| Marker Text |
The George Washington Carver School, formerly known as the Edna Colored School, had its first class of students graduate in 1912. Though records are hard to find for the early school years, early settlers believed the site of the first school building to be on the east side of Dry Creek where the police station now stands. The school was established during a tumultuous time in America's social history. Segregated schools were established in Edna but even with the Supreme Court decision stating that segregation was unconstitutional, schools operated on a "two-race" system up until 1965. In 1931, The Edna Colored School was relocated to the southern portion of lots V and VI of Marvin's Second Addition. It stayed in this location until 1953. In 1949, a new auditorium and gymnasium were constructed in the Harlem Addition to the school district. During this time, the Edna Colored School received its new name, George Washington Carver School. In 1954, E. T. and Maymie White-Rose gifted land to the school district to build a new school building. Several of the buildings from the Washington and Harris campus were moved to this new site. The Edna school district was finally integrated in 1967 when Edna High School's graduating class included the first African American students. Even under its "separate but equal" status, Carver School was a highly valued educational institution and has served as a central place for the black community of Edna. In 2008, George Washington Carver was sold to a non-profit group and is now named George Washington Carver Center of Jackson County, Inc. (2014) |
