends of Christian education. With the exception of some of the highly specialized work, the boys of the general building trades classes at the seminary constructed the new physical education building. Although building with student labor might be slower the pupils learn a trade and Baxter Seminary is acquiring a building at a cheaper rate than it could otherwise obtain. The Daughters of the American Revolution erected a $50,000 building on the campus as their Jubilee project. It was completed in 1940 and has been used as an infirmary. Disaster in the form of an automobile accident struck the Uppermans on their 30th wedding anniversary in March, 1953, and although none of the five students traveling with them to Career Day at Tennessee Tech were seriously injured, both Dr. and Mrs. Upperman were hospitalized for several weeks. But with the spirit that has been typical through the years at Baxter they have "come back" and now with retirement Dr. Upperman says "I am going to try to get well." Dr. Upperman entered the ministry in 1915 and before coming to Baxter taught in Dickinson Seminary in Williamsport, Pa. He holds A. B. and M. A. degrees from Syracuse University and the D. D. Degree from Simpson University in Iowa. In addition to heading the school and making numerous trips in the interest of Baxter Seminary he has taken part in the life of the community, county and state. He has preached in many churches in and near Cookeville. He is chaplain for the Tennessee Highway Patrol. He is a Mason and a Shriner. He has actively participated in Putnam County's efforts to bring more industry for her people. The restoration of Cordell Hull's birthplace in Pickett County is a project that has claimed the interest and many working hours of Dr. Upperman. He has been a member of the American Relief Association for 30 years. He is a life member of the National Education Association. Following the ceremonies honoring Dr. and Mrs. Upperman the commencement address will be given by Dr. John Owen Gross, executive secretary of the Board of Education of the Methodist Church of Nashville. ; In addition to Dr. Seaton and Dr. Gross, local community and education officials will have a part in the program and a community luncheon will follow the commencement activities. On Sunday, May 19, at 4:30 p.m. the Rev. David B. Sargent, Cookeville district superintendent of the Methodist Church will deliver the commencement sermon. The Rev. Paul Barker, who has been pastor of Trinity Methodist Church at Bristol, Va., will succeed Dr. Upperman on June 1. THEY CALL HIM THE "GOOD MAN" (May 19, 1957 - The Tennessean with photos)
The Story of Baxter's peppy little president... and how he grew Dr. Harry Lee Upperman glanced at his watch. The hour was near midnight.
Baxter Seminary's gymnasium had just gone up in smoke. It seemed that everybody in the little town and surrounding
territory had been there to watch the sad spectacle.
They were gone now -- all but two. Upperman, head mentor of the little mountain school, and a strapping football
player lingered on. The student carefully held all that had been saved from the blaze -- one helmet.
The dying embers that struck the struggling school such a cruel blow actually seemed friendly in the chill of that
September night. They made a game of casting weird shadows of teacher and student on the big trees that lined the
campus.
"When do we start rebuilding?" the student asked Baxter's president.
"I'll see you in the morning," was all Upperman could say. Then they both made their way across the campus and to
bed.
Next morning, Upperman bounced into the cafeteria. He was all smiles and beaming like a streak of sunshine -- all
five feet four inches of him.
We're starting to rebuild, the blueprints are being drafted right not," he announced where all could hear. He cast
a mischievous glance at the student who'd asked the question a few hours before.
"That was typical Upperman form," his wife said with a smile a few days ago. "He's never seen Baxter as it is but
as it can be."
"We just do things that way," said a faculty member, "plan big and do big things, sometimes not knowing where in the
world the money's coming from to pay for it."
But somehow the money always comes - $1,280,000 during Dr. Upperman's administration. The little Methodist
institution has been described as "the school with nine lives and the last one hasn't been lived."
The Seminary, open to students of all faiths, is a sort of hybrid between and old-time private academy and a modern
public high school. It is rated A-1 by the State of Tennessee and the other folks who evaluate schools.
Needles to say, the burned-out gym was rebuilt -- bigger and better and fireproof. Students and friends chipped in
a dollar, five dollars, and started a letter campaign. The money was raised.
"The Lord takes care of those who take care of themselves," Upperman likes to say.
