By Staff
Lydia Grimes
Forgotten Trails
As we continue with Ethel Holmes’ history of the area, I will remind you that this information was written in 1934, so keep that in mind as you read.
In 1898 the Legislature passed a local act for Escambia County while Mr. Neal was  Superintendent of Education to visit all the schools of the country at least once a month, for which services he was not to be paid more than $300 nor less than $200 annually. Other provisions of the local law were the sections authorizing the County Superintendent to adopt uniform textbooks for the county, and doing away with the astronomical township as a unit of school control, and submitting a district system according to centers of population, in which schools were to be at least two and one-half miles apart.
Since the time Escambia County was made a county, the people have been interested in education. This is proven by the fact that no educational measure submitted to the voters of Escambia County has ever been defeated.
For a number of years it has been the aim of the citizens of Escambia County to have a high school within reach of every child, and to date five accredited high schools have been located in different parts of the county. They are the Escambia County High School in Atmore, T.R. Miller High School in Brewton, McCullough in the extreme west end, Flomaton in the southern part of the county and W.S. Neal in East Brewton, which is the central part. There are three accredited junior high schools, namely Damascus, Wallace and Huxford. The extended transportation system of the county now reaches practically every community.
In 1931 the county employed 135 white teacher, 40 bus drivers, and 33 colored teachers. In line with the other phases of educational advancement, the county has an elementary supervisor, Miss Elsie Schurter and a child welfare worker, Mrs. Aurelius Hagood, who is associated with the schools.