© Jerry F. Couch

In 1925, the community of Dante and its surrounding area were thriving. Not only was Dante Russell County’s foremost multicultural community, it also boasted Russell County’s largest concentration of population. Dante was the headquarters of the Clinchfield Coal Corporation, and in addition to the company’s industrial buildings, the homes, company store, churches, hotel, hospital, bank building, and schools were Clinchfield property. It was the equivalent of a feudal fiefdom overseen by Clinchfield Superintendent Lee Long from his impressive company residence “Lingerlong” atop Roanoke Hill.

A few weeks ago, a local Friend of History shared a 1925 group photo of some Dante third-grade students. The setting of the photo appears to be the front entrance of the Dante Central School. Please take note that the names listed below were handwritten in pencil and had faded over time, making some of them difficult to read. It’s also possible that the spelling of some names may be incorrect. Regardless, I think you’ll enjoy this glimpse of the past. I certainly did.

FIRST ROW L to R: Hazel Johnson, Willie Pennington, Hildred Dickenson, Ruby Cassell, Elizabeth Dickenson, Pauline Restel

SECOND ROW L to R: Laura Kate Townes, Shindah Dobosh, Grace Moore, Grace Alderson, Clarence Honaker, Evelyn Raiford [daughter of Principal E. P. Raiford], Evelyn Chaffin, Bernice Nickels, Johnsie Mae Townes

THIRD ROW L to R: Lakie Daughtery Brown [Teacher], Gertrude Laforce, Tom Wright, Maxie Fleenor, Claude Porter, Ada Roark, Edith Smith, Mary Robertson, Tom Owens, Edgar Alley

FOURTH ROW L to R: David Mays, Claud Fuller, Herbert Pennington, Lola Bright, Etta McIntosh, Bo Farris, Kade Cox Bailey, Nattie Lee Porter, Dowell Buskell, Hazel Wilson

The article below is from the July 26, 1925 edition of the Roanoke Times. From it, we learn that Dante was enjoying the prosperity of the mid-1920’s, with people moving into the community. This necessitated an addition to the school. Unfortunately, things weren’t going so well for small SWVA coal operators and in the concluding years of the decade, that situation would grow worse.

One indicator of Clinchfield Coal Corporation’s prosperity in 1925 was the amount of Federal Income Tax the company paid on its profits for that year – $23,858. Adjusted for inflation, that figure would be $433,085 in taxes today. Because the federal income tax rate in 1925 was 25%, that means Clinchfield’s profits were $1,732,340. It is unlikely any other business in Russell County earned as much or paid as much in taxes as Clinchfield. The announcement of a stock dividend (below) by Clinchfield Coal Corp. is from the December 4, 1925 edition of The Lebanon News.

In addition to the wide array of merchandise offered at the Clinchfield company store, you could purchase almost anything at Dante in 1925, including a new car – or an expensive Atwater-Kent radio. Below is the Dante Motor Car Company’s period newspaper advertisement for Star Cars. The Star was a lower-priced companion model to the Durant, which was also sold by the Dante Motor Car Co. With prices starting at around $540 at the factory for the Star roadster, it was a step up from Ford’s Model T. Durant automobiles were priced to compete with General Motors’ Chevrolets, Oaklands (later replaced by Pontiac), Oldsmobiles, and Buicks.

Pictured below, a 1925 Durant Coach was priced at about $800 when new.

Pictured below, a 1925 Star Roadster

And…if your tastes ran to something other than a Star or a Durant, W. A. Turner would be happy to put you behind the wheel of a new Chevrolet, Buick, or Hudson at his Dante dealership.

Meanwhile, automobile travel between St. Paul and Dante continued to improve. In January of 1925, the Virginia State Highway Department requested bids from contractors for paving the road between Morefield and Hamlin. In preparation for this work, the road had been drained and graded the previous year. At that time, the road was one of the most dangerous in the area because it crossed the CC&O railroad tracks in several places. Eventually, these crossings were eliminated, and the road was raised, widened, and straightened.

(BELOW) The Lebanon News advertisement for a stock reductions sale at the Clinchfield Company Store is from October of 1924. It is (1) the only period ad I could find, and (2) it is generally representative of the store, its manner of doing business, and the merchandise that would have been sold there in 1925. It should also be noted that under the management of M. C. Matthews, Clinchfield’s company stores were arguably the best retail outlets in the area.