That's about the way Baxter Seminary has operated since that June day in 1923 when Upperman and his bride arrived on the
campus on his 29th birthday. They had instructions from the methodist board of education to close the school.
"But we decided not to close it," Upperman says. "We decided to run it," And that's what they done, down
through almost four decades.
Now, Upperman is retiring, he and Mrs. Upperman, his co-worker at Baxter for all these 34 years.
On May 20 he will hand out 68 diplomas to this year's graduating class - his last.
The commencement and ceremonies honoring Upperman for his faithful service to the school will be held jointly.
Officials of the church, town, county and state will be on hand.
Dr. John L. Seaton of New York, retired head of the Methodist Board of education, will relate how he sent Upperman there
to close the school. There will be greetings from hundreds of his friends, including former president of the United
States, Herbert Hoover. These hundreds of letters and telegrams will be presented to him in a bound volume.
Gift--mementos of respect and affection--will be showered upon them. Tears will mingle with words of good wishes.
After it's all over Dr. and Mrs. Upperman will go across the street to their new home on a hill overlooking the campus.
It's a nice home built with student labor.
"Something will go away from Baxter when that happens," said one faculty member," it just won't be the same anymore."
"Don't worry," he'll be president emeritus and he'll keep an eagle eye on things that from that hillside perch."
Some predicted many more long, sleepless train rides for the peppery little mentor when Baxter gets in a tight spot.
And of course, he'll wear his famous dark gray homberg in winter and his white straw Homberg in summer.
The Rev. Paul Barker, now pastor of Bristol, Va., Trinity Methodist church, will succeed Upperman. But it will be
the latter, many say who will know where and how to turn on the charm that opens pocketbooks and bank accounts in Baxter's
hour of need.
A typical example of this occurred in the mid-thirties when the school was still struggling to get on its feet after
surviving the depression. Upperman headed north on a solicitation trip.
In Wisconsin, he uncovered a sad-looking but mobile Graham-Paige truck and convinced the owner that Baxter seminary had
greater need of it. The owner, touched by Upperman's story of the sad plight of his school, made him a present of the
truck.
But this was only the beginning.
A well-to-do friend had a piano that went onto the truck for the Baxter department of music. A business acquaintance
donated a desk. One contact led to another until Upperman had a fair load of stuff, including electrical and plumbing
supplies, when he pulled out for home.
On his way to Baxter, Upperman and his ancient truck attracted considerable attention. There were numerous
breakdowns and calls for service -- most of which were contributed to the cause by the mechanics. One service station
threw in some used tires. Another was persuaded to replace the old tires on the truck with new and contributed ones.
Somewhere in Indiana, a highway patrolman stopped Upperman, greasy and dirty from making frequent and necessary
adjustments under the hood.
The officer said the truck was overloaded. He wouldn't believe the driver was president of a struggling Methodist
school in the hills of Tennessee. But a call to a minister in Louisville cleared up that point.
Then the officer bade Upperman goodbye--after donating $10 to Baxter Seminary. And the truck limped on down the
road, to the amazement of everyone who saw it, loaded with gifts from sympathetic Yankees.
Harry Lee Upperman was born at Overica, Md., June 23, 1895. When he was two, his mother and three of the children
died from the dreaded black Diptheria. He and his father went to live with his grandparents.
At the age of 13, he had to go to work to help support the family. His first job was oil boy in the Crown Cork and
Seal Co. in Baltimore at $4 a week. Young Harry's work hours were long, and he added to them by studying English,
shorthand and typing at the YMCA School.
The future educator's next job was as stenographer for an insurance firm at $10 a week. He was steadily advanced on
this job.
"During this time I felt a call to enter the ministry," he says.
So, in the fall of 1915 he enrolled at Dickinson seminary, Williamsport, Pa. He swept classrooms, waited on tables
and did secretarial work to pay his way. During summers, he was secretary to Congressman Edgar R. Kiess.
Following graduation at Dickinson, he entered Syracuse (N. Y.) university on a scholarship. There he worked as
janitor for an apartment house and pastored country churches.
World War I interrupted his university studies. He was rejected for military service but did educational work for
the YWCA. After the war he re-entered Syracuse and graduated in June 1929 with membership in Phi Beta Kappa.
