My sisters and I left Carver High School when the family moved to Chicago in the early 1960’s. The oldest sister graduated from Carver in Memphis and the other three of us went on to graduate from Hyde Park High in Chicago.  But my sisters held on to their contacts there and one just attended what could have been her 60th Class Reunion. She stayed in contact with the Memphis crew over the years.

So here, I look back at my one year at Carver Junior High where I spent one memorable year as a 7th grader.  For starters, I was in an all-girls homeroom for reasons unbeknownst to me. But homeroom only lasted for a few minutes each day, so it really did not make that much difference. Ms. Grandberry was our teacher and all I remember about her is that she was pleasant, had a couple of dimples and a great smile.

Then there was Mr. McClellan who taught Spelling. He was an animated teacher and to this day I am a decent speller and quite conscientious about my writing. He was up on the second floor along with Mr. Black who taught History.  I remember Mr. Black as being tall, astute and quite knowledgeable. Then there was Ms. Walton who taught Social Science.  I recall her reassuring us and calming our fears during The Cuban Missile Crisis.

There was Ms. Blackwell who was located at the far end of the second floor. She taught Art and I will never forget trying to replicate a scene using the one-point perspective theory. She truly left her mark on me because I have sketched over the years. 

And there was Ms. McDavid who baffled us all. Whenever she gave a test in, ( I believe it was Geography), she re-seated the class. Those with the highest scores sat in the first row, so if you were in row four over by the windows, anyone walking pass knew that you weren’t doing that good in her class. Whew!

And lastly there was our beloved principal, Mr. R. B. Thompson. He was small in stature, but he ruled with an iron fist. The rules were clear and if you did not play by the rules, all other students knew it. Those were the days when teachers could still paddle students if need be.  At any time, you may see the star quarterback or the Casanova-lover of the school bent over getting a few licks with the school paddle in front of their admiring fans or girlfriends. That was embarrassing enough for them to hopefully make better choices in the future.

I have very fond memories of my one year at Carver, though I was in junior high. The school building was rather new, and it housed 7th through 12th grades. We had a huge field in the back to play on for recess, and for baseball games. And the gym was our happy place where we sometimes had dances. They were called sock-ups because we could not wear street shoes on the gym floor, and we danced in our socks.

Yes, Carver where the school colors were red and white, and the mascot was and still is the almighty Cobra. That one fantastic year helped shape me and Carver definitely had a hand in who I am today!

Lynn M.
September 20, 2025