Located in the southern end of Caldwell County in the North Catawba Township of the Baton community is Baton Elementary School. The school was formed on the present site in 1915 with the consolidation of the Lutz School on the eastern edge of the community and the Bean School on the west side of the community.
At the time Baton School was established the community was made up of large farms and large families.
The first structure was a white wooden building which contained three spacious rooms, a large foyer, a stage, two smaller rooms used for a library, a storage room, and two "cloak rooms". This building was considered one of the best in the county for its time.
The school had three teachers and approximately one hundred pupils. Ten grades were taught until the state took charge of the school. Some of the students furthered their education by attending Rutherford College some four miles away in Burke County. Later, Hudson became the high school for Baton students.
During the late thirties a fourth teacher was added to the faculty and one of the facility's smaller rooms was converted to a classroom to provide additional instructional space.
The enrollment in 1941 had grown to one hundred fifty, thus the need for more space was evident. The building of the new and larger facility was begun.
By September, 1942, the new brick structure consisting of six standard classrooms, a library, an office, an auditorium, a basement, lunchroom, and restrooms was ready for occupancy.
As the community landowners began selling their property and housing developments increased, more people moved into the area. Again, the school was faced with a lack of adequate space. The office and library became additional classroom space.
In 1952, a west wing consisting of two classrooms each with a restroom was added. A new lunchroom was built where the present physical education building is located. The former lunchroom which was located under the present Multi-Purpose Room became a boiler room.
The community and school population continued to grow rapidly. Additional classroom spaces were added in 1956, 1962, 1967, and 1972. In 1971, the auditorium was renovated into a media center, which at present time is a Multi-Purpose Room.
On July 1, 1974, the Caldwell School System and the Lenoir City School System merged into the present Caldwell County School System. In the fall of 1974, the first kindergarten class for Baton began.
In 1977 - 78, two new modern high schools were completed in the county. These new high schools, South Caldwell and West Caldwell, would now serve as the high schools for the Baton students. The building which had formerly been Hudson High School became Hudson Middle School. Seventh and eight graders from Baton and seventh and eight graders from Sawmills, Whitnel, and Hudson merged with ninth graders to form Hudson Middle School. Baton became a kindergarten through sixth grade school.
In August, 1989, the sixth grade students in Caldwell County were reassigned to the middle schools. The middle schools were to serve grades six through eight and the high schools became grades nine through twelve. After the reassignment, Baton was changed to a kindergarten through five school.
As the Baton community continued to grow and new housing developments were created, plans for a new facility were initiated. A School Bond Referendum was passed by the Caldwell County voters and bids were opened in November, 1997 for the new three and one-half million dollar building. The old structure would continue to be used and the new addition consisting of sixteen classrooms, office complex, and media center would join the building through the use of a covered walkway.
In October, 1999, the new facility was opened. Sixteen classrooms in kindergarten through fourth grade occupy the instructional space. One fourth grade class and three fifth grade classes were moved to the west wing of the old building. The old media center became the Multi-Purpose Room and the classrooms in this building were assigned to Art, Exceptional Children, Speech, Academically Gifted, Music, and Parent Teacher Organization. One classroom became a storage room for instructional supplies. Guidance was assigned the old office space. The Computer Lab is located in the old facility. Mobile units which had been used for instructional classrooms became the site for before and after school care.
School redistricting has assigned new students to Baton Elementary for the 2001 - 2002 school year. Three additional classroom teachers occupy the west wing of the original building.
Since its beginning in 1915, Baton School has continued to be a leader among the educational institutions in Caldwell County. In the last five decades Baton School has been under the capable leadership of six principals and two assistant principals: Mr. H.D. Gragg; Mr. John L. McCurry; Mr. Brooks Barber; Mr. Ted Watson; Mr. Malcolm Laxton, assistant; Ms. Peggy Lowdermilk, assistant; Mr. Jack Hoke; Mr. Wayne Crowe, and Mrs. Katie Justice.