Young Upperman was elected Ivy orator of his class. He marched in the commencement procession with his friend, Bill
Tolley. But he never dreamed that 25 years later this friend, then Syracuse Chancellor William Person Tolley, would
present him the Arents medal, as award to outstanding Syracuse alumni for "distinctive merit and loyalt to the ideals of the
university."
After Syracuse, Upperman went back to Dickinson to teach--after an educational trip to Europe on the money he saved.
In 1923, he married his Dickinson classmate, Elma Clark, who'd worn his fraternity pin since 1918. It was during
their honeymoon in New York that he was offered the Baxter job.
When Upperman and his bride arrived at Baxter they found a 14-acre campus and two buildings==a long barracks used for a
boys' hall and a three-story cement building that served as school building, girls' dormitory, dining hall and office.
On Sundays the chapel and class rooms were used for church and Sunday school. The chapel was also used for funerals and
political speakings.
"We also found a debt of around $5,000, a student body of about 84 and running water in every room--when it rained," says
Mrs. Upperman.
"Tirelessly this couple worked -- long days and far into the night,"says Miss Ethelyn Hill, dean of the school.
She has been there with the Uppermans for 33 years.
"Dr. Upperman tool long trips to build up interest in the school," she says. "There were long train rides with him
sitting up all night because there was no money for pullman berths. Often he took lunches with him to save buying
high-priced meals."
But the school "woke up," as she puts it. First there was a graduating class of six, the next year 14, the third
year 30. Now the seminary has an enrollment of more than 400 students from 14 states and a graduating class of 60 or
more each year.
Then out of the blue came a call from Washington. There a hitherto unknown friend agreed to pay off the school
debt. Three days later a check for $7,500 arrived at Upperman's desk. The small campus was enlarge to a 300
acre farm and a herd of registered Jersey cattle was added.
Buildings began to go up and in 1930 Pfeiffer hall was completed as an administration building. Then the great
depression hit. The banks closed, leaving the school exactly eight cents in cash.
Baxter Seminary operated mostly on spirit with some poultry, meat, vegetables and other farm products brought in by the
students for tuition. The boys cut fuel for the school in the woods.
But Baxter wouldn't die. It came back brighter than ever, thanks to wealthy friends the head mentor was making all
the time. They included the Pfeiffer family of Cedar Rapids, Iowa, the late Tennessee statesman, Cordell Hull,
President Hoover, Edwin Markham the poet, and Dr. Norman Vincent Peale, now an honorary trustee of Baxter. (But
Upperman turned down a $500 gift from a man in the liquor business. "I just couldn't take the money," Upperman said.)
A $75,000 trades building was added to train carpenters, electricians, plumbers and the like to help in future expansion.
Upperman kept the solicitation trail hot.
In the late thirties, a flood of epidemics hit the school and community. Student and teachers were taken down with
the mumps, measles, chicken pox, flu, and other diseases. And Baxter was without a clinic.
It looked bad again. But the Uppermans knew the Daughters of the American Revolution were looking about for a
jubilee project. They suggested a health building for the school. The DAR jumped at the chance and completed a
$50,000 building, fully equipped, that served both the school and community with a full time nurse.
Baxter seminary numbers among its alumni leaders in the field of religion, education, law, business, medicine,
agriculture and the various trades. Eight members of the faculty are graduates of the school.
Veterans -- 2600 of them -- received training at Baxter after military service.
There's a "flexible" tuition fee. "We've never turned down a student because he didn't have the money," says
Upperman. Putnam county pays pro-rata costs of its own youngsters. Dormitory students pay nominal costs -- if
they can.
Upperman says he requires one thing of a student -- "make good ... not excuses."
"We keep them busy doing good things," he says. "And we teach each boy and girl as an individual of value-as a person."
Busy as he is, Upperman is never too busy to talk to a student with a problem. His door is always open. On a
typical morning recently, a dozen boys and girls wandered in before noon to talk about matters ranging in importance from
how to arrange a picnic to how to solve a problem involving the folks back home.
In his quiet way, Upperman tries to convince his students that clean thinking, clean talking and clean living make for
the best kind of life.
