Swayne College, founded as the Swayne School, was a school for African American students in Montgomery, Alabama. The school operated from 1868 to 1937. Built in 1865[1] and dedicated in 1869, it was named for General Wager Swayne[2] who led the Union Army in Alabama after the American Civil War, and later oversaw the Freedmen's Bureau in the state. He helped establish schools for African Americans in Alabama.[3]

History

The school was located at 632 Union Street, near Grove Street, on a site submitted by Elijah Cook and was run by the American Missionary Association.[4][5][6] George Stanley Pope was the school's first principal. Its first African American principal was Charles Duncan, a graduate of Fisk University.[2] Richard Bailey writes that the school was among the first to utilize the "bush school" strategy, where educators sent the school's best students into the community to teach other African-American children.[7] Tuition for Montgomery students was free, those from neighboring areas paid $1.[7]

Swayne College was demolished in 1948[1] and succeeded on the same site in 1949 by the Booker T. Washington School, Montgomery's first high school for African Americans.[2][8] The community's schools later included Booker T. Washington Magnet High School,[9] a successor to George Washington Carver High School, and the Carver Creative and Performing Arts Center (CCPAC).

A historical marker commemorates the schools' site.[10][2][11]

See also

References

  1. 1 2 Brough, Charles (June 27, 1948). "School Name For A Yankee Is Razed Here". Montgomery Advertiser. pp. 1B, 11B. Retrieved February 20, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  2. 1 2 3 4 "Swayne College / Booker T. Washington School - Montgomery, Alabama - Alabama Historical Markers on Waymarking.com". www.waymarking.com.
  3. ↑ "Wager Swayne". Encyclopedia of Alabama.
  4. ↑ Association, American Missionary (1876). Annual Report of the American Missionary Association. The Association.
  5. ↑ Wilkerson, Lyn (January 10, 2010). Slow Travels-Alabama. Lulu.com. ISBN 9780557140558 – via Google Books.
  6. ↑ "Field Trip - Elijah Cook / City of Montgomery v. Rosa Parks". www.fieldtripper.com.
  7. 1 2 Bailey, