Huddleston's name came from Henry Huttleston Rogers, who financed building the
Virginia Railway from Deepwater, West Virginia to Norfolk, Virginia.
The story of the school(s) of Huddleston is an incomplete story. It is a story that
began in the 1920's with a group of citizens who realized the need for a high school
for the young men and women of Huddleston and surrounding county.
After many conferences between the patrons and the school board, it was found that
the county was able to bear only half of the estimated $15,000 needed to finance the
new building, according to the requirements for accredited high school work. Not to
be daunted, this group began to work and after time the necessary $7,500 was raised,
leaving nothing in the way of their goal.
By the spring of 1925, the architect's plan for six classrooms, library, and laboratory
were completed and work was begun. The part of the building to be used for the high
school classes was ready for the opening of the 1925-26 school term. The entire
building was completed later the same year.
The consolidation of Leftwich and Horeb Schools marked the way for the
consolidation of other schools with Huddleston. These schools were Glenwood,
Brown, Cross Roads, Dunde, Ephesus, Ferrell, White Rock, South Bedford, Wade,
Stone Road, Shepherd, Orrix, Mentow, Oakvale, Mountain Gape, Mount Pleasant
Academy, Hill Crest, Fairview and Patmos. It was necessary for the program of
building to be expanded with this increasing enrollment. In 1937, a new
auditorium-gymnasium with a seating capacity of 500 was built.
In 1963, with the completion of Staunton River High School, the school of
Huddleston became solely an elementary school. It served children in grades
1 through 7 only. Kindergarten classes were started with the 1974 school year.
The 1967-68 school term saw the completion of a new elementary school for the
children of Huddleston. Built on the original site, all that remains of the original
school are two classrooms, the vocational- agricultural building and the auditorium-
gymnasium. The new facility houses ten modern classrooms, an office suite, a library
and storage rooms, and a modern cafeteria-kitchen. The agriculture building was
remodeled and used as a kindergarten facility from 1974-1982. For the school year
1987-88, the kindergarten facility was reopened to rehouse classes once again.
Students attending during the 1997-98 school term had the use of the new
gymnasium.
The school of Huddleston has undergone much change but the philosophy of
education at Huddleston remains unchanged - that is, the fullest realization
of the possibilities of the individual, not only for each student's own personal
welfare, but also for their adaptation and contribution to an everchanging society.
Now it houses grades PK-5.