"Dr. Upperman made a lasting impression on the students of Baxter Seminary," says J. B. Leftwich, an alumnus now on the
faculty at Castle Heights Military academy. "We had a favorite nickname for him, 'The Good Man.' This term wasn't used
in a derisive sense, but because most of us recognized in him a force for good. He made us want to do things in a
manner worthy of his approval."
Baxter is a "church school." Bible literature is taught one hour each day. Upperman insists that his boys and
girls attend chapel daily, and they conduct the program themselves on Friday. There's a big painting of Christ above
the stage.
Chapel is the heart of our school," he says, "just as our library is the mind of our school." (He's improved this
"mind" considerably -- when he came to Baxter, there were only a few hundred books; now there are 4500.)
Upperman also believes a Christian can have a lot of fun. The fun program at Baxter includes basketball, football,
baseball, swimming, fishing, hiking, boating, folk games -- never a dull moment.
Bill Dyer, now editor of the Smithville Review, said he rode a school bus to Baxter Seminary.
"Like other kids, we cut up on the bus," he relates. "They had us up before the school superintendent.
"We had a cantankerous old bus driver who was pushing the case against us. Anyway, the superintendent asked all
who'd agree to abide by the driver's rules and to do what he said to stand up. They all stood up but me.
"This infuriated the school official and he expelled me from riding any school bust in Putnam County. This was
pretty hard for a 15-year-old to take, because I thought I was in the right, and still think so.
"But there was one friend who came around and put his arm around me and he said he understood. He said I could
stay in the dormitory.
"That man was Dr. Harry Lee Upperman."
MANY FROM HERE ATTEND SERVICES AT BAXTER SEMINARY
(May 20, 1957 - The Putnam County Herald)
Mr. and Mrs. T. J. Denny, Miss Dorothy Nell Denny, Miss Douglas Nichols, Mr. and Mrs. L. D. Nichols, Elton Stout, Jerry
Jared and Mrs. E. H. Maddux were at Baxter Seminary Saturday night, May 18, for the alumni banquet.
WELL DONE DR. UPPERMAN
(May 20, 1957 - The Nashville Banner)
Great institutions, growing through the years from an humble beginning, reflect the personalities of the men and women whose labor
and dreams helped build them.
In that fact is depicted the relationship of Dr. Harry L. Upperman with Baxter Seminary; the part he and Mrs. Upperman have
played for 34 years in the marvelous development of a school whose beneficiaries now number in the thousands.
There's a tug at these thousands of hearts with the announcement that Dr. Upperman is retiring at the close of this school year
from the post he has filled so capably. His has been a consecrated service, bringing opportunities of Christian education
into a multitude of young lives that otherwise would have been deprived of that, and influencing for good the whole Upper
Cumberland area.
Notable recognition has come to Baxter Seminary over the years for its practical approach to education--teaching work; training
hands as well as minds, and instilling always the loftiest aims by accent of the spiritual values. It has sought to live up
to the motto: Truth, Honor, Loyalty, and Service.
Truly, Dr. and Mrs. Upperman have imparted an example worthy of emulation by successors. To them goes the region's
gratitude for service tirelessly and unselfishly rendered. They have earned the years of happiness in retirement that are,
for them, the wish of every friend.
UPPERMANS HONORED AT BAXTER PROGRAM
(May 21, 1957 - The Nashville Banner)
Cookeville - Hundreds of friends of Baxter Seminary gathered at the school Monday for the commencement program which also
honored Dr. and Mrs. Harry Lee Upperman, who are retiring after 34 years at the Seminary.
Ed Turnley, representing the "Friends of Baxter," presented to Dr. Upperman the new Health and Physical Education Building
just completed.
In answer to the question "Why does Baxter Seminary have so many friends?" he said, "There are two reasons, Harry Lee and
Elma Upperman."
W. T. Sewell, chairman of the local board of trustees of the Seminary introduced Dr. John Owen Gross, executive secretary
of the Methodist Board of Education of Nashville, who presided and introduced many persons who paid tribute to the Uppermans.
Dr. Gross read from a letter from De. John L. Seaton, a former executive secretary of the board, who expressed regret at
not being able to attend and said, "The honors you will receive today cannot be commensurate with the honors due you."
