The History of Dimon Elementary School

Dimon Elementary School was opened on September 3, 1968.  The total value of the building was $662,323.  At the opening of school there were 663 pupils enrolled and 24 people on the professional staff.  Herbert T. Stevens was the first principal.  The school was dedicated on March 9, 1969 to Mr. J. Homer Dimon for whom the school was named.

MR. J. HOMER DIMON

Mr. J. Homer Dimon was born August 8,1869 in Muscogee County, Georgia and grew up there on his father's farm. He and his younger brother Kelly entered Eastman Business College in Poughkeepsie, New York, in 1888 and graduated there the following year.  When Mr. Dimon returned to Georgia, he settled in Columbus and, with his father's financial help, opened a clothing business.  Mr. Dimon became a wealthy and successful businessman.  He eventually left the clothing business and organized the National Showcase Company.  As president of this company, he oversaw the manufacturing and marketing of furniture. Contemporaries credited Mr. Dimon with contributing significantly to the growth of Columbus by such business investments as the erection of the Dimon Court Apartments on Upper Broadway, the first modern apartment buildings in the city.

Mr. Dimon was also active in religious, civic, and political affairs in Columbus throughout his life. He was also a member of the first City Commission of Columbus and served as the first mayor under the commission-manager form of government inaugurated in 1922.  Mr. Dimon served as mayor from 1922 until 1931 and again in 1935.

Mr. Dimon and his brother inherited one fourth of his father's farm on Steam Mill Road and Mr. Dimon and his wife built a spacious home on this property and named their home " Countryside".

Throughout his life Mr. Dimon participated in the growth and development of Columbus Public Schools. Because of his dedication to public education, Dimon Elementary School was built on land owned by the Dimon family and named in honor and memory of Mr. J. Homer Dimon.

DIMON ELEMENTARY SCHOOL PRINCIPALS

Herbert Stevens  1968-1976

Jack W. Hendrix 1976-1989

Bill Watson 1989-1990

Dr. Thomas Moffit 1990

Dr. Carol Vander Gheynst 1990-1994

Gary Shouppe 1994-1997

Barbara Motos 1997-2001

Lura Reed 2001-2007

Valerie Williams 2007-Present