‘It’s a sad day’ | Flames engulf the administration building at Knoxville College

On November 7, 2024By Littum

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. (WVLT) – The Knoxville Fire Department responded to a fire on the Knoxville College campus Monday evening.

When crews arrived on scene around 8:30 p.m., KFD said there was heavy fire. The flames could be seen several miles away, including from I-40.

Crews responded to the fire Monday evening.

Knoxville Mayor Indya Kincannon told WVLT News the fire broke out at Elnathan Hall. Frank Shanklin, an alumni and board member, said it was a building that had not been occupied for at least 40-50 years.

“It’s a sad day for the Knoxville community,” Kincannon said. “Knoxville College was established not long after the Civil War to educate former slaves and it did that work and did it well for more than 100 years. In recent years it has been a more difficult thing. It will be sad to lose this building, and we will continue to work with the private board that owns this property and manages the school.

“This is not city property. We have had to step in to resolve fire situations many times in recent years and it can be very dangerous,” Kincannon continued.

Knoxville College is an HBCU, better known as a historically black college or university. The struggling campus lost its accreditation in 1997 when enrollment declined, but has worked to regain that accreditation in recent years.

The most recent update from college administration came in June, when then-President Leonard L. Adams Jr. announced that he would resign from his position.

Previous coverage: The president of Knoxville College is stepping down

Kincannon also said the fire was contained to that building and the cause is unknown at this time.

Crews responded to the fire Monday evening.

Shanklin said the building was empty and mostly boarded up. He also said that while they usually receive a call about a fire on campus at least once a month, they have never had a call about a fire in this specific building.

Shanklin added that the college is in the process of being re-accredited and hopes that the students will eventually be back on campus.

According to KFD’s Mark Wilbanks, no injuries were reported. The cause of the fire has not been disclosed.