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Century-old schoolhouse rediscovered in Jefferson County

It's hard to find many people who know anything about the Pleasant Grove School in Jefferson County.

The century-old schoolhouse on the corner of Old Dandridge Pike and Piney Road in Jefferson County was recently uncovered after years of hiding beneath overgrown bushes and trees.

"I've noticed it from the road sometimes, but it used to be so grown up," said John Massey, who lives nearby but had never seen the school since the trees were so big. "I've never gotten to walk up close to it like this. That's awesome."

Kenny Jones owns the land where the schoolhouse sits. He said his grandfather helped build the school.

Jones said he's had a number of people stopping by to look at the building and take picture after he recently hired workers to clear the land.

For Billie Fisher, the old schoolhouse was where she once attended classes.

"I went to school here (first) through the seventh grade," said Fisher, who is now in her 80s. Her first day of school was in 1942. "They would put up curtains like a stage and we would put on shows for the family. We just had a good time."

Fisher still has the drawings she made as a young girl, the papers she learned to write on and even one of her report cards.

Jefferson County historian Bob Jarnagin wasn't aware of the schoolhouse, but looked through the property deeds to find the building.

"The school was sitting on the lot in 1906 and now they've added another track to it in 1909," Jarnagin said. Documents from the Jefferson County Board of Education show that the school was built prior to 1900.

The schoolhouse once had more than 60 students and 30 desks.

Jones guesses the building was used as a grade school until the early 1950s.

He says the land is being cleared to make way for a home, but the schoolhouse will stay put.

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