Castle Heights Military Academy

The academy was founded in 1902 as Castle Heights School outside of Lebanon, Tennessee. Its founders were David Mitchell, president of Cumberland University; Isaac W. P. Buchanan, a mathematics teacher at the recently defunct Cumberland Preparatory School; Amzi W. Hooker, a resident of Lebanon; and Laban Lacy Rice, a former English instructor at the Cumberland Preparatory School. Rice served as the school's headmaster and was later president of Cumberland University. Buchanan taught mathematics at the school and was later its business manager and headmaster. The academy was initially coeducational and had 96 boarding students. In 1954, the school had grown to almost 500 students and operated a summer camp. In 1965, Ingram became the academy's superintendent, after serving as its commandant since 1929. Cumberland University maintains records and other school memorabilia. ==Campus==

Castle Heights Academy's administrative building was designed by architect Tom Chamberlain in the Gothic Revival style in 1902. The Queen Anne style president's house was building in 1902, west the administrative building. Rutherford Parks Library and Mildred Armstrong Hospital were added in 1905, both in collegiate gothic style. An auditorium and gymnasium were built in 1928 and named for the school's owner, Bernarr Macfadden. The Mitchell House, the former home of founder David Mitchell, was purchased by the school in 1936 and used to house the junior school; it was called Macfadden Hall. Behind the Mitchell House was a springhouse that was used for gun storage. The campus included 150 acres and was expanded to 225 acres in the 1930s. The McFadden Foundation Auditorium was added to the campus in 1941. The campus was added to the National Register of Historic Places as the Castle Heights Academy Historic District in 1996. ==Notable alumni==

• Duane Allman (1961) founder and member of the Allman Brothers Band • William Dudley, competition swimmer who represented the United States at the 1948 Summer Olympics • Dan Evins, co-founder of Cracker Barrel Old Country Store • Lance W. Lord, general in the United States Air Force • Thomas P. McKenna, United States Army officer and author • Gilbert S. Merritt Jr., United States circuit judge of the United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit from 1977 to 2022 • Reid Moseley, All-American college football for Georgia Bulldogs football • Pete Rademacher, heavyweight boxer • Victor R. Steeh, member of the Michigan House of Representatives • Willard Steele, college football player and physician • Steve Stephens, broadcasting pioneer in Arkansas • John Tidwell, member of the Tennessee House of Representatives • Banks Turner, member of the Tennessee General Assembly • Herbert S. Walters, member of the United States Senate ==See also==