Cedar Bluff School - A Brief History

(with thanks to Katherine Cloud Ford)

The original Cedar Bluff School was a one-room white-frame building adjoining Cedar Bluff Church. It was constructed on land gives by James N. Seaton. Few records of this early school remain.  

On June 15, 1931, the heir of J.N. Seaton and the church trustees deeded the building and land to Knox County for use as a school. The frame building was moved to one side and a brick addition was built. Grades one through eight were taught in two rooms. This school was closed in 1954 and all students then went to Farragut schools. The original building still stands on Dutchtown Road and is not the home of Cedar Bluff Baptist Church.

In 1964, the construction of a new Cedar Bluff School began and served the neighborhood for grades one through eight. With a population surge in the late 1960s, the need for an expansion became obvious. Cedar Bluff Elementary was opened in 1971, and the 1964 building was turned into a middle school. The new building was was built at the peak of a new trend in education, with a focus on independent learning, interest centers, and open spaces. Continued growth in the area and new subdivisions filled with young families prompted the construction of Cedar Bluff Primary School in 1975. At that time the 1971 building was turned into Cedar Bluff Intermediate.

In 2008, a new Cedar Bluff Elementary was opened on the site of the old Primary School. Once again, all elementary grades were housed in the same building. Today, Cedar Bluff Elementary houses approximately 1200 Kindergarten through Fifth grade students. In 2009, the old Intermediate building was turned into Cedar Bluff Pre-School, which operates under the umbrella of the Elementary School, bring our number closer to 1330. We have 167 staff members serving a vibrant community, including families that speak over 24 languages. Our staff and community have adopted the motto, "It's Better at the Bluff!" to express the pride we have in our school and community. 

We will update this page as we discover more. Do you have family photos of the school? Please send them to christine.bock@knoxschools.org