Carcassonne Community School was built as a response to the need for a high school to serve the students in what was then the remote area of Gander, KY. The post office was later changed to Carcassonne. Many dedicated residents in the community helped Rev. Hendricks D Caudill, Sr. and his wife Anna Dixon Caudill build the original school on land the Caudills donated for the school. Many descendants of this original group are still active in community activities.
The first classes at the new school were held in July 1924. The original building burned in 1929, but classes were held in the newly completed gymnasium while the current building was being constructed. At its largest, the Carcassonne campus consisted of 20 acres and approximately 40 buildings. These included classroom buildings, a dining hall, boys’ and girls’ dormitories, and houses for administrators, teachers, and visiting dignitaries. The school served as a boarding school, educating students from all over eastern Kentucky. Students could work to pay their tuition, or their parents could pay through barter of garden produce or livestock.
The school served as a source of night classes for adults in the community, teaching proper agricultural techniques, carpentry, mechanics, and healthcare. During the Great Depression, Carcassonne hosted at least two Letcher County Fairs, with athletic competitions and also contests involving vegetable, fruit, and meat production and preservation. The school also was selected as one of the University of Kentucky’s “Listening Centers.” This meant the school received a battery powered radio which enabled the local citizens to gather at the school to listen to scheduled broadcasts of news, music, and cultural productions, and then engage in discussions about the broadcasts. These were invaluable during the Depression and World War II.
Eventually, roads into the area were improved enough for students to be transported to Stewart Robinson School, and then Letcher School. High school classes ceased in the late 1940s, but 1-8 classes continued much longer. The last full year of classes consisted of grades 1-6, in 1973-74.
The Community Center received new life in the 1960’s. College students from VISTA and Appalachian Volunteers helped area residents make needed repairs and hold reunions and celebrations. Square dances had been held for many years in private homes, and the Community Center became a natural location for these to continue. A sewing club was also established, and woodworking classes were offered. The Center has served as a focal point for the preservation of traditional Appalachian music and craft.
Carcassonne has been featured in many novels, texts, tourist guidebooks, and magazine articles. One can also find numerous clips of dances held here on the internet, and the facility has been used for the production of several videos. The Center still serves as a cultural center for local residents. Many birthdays, reunions, and other family celebrations are held here each year. We host the “longest-running community sponsored” square dance in Kentucky, usually on the second Saturday of each month, except for the winter months. The center also hosts celebrations and/or community dinners several times during the year, and MCHC has been holding an open-invitation health fair at the center on a biennial basis. Carcassonne is alive and still serving as an asset to the community.