Miss Betty Jo Chaffin, valedictorian of the graduating class, brought greetings from the students and Miss Ethelyn Hill,
at Baxter Seminary 33 years, brought greetings for the faculty. She said, "Every institution is the length and shadow of a
man" and added "Dr. and Mrs. Upperman have lengthened their influence to the boys and girls around the world."
Other quotes came from Hooper Crawford, president of the Seminary Alumni Association. "Your services will be greater
in the future than in the past."
J. T. Dunavin, representing the county court and town of Baxter; "We commend you for your unselfish life and untiring
work" He presented a camera as a gift from the mayor and aldermen of Baxter.
Dave C. Huddleston, superintendent of Putnam County Schools, speaking to the graduates: "We hope you will take the lessons
you have learned at Baxter Seminary and apply them to your life."
Putnam County Judge Luke Medley: "In the field of Christian education and social welfare the Uppermans have reached
thousands of lives."
Dr. E. P. Anderson, representing the Tennessee Conference of the Methodist Church: "Dr. and Mrs. Upperman have been
friends to the friendless. Their influence lingers on and on.:
Charles H. Yarbrough, of Nashville, representing the laymen of the Tennessee Conference: "I have never heard a layman say
anything detrimental about Harry Upperman."
Dr. Gross presented to Mr. and Mrs. Upperman a volume of more than 350 letters that have been received since announcement
was made of their retirement. Quoting from a letter sent by Ex-President Herbert Hoover, he read "I do not know of two
more dedicated and useful people."
Dr. Upperman, responding to the greetings, said, "We ought to have another meeting for Miss Hill."
Dr. Gross, in delivering the commencement address, pointed out the importance of preparing "to meet your afterself,"
saying "this class has had an example of a couple that has met their afterself."
After Dr. Upperman awarded the diplomas and Bibles to the graduates, the entire audience attended a community luncheon on
the Seminary campus.
DR. PAUL A. BARKER SWORN IN AS FIFTH PRESIDENT OF BAXTER SEMINARY
(March 11, 1958 - The Putnam County Herald)
Tennessee Methodist Bishop Roy Short of Nashville has sworn in Dr. Paul A. Barker as
the fifth president of Baxter Seminary after the retirement of Dr. Harry Upperman, the school’s longtime leader.
DR. PAUL A. BARKER SWORN IN AS FIFTH PRESIDENT OF BAXTER SEMINARY
(March 12, 1958 - The Nashville Banner)
Cookeville - The Rev. Paul A. Barker will be installed as president of Baxter Seminary at 10 a.m. Friday with Bishop Roy
Short of the Tennessee Conference of the Methodist Church in charge of the installation service.
Dr. John Gross, executive secretary of the board of education of the Methodist Church will deliver the principal
address, and Dr. Harry L. Upperman, who retired as president last year, also will take part in the program.
Miss Leila Havelock, of Malaya, who is a student at Peabody College, will sing.
The public has been invited to the installation service, which will be held in the Friends Gymnasium on the seminary
campus. The Rev. Mr. Barker came to the seminary in July from Bristol, where he had served as pastor of a church.
REV. PAUL BARKER...HALEYVILLE NATIVE SEMINARY PRESIDENT
(March 14, 1958 - The Advertiser, Haleyville, AL )
Rev. Paul A. Barker today will formally become the fifth president of Baxter Seminary today) Friday, 10 a.m. March 14) in
the Friends Gymnasium, Baxter, Tennessee.
After coming to Haleyville with his parents in 1920, he attended the Haleyville high school two years, Northwest Alabama
High School two years, and graduated as salutatorian of the class. He was chosen the best all round student of the
senior class in 1924.
After four years of college at the University of Chattanooga, Rev. Barker taught school two years in Haleyville High
School. During that time a public speaking club was organized from which there have gone a number of young men into
the Christian ministry.
In 1954 his parents, Mr. and Mrs. H. A. Barker, and family were chosen "The Methodist Family of the Year: and were
presented to the National Methodist Family Life Conference at Cleveland, Ohio, by Ralph Edwards.
Reverend Barker stated that he is most grateful to the citizens of Haleyville for such a wonderful community spirit
which he found as he attended school.
