Welcome to Cashion Elementary
East Gantt Elementary School has a long, proud history. East Gantt was located in the Gantt Community in the southern area of Greenville County. The Gantt Community was named in honor of Richard Gantt, who was born on August 2, 1767 in Prince George County, Maryland. After living in several areas of South Carolina, he settled in Greenville County. He became active in the General Assembly of South Carolina, and the South Carolina State Legislature elected him a judge of the Court of the General Sessions.
After searching public documents and interviewing several people, it was discovered that the East Gantt community had an organized school district as early as the late 1800's. The first record that could be located states that the trustees of the East Gantt School District purchased land on January 31, 1889, August 4, 1916, January 21, 1929, and October 17, 1942. The first East Gantt Elementary School that could be documented was a two-story wooden structure. The first floor served as a classroom area and the second was used as an auditorium. This building was located on the property of what is now Donaldson Center. It is believed that in 1940 this building was bricked and continued to serve as the school for the East Gantt Community. The trustees of the school were E. A. Harris, W. O. Tripp, and T. O. Hunt. Frank M. Shockley served as the principal. After the bombing of Pearl Harbor and the United States' entry into WWII, changes in the Gantt Community took place just as they did all over the United States. The United States built an air force base in the Gantt Community. Many families were forced to sell their farms and move. East Gantt Elementary School was also forced to move. The school building was used as a communication hub for the officers on base during WWII. The building is still standing and is owned now by the Crucible Company. The School District of East Gantt purchased property on White Horse Extension in 1942. The influx of military families brought many new students to East Gantt Elementary School. The new school had nine classrooms, two closets, and a cafeteria. This school served students in first through seventh grades. There were seven to eight teachers. Frank M. Shockley, Nellie Suber, Paul Underwood, Paul Goethe, and Robert Cashion served as principals of East Gantt Elementary during the years between 1942 and 1963.
Robert Cashion served both as a teacher and principal of East Gantt. The School District of Greenville County built a new East Gantt Elementary School on 400 Fork Shoals Road in 1969. Robert Cashion provided strong, effective leadership and direction to East Gantt for 37 years. In 1990, Mr. Cashion was named as one of the state's outstanding school administrators.
Now East Gantt has moved once again. We are now located in a brand new extention of the building with a brand new name on 1500 Fork Shoals Road. Our new school is named Robert E. Cashion Elementary with a new mascot and colors chosen by students. We are now the green, yellow and white Cashion Comets!