February 26, 1924
The Kate Duncan Smith DAR School (KDS) opened in Grant. A public school administered by the Marshall County Board of Education, KDS is the only K-12 school in the nation owned and operated by chapters of the Daughters of the American Revolution (DAR). The DAR located the school on Gunter Mountain to serve Guntersville and Scottsboro, citing the isolation of the area, its need for educational opportunities and the commitment of residents. Today, the school enrolls about 1,400 students in more than 40 buildings, several of which date back to the 1930s, and the district boasts a 96 percent graduation rate. The school was added to the National Register of Historic Places in 2002.
Read more at Encyclopedia of Alabama.
Historical marker at the Kate Duncan Smith DAR School in Grant, Alabama, United States. (Brian Stansberry, Wikipedia)
The Louise Wilson Jacobs building, constructed in 1924, contains the original four classrooms and auditorium of the Kate Duncan Smith DAR School in Grant, Marshall County. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of Angela C. Otts)
Becker Hall was the original gymnasium of the Kate Duncan Smith DAR School in Grant, Marshall County, built from logs harvested on Grant Mountain. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of Angela C. Otts)
Pennsylvania Log Cabin at Kate Duncan Smith DAR School in Grant, Marshall County, was built to house the school library in 1935. Today it serves as the school museum. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of Angela C. Otts)
The Nan Roberts Lane Chapel on the campus of Kate Duncan Smith DAR School in Grant, 2017. (Brian Stansberry, Wikipedia)
The Helen Pouch Building was constructed in 1946 as a lunchroom on the campus of Kate Duncan Smith DAR School in Grant, Marshall County. (From Encyclopedia of Alabama, courtesy of Angela C. Otts)
The Michigan Center on the campus of the Kate Duncan Smith DAR School in Grant, 2017. (Brian Stansberry, Wikipedia)
For more on Alabama’s Bicentennial, visit Alabama 200.
