Dunbar Rosenwald School: history

              Dunbar Rosenwald School
113 Steekee Street
Loudon, Loudon Co., TN
Photos by Carroll Van West
Text by Jane Davis, Carroll Van West, Elizabeth M. Humphreys
Description
The circa 1923 Dunbar Public School is located in a residential neighborhood southeast
of Loudon’s (pop. 4,476) courthouse square. Built with money from the Julius
Rosenwald Fund, the building is a local adaptation of the standardized Plan #20 from the
fund’s Community School Plans book. The one story frame building is covered with
beveled novelty siding, has an original [at least pre 1953] metal shingle cross gable roof,
and a concrete and concrete block foundation. Multi-light windows, simple brackets, and
two single leaf entries are distinguishing features on the exterior of the school. Inside,
the two-room school retains original beaded board wainscoting, wood floors, and light
fixtures. In 1953 a small concrete block addition was added to the rear of the school.
The west facade has a projecting center room with a bank of four, double-hung, nine-over-
nine, wood sash windows and a front-gable roof with a rectangular, louvered gable-end
vent. Flanking the gabled center section are shed roof covered entrances with
single leaf paneled wood doors. Both entrances have a stoop of two concrete stairs that
leads to a vestibule. To the north and south of the entries there are double-hung, six-over-
six wood sash window, At the north edge of the façade there is a one-story gable
roof extension that is set back from the main part of the façade.
The north elevation of the extension is a solid weatherboard wall with rectangular vents
placed into the concrete foundation and a rectangular, louvered gable end vent. West of
the extension the elevation has a fixed nine-light window that replaced an original
double-hung six-over-six window c. 1953. East of the extension the one story, shed roof
1953 addition is visible.
The east elevation contains two banks of windows, one for each classroom, and the
1953 addition. The 1953 addition also covered another bank of three windows that was
located in the center of the elevation, with a new exterior door cut into one of the
windows while the other two windows were covered with board. A bank of four double-hung
nine-over-nine sash windows remains intact to the north of the addition, while one
window was covered by the addition on the south, leaving only three double-hung nine-over-
nine sash windows. The one story concrete block addition is near the center of the
elevation and has no window or door openings. It was built to add restrooms to the
school. Extending south from this is a circa 1990 addition that leads to the basement.
The south elevation is a weatherboard wall with one double-hung six-over-six sash
window at the west side of the elevation and one small two-pane window at the ground
level at the east corner. The shed roof concrete block addition is visible at this elevation,
as is a flat roof entry to the basement from circa 1990.
The interior consists of two equally sized classrooms, two small rooms once used as a
library and an office, and a projecting center portion for the industrial room. Movable
partitions and a three-panel wood door separate the two classrooms. The original