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In 1880, Madisonville's first school for African American students was established on the northeast side of town in a one-room schoolhouse. Spencer Davis served as the first teacher. In 1885, the school was moved to this site, on land donated by the Rev. Neal Mccloud, who taught the school's 40 students. Other early teachers included Ministers. Despite the difficulties students and educators faced, the school continued to grow. By the 1920s, a new facility was needed. Funded by the Julius Rosenwald Foundation, a new schoolhouse opened in 1926. It had a cafeteria and eight classrooms, some of which could be opened together to form an auditorium. The school was the site of interscholastic events, proms, parent-teacher association meetings and special programs. Citizens also gathered at the school for the community Juneteenth celebration. In addition to its regular curriculum, the school offered woodwork, painting and general repair training, as well as facilities for canning and for a farmers' shop during the Great Depression. In the 1940s and 1950s, several rural schools consolidated with Madisonville Colored High School. During the 1950s, the school district constructed new facilities at this site, and the students voted to change the school's name to Marian Anderson High School, in honor of the world-renowned contralto. Madisonville was one of the last school districts in the state to integrate, and Marian Anderson High School closed in December 1970, serving later as an intermediate campus. An alumni group continues to meet, raising funds for scholarships to benefit Madisonville's youth and working to preserve the history of the city's African American Community. (2004) |
