In 1921 Principal E.P. Dixon started high school classes in a nearby vacant cotton gin and named the school for the inventor Eli Whitney. In 1923 the high school classes relocated to a building on this site. In 1928 a primary grade school building was added for students from the local one-room schools of Center, Manndale, Concord, Spring, and Greenhill, along with a connecting auditorium that was also used for community events. Here in 1931 began Uncle Eli's Quilting Party, a one-day quilting and quilt show that continues annually on the first Thursday in April.