The inauguration Service at Baxter Seminary will be conducted by Bishop Roy H. Short of the Nashville Area, the
principal speaker being Dr. John O. Gross, Executive Secretary of the Methodist Board of Education.
Other persons having a part in the inauguration program include Rev. David B. Sargent, Cookeville District
Superintendent of the Methodist Church, Dr. Harry L. Upperman, President-Emeritus of Baxter Seminary, and Miss Leila
Havelock of Peabody College graduate school of education.
Mr. Barker's appointment was made February 21, 1957, and he succeeded Dr. Harry L. Upperman, now President-Emeritus,
retired after 34 years of service.
Other presidents of Baxter Seminary have been Samuel E. Ryan, Frank S. Ditto, and Patton R. Broyles.
DR. PAUL A. BARKER RECEIVES GRAND INAUGURATION CEREMONY
(March 17, 1958 - The Putnam County Herald)
Dr. Paul A. Barker became the fifth president of Baxter Seminary in a grand inauguration
ceremony at the school this week. He succeeds Dr. Harry Upperman, who is retiring after leading the
school for many years.
The keynote speaker was Dr. John Gross, the executive secretary of the Methodist Church Board of
Education, which oversees the school.
Gross praised Tennessee law saying, "In Tennessee, we can teach the Bible, which is the backbone of our
Democratic way of life."
BAXTER SEMINARY SENIOR CLASS PRACTICES FOR CLASS PLAY
(May 15, 1958 - The Putnam County Herald)
This week over at Baxter Seminary, the high school for the county’s western section, the
senior class is practicing for its class play, "Seventeen’s Terrific."
The cast, pictured in this week’s edition, include Aaron Dyer, Sally McArthur, Robert Gerard, Nancy
Maddux, David DeLozier, Polly Ferrell, Robert Williams, Mary Jane Gill, Clay Keith and Carolyn
Wallace.
Meanwhile, high school seniors are getting decked out for graduation this week. Some of them are
shopping at McMurry-Roberson, which ran an ad in this week’s edition listing items like sports shirts for
$2.98, dress shirts for $2.95 and sports coasts for $14.95.
FORMER BAXTER SEMINARY TEACHER NAMED SUPERVISOR OF STATE SCHOOL LUNCH PROGRAM
(May 20, 1958 - The Putnam County Herald)
Lawrence Bartlett, a Cookeville native, has been named supervisor of the state’s school lunch program.
Bartlett, a Tennessee Polytech graduate who’s done graduate work at Peabody College, has been supervisor
of the state farm training for veterans program since 1953. Before WWII Bartlett was a supervisor in the
state Farm Security Administration.
He began his working like as a vocational agriculture teacher at Baxter Seminary, where he taught from
1942 until 1944. He served a year of active duty in WWII and later in the Korean War.
He and his wife, the former Virginia Lea Chapin of Cookeville, now live in Nashville.
BAXTER SEMINARY ALUMNUS NAMED SOLDIER OF THE YEAR
(August 28, 1958 - The Putnam County Herald)
Staff Sgt. Lillard H. Roberts, 38, of Silver Point, is pictured in this week’s edition being congratulated by Brig. Gen.
James W. Coults upon being named Soldier of the Year for the U. S. 15th Reserves Advisory Group at Ft. Brooks, Puerto
Rico. A graduate of Baxter Seminary, Roberts joined the military in 1943.
BAXTER SEMINARY CHEERLEADERS SELECTED
(September 10, 1958 - The Putnam County Herald)
The cheerleaders have been selected for this year at Baxter Seminary. They are, Judy Maxwell, Bobbie June Carr,
Janie Hill, Judy Harding, Dian Pullum and Geraldine Stewart.
Misses Pullum and Maxwell were elected as captain and co-captain.
Classes have been organized and have elected officers.
Senior class officers include Charles Pardue, president, Gary Leftwich, vice president; Helen Geer, secretary; Franklin
Scarlett, treasurer.
Juniors chose Harold Maddux, president; Delano Leftwich, vice president; Bobby Craighead, secretary; and Dowlene
Maxwell, treasurer.
Sophomore leaders are: Rita Lowe, president; Tommy Dow Waller, vice president; Murl Henley, secretary; and Lloyd McHenry,
treasurer.
