Speas Elementary School opened on West Polo Road in 1959. It was built on land where in earlier days, men mounted their horses and competed against other polo teams.
Students from the surrounding neighborhood entered the new school, and encountered everything new, including their new principal, Grady E. Stone, Jr. But to the elementary school students, and to the teachers and staff members, he would always be called Mr. Stone.
Mr. Stone was a tall and imposing man, with a strong voice and a equally strong whistle. When he walked into the cafeteria, and wanted to get the students’ attention, all he had to do was whistle, and there was immediate quiet throughout the room.
Mr. Stone probably called upon his military training in dealing with his job as principal of Speas Elementary School, where he worked from 1959 to his retirement in 1978.
Mr. Stone was born in Stokes County in 1920, and he passed away in 2007.
Greetings .
Enjoyed reading your article.
I have the same memories of Mr Stone, a man not to be trifled with. And yes, i remember the whole lunch room going silent when he walked in. He once showed me a paddle with holes in it, though i doubt he ever used it.
I remember Mr. Stone from Speas School in 1976-78. It was rumored among the kids that he kept a ping-pong paddle in his office for disciplinary use. We were all scared to death of having to “go see Mr. Stone.” Only one classmate in my first grade class with Mrs. Gwendolyn Wallace ever had to “go see Mr. Stone.”