By Bonita Wilborn
Council members of the small DeKalb County Town of Powell were planning to upgrade their Town by tearing down the building that once housed Powell Elementary and Junior High School. The plan was to turn the building into a new Powell Town Hall.
At a recent Council meeting, the Powell Town Council unanimously approved the motion to demolish the building. However, their efforts to upgrade the Town have met controversy from some citizens.
Some Powell residents believe that the Town Council has several other options for the location of a new Town Hall Building. The citizens protesting the demolition argue that the building in question is the last remaining landmark that connects the Town of Powell to its history. Some in the community have stated that the demolition will disturb the fabric that connects the entire community.
The Town of Powell was founded in the early 1900s, reportedly by Don Watson Powell, also known as Doc Powell. Doc Powell, the person for whom the area was named (previously known as The Big Woods), purchased 500 acres of land, and one of the buildings he owned/donated land for, was the building slated for demolition.
Members of the Town Council say that a notice about the proposed demolition was released in September. However, the descendants of Doc Powell deny that they ever received that notice, and they want the demolition halted immediately.
A large number of the citizens of the Town of Powell are descendants of Don Watson “Doc” Powell. The Powell family argues that the Town Council did not notify anyone in the Town of Powell about the decision to demolish the historic building.
According to a report from WHNT-TV, Kenley Powell, a great-great-grandson of Doc Powell, stated, “Normally, they put signs in the store, but they didn’t put signs in the store this time. It’s an insult to the Powell family and an insult to everybody in Town. Nobody in Town is ready to accept this.”
Reggie Byrum, Powell Town Council member, commented, “On October 13, we had a public meeting that was announced in that letter, inviting anybody that had any issues to come out and discuss them. No one showed up for the meeting.”
The Powell family believes the building is the last known connection to the Powell legacy.
The following can be found in a book titled History of DeKalb County Schools, published in 1998.
“In 1906, D.W. Powell purchased land and moved into the community. He built a house and later built and operated a country store. He was interested in building a new schoolhouse. Mr. Mark Jones, who had homesteaded a section of land, sold three acres for $50.00 on which a school building was constructed.
This building was completed during the 1919-1920 school term and was called Powell School. This building consisted of four rooms and a large stage that could be used as a classroom.
In 1941, the Pope School was consolidated with Fyffe and Powell. The building burned in the spring of 1947. After the school building burned, school was taught in the Straight Creek Church of God until a new building was constructed.
The Powell Estate gave five acres of land on Highway 35 at Powell’s Cross Road for a new building site. A cement-block building was constructed and was first used in the 1948-49 school term. When Powell was consolidated in 1970, some students went to Sylvania and some to Fyffe.”
The above excerpt gives credibility to the Powell family descendants’ claim that the old school building does have a Powell family connection. However, to this writer’s knowledge, that was never in question.
Over the years, the old Powell School building has been used to house various businesses, including a hosiery mill, a consignment store, and a modern-day bin store, and has sat vacant at various times. Nevertheless, weathering and natural deterioration have taken their toll on the building that was once the hub of the Powell community.
A restoration project to restore the building to a safe and useful venue that would replace the eyesore that the building has now become would be very costly, something that the Town of Powell can ill afford. Time will tell what will eventually become of the building.