Freshmen officers include Colleen Bruce, president; Jerry Pardue, vice president; Patricia Brown, secretary; and Ann Nash,
treasurer.
Barbara Billings will reign as homecoming queen when Baxter meets Hartsville Friday night. Attendants to the queen
will be Ernestine Austin, Dowlene Maxwell, Rita Lowe, and Colleen Bruce.
PUTNAM COUNTY SCHOOL BOARD VOTES TO PURCHASE BAXTER SEMINARY
(March 5, 1959 - The Putnam County Herald)
The Putnam School Board has voted to purchase the buildings and grounds of Baxter Seminary for use as a school site in
Baxter.
BAXTER SEMINARY MAY BE SOLD
(March 12, 1959 - The Tennessean by John Mott, State Correspondent)
Putnam Considers Buying a 50 Year Old Methodist School
BAXTER, Tennessee - Baxter Seminary, a Methodist church-supported school for 50 years, may cease to be a private
institution within 2 years, W. T. Sewell, chairman of its board of trustees, said yesterday.
The seminary's board of trustees has notified the Putnam county board of education that the agreement for the seminary
to accommodate high school students in the western section will be terminated within two years.
This means the county will have to provide its own facilities for some 350 high school students who have been attending
the school through an agreement between the county and the seminary, Sewell said.
Sewell, who lives in Baxter, also is chairman for the seven-man county board of education. He said, the action by
the seminary's trustees was brought about by increasing operating costs.
Favors Lease
In his role as chairman for the county board, Sewell said he will favor county lease or purchase of the seminary's
facilities for incorporation into the county education system by next school year.
"in a transaction of this kind it will probably take several months to work out all of the details," Sewell said, "and
it may be better to try to lease the facilities while a purchase agreement is being worked out."
Under the present agreement between the county and the seminary, the county pays the salary of 14 of the about 20
teachers, plus $9.70 for each student, from the county. Endowment funds and gifts have made up the balance of the
money used to operate the school, Sewell said.
Enrollment at the seminary this year is 398 with 41 being boarding students and the remainder from the county.
The seminary plant belongs to the Methodist church. It includes the administration building-which also houses the
auditorium and classrooms-a science building, trades building, gymnasium, president's home, health house, and boys and
girls dormitories.
A meeting of the county school board to discuss the situation is scheduled for this afternoon. The board of
trustees of the school will meet Tuesday.
Board Members
The board, which governs the seminary includes, Sewell, Dr. H. L. Upperman, V. D. Nunally, and Lawrence Grace, Baxter;
C. S. Jenkins, Cookeville; Mosco W. Brown, the Rev. H. T. Fowler, Dr. E. P. Anderson and Charles Yarbrough, Nashville; the
Rev, H, T, Tipps, Shelbyville, and the Rev. J. D. Bass, Murfreesboro.
Baxter Seminary was founded in 1909 by the late J. D. Harris, who at that time was superintendent of the Baxter circuit
of the Methodist church.
Presidents, who have served the seminary include Dr. S. E. Ryan, Dr. Frank S. Ditto, Dr. Patton R. Broyles, Dr.
Upperman, and the Rev. Paul Barker.
Dr. Upperman served the longest, coming to Baxter in 1923 and remaining at the head of the school until his retirement
in 1957. The Rev. Mr. Barker, the present president officially was installed at ceremonies last March.
BAXTER SEMINARY WINDS DOWN
(May 16, 1959 - The Putnam County Herald)
After serving the county’s western end for 50 years and fondly remembered by scores of residents, Baxter Seminary winds
down its final year as a semiprivate high school.
END OF AN ERA
(May 22, 1959 - Nashville Banner)
For some years, the Tennessee public has often witnessed the closing of some private schools of high repute and its
conversion into a public high school.
Baxter Seminary was the latest such school to convert.
Those who know something of the great service rendered over a long period at Baxter by Dr. and Mrs. Upperman and their
many fine helpers, salute them with humble thanks and best wishes for their future.
May Baxter Seminary's high standard be forever maintained by the new school which very fittingly bears the name of
Upperman High School.