(ABOVE) Although this interior photo of Clinchfield’s company store at Dante was undated, we can make a reasonable assumption that it was taken in the 1920’s due to the clothing worn by the store’s customers. This store remained in business until Monday, October 31, 1977.

DANTE SOCIAL NEWS – FROM THE SEPT. 16, 1925 EDITION OF THE ROANOKE TIMES

—-Virginia Tarr of Dante visited Monticello, the home of President Thomas Jefferson. The estate was opened to the public in 1923 by the Thomas Jefferson Memorial Foundation.

—-Mr. and Urs. F. L. Thompson returned to their home here the former part of the week after spending some time in Atlantic City and Washington, the former’s home.

—-Lee Long, vice president of the Clinchfield Coal Corporation, returned Friday evening after an absence of several days in Richmond on a business mission.

—-Larry Ferrell, well0known businessman of Huntington, was mingling with friends in Dante on Thursday.

—-Miss Mattie Jones was the weekend guest of her parents at Dungannon.

—- Frank Harr has resumed his duties as industrial claims agent after being confined to his home with tonsilitis.

—-Lawrence and Gordon McNeer of Haysi, spent Sunday in Dante as guests of their uncle, Dr. L. C. McNeer.

—-Perry Gillespie is spending his vacation in Norfolk and at his home at Raven.

—-Miss Louise Carter has returned to school in Huntington after a visit of several days with friends in Dante.

—-Miss Kate Leyden had as her guests at dinner Sunday Misses Margaret Stevens, Louise Carter, Elizabeth and Alice McNeer; Lawrence McNeer, Howard Steele, and henry McNeer.

—-William and Fred Matthews, after spending a few days with relatives in Appalachia, have returned to their homes here.

—-Thomas H. Olinger, of Bluefield, was here on a business mission Friday.

—-M . Roy Marsh and Zed Tate motored to Kingsport Sunday, where they spent the day with friends.

—-O. T. Austin has returned to Lynchburg after spending a short time as the guest of his parens near here.

—-Lindsey and Mamie Roland, of Bluefield, spent the weekend in Dante with friends.

—-Charlie Bailey left the latter part of the week for Church Hill, Tenn. where he will attend high school the coming season.

—-C. K. Booher spent the weekend in Bristol with relatives.

—-Lee Horne, who was a valuable member of the local baseball outfit during the summer, has assumed his duties as assistant principal and coach at Coeburn High School.

Mrs. L. T. Jessee and children of Richlands, have been in Dante for the past week as the guests of relatives and friends.

—-Thomas Brown spent Sunday in Clinchfield as the guest of his family.

—-Joe Nat Johnson was visiting friends and relatives in Tazewell the former part of the week.

—-Mr. Wellford, the ministerial student who has held services near Dante several times during the past summer, has returned to the New York Theological School, where he expects to graduate next June.

—-After spending three months at their summer home here, Mrs. L. C. McNeer and family left Wednesday for Huntington, where they will remain through the winter.

—-Carl Ervin left Friday for Louisville, where he matriculated at the University of Louisville.

—-Rush Adams, Dr. Tom McNeer, Zed Stewart and A. J. Lucas spent the weekend on a fishing trip near Moccasin Gap.

(BELOW) A happy occasion for Sarah Margaret Thomas and Samuel Francis Ellington, two young Dante residents. Their wedding announcement is from the August 23, 1925 edition of The Roanoke Times.

(BELOW) From The Roanoke Times, July 1, 1925

(BELOW) From the February 14, 1925 edition of the Richmond Times Dispatch

WHAT WAS TAKING PLACE IN THE WIDER WORLD IN 1925?

• Nellie Tayloe Ross was elected Governor of Wyoming. She was the first woman in America to be elected governor of a state.
• In Tennessee, John T. Scopes was convicted of teaching evolution in a public school in violation of state law.
• The worst tornado in US history (up to that time) struck Missouri, Illinois, and Indiana resulting in the deaths of 689 people.
• Federal spending for 1925 was $2.92 billion.
• Unemployment was 3.2%
• The Pulitzer Prize for fiction was awarded to Edna Ferber for her novel So Big.

DANTE LIVES ON!

*********