School History

The Waverly-Belmont School (ca. 1950).

Waverly-Belmont Has Long History Serving Nashville's Families  

Below are excerpts from Former Metro School Board member Will Pinkston's speech on August 19, 2013 to the future families and neighbors of the Waverly-Belmont School:

"The Beginning: Construction of the Waverly-Belmont building began in 1935 as part of President Roosevelt’s Works Progress Administration (WPA) to help America recover from the Great Depression. Construction wrapped up in 1937, and the building opened its doors that year to 425 students. [The architectural style is a hybrid of Art Deco and Art Moderne, designed by the Architectural firm of Marr and Holman. This same firm designed the downtown U.S. Post Office that is now the Frist Center for the Visual Arts.]

The first principal, serving until 1943, was Mr. S.T. Johnson, and the school had a very active PTA. They organized chili suppers every spring to support the PTA, and they had a Christmas program every year in early December. In 1942, students and parents conducted a “salvage drive” to support the war effort, and they helped roll bandages for the Red Cross. In 1950, the Grand Ole Opry’s Minnie Pearl visited Waverly-Belmont at the invitation of the PTA President, Mrs. George Jones. We’re not sure whether or not it was THE Mrs. George Jones. But... it’s Nashville. Anything is possible."

Yes, anything is possible! We look forward to learning about our history and creating a great future for our Waverly-Belmont children and community.