PUTNAM SCHOOL CHIEF TAKES PRINCIPAL JOB
(May 28, 1959 - Chattanooga Daily Times)
COOKEVILLE, TENN. -- Dave C. Huddleston, superintendent of Putnam County schools, has been named principal of the new
Upperman High School at Baxter. The new school will replace Baxter Seminary which has been operated for the last
50 years by the Methodist Church. By special arrangement with the Putnam County board of education it has served
high school students in the western end of the county, but with the beginning of the 1959 fall term the school will be a
public high school. Huddleston is now serving in the third year of his second four year term as superintendent.
Other new teachers at Upperman will be Hooper Burgess, who was former principal of the Burgess Elementary school, and
Mrs. Lois Phillips, who was principal of Carr's Chapel Elementary School. Teachers who were at Baxter Seminary last
year and will be at Upperman next year, include Arnold Brown, Mrs. Helen B. Copeland, Mrs. Eulene Garrison, Mrs. Lena
Plunkett, Walter Simcox, Cecil D. Smith, Mrs. Virginia Smith, Joe B. Stanton, Mrs. Marie Swallows, Miss Frances Ward,
J. Berch Williams, and Mrs. Peggy Wright.
THE BAXTER HUMAN ALARM CLOCK
(April 9, 1963 - The Tennessean, Elmer Hinton's colum-DOWN TO EARTH)
Back in 1932 Charlie Hughes of Baxter appeared briefly in the spotlight of national attention.
This was the result of a story the Rev. W. J. Fesmire wrote in the NASHVILLE TENNESSEAN about Hughes being Baxter's
human alarm clock.
Fesmire, 2701 Blakemore Ave., was then the Methodist pastor in that town and the area's state correspondent for this
newspaper.
The story hit all the news services and appeared in newspapers and magazines, even on newsreels, from coast-to-coast.
Blew the Bugle
Hughes won the alarm title by climbing a tall pole (see picture) every morning at 6 o'clock, on the dot, and blowing a
bugle. It's said he was more reliable that the roosters.
He followed this for 31 years. Then he lost some teeth to where he couldn't make the bugle sound to his
liking-besides he was getting too old to climb a pole every morning-and he switched to ringing a large dinner bell.
The ringing of the bell, like the blowing of the bugle, takes place at 6 a.m.
Most likely Hughes is the only person living in that area who moved there in an ox drawn wagon-in 1910. He was
75 in January and has never married.
Could Have Married
Said he could have married when he was 18. But the girl dipped snuff, and wouldn't quit the habit, so Hughes
decided he just couldn't go through life with a snuff dipper.
The bugler once fashioned a bugle from a wagon axal thimble. He used this for a special purpose. He hauled
stovewood in a one-horse wagon and when he'd come to a railroad crossing, he'd stop and blow a few blasts on the wagon
thimble bugle.
Hughes served as mail messenger at Baxter, which means he carried the mail sacks between the post office and mail
trains. He counted the steps he made in a day carrying the mail.
So if anybody has wondered what happened to Charlie Hughes, the human alarm clock, the foregoing is meant to bright
(Sic) you up-to-date on the bell ringer of Baxter.
Merner Hall Photo: Baxter Seminary Highlander - Baxter Seminary Yearbooks 1934-1960 by Mike and
Audrey Lambert www.ajlambert.com
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Baxter, Tenn., Aug. 9-One of the world's most celebrated buglers, Charlie Hughes, 62, who has served as a human alarm
clock for the sleepy residents of this small Putnam County community for more than a quarter of a century, plans to
replace the chestnut pole he has been climbing for the past 26 years to blow reveille on his mail order bugle.
Baxter, Tenn.-It was near black midnight here a few weeks ago and Baxter's seminary's gymnasium had just gone up in
smoke. All were gone who witnessed the sad spectacle except one strapping football player and Harry L. Upperman, head
mentor for 30 years of the famous "little mountain school."
Cookeville-Senator Estes Kefauver speaking at the Baxter Seminary graduation program Friday, said "We want to preserve our
way of life, to continue our freedoms under a democracy and to have peace with honor."
Baxter-Miss Jimmie Fields and Billy Rhea Flynn will represent Baxter Seminary at Volunteer Girls State and Volunteer Boys
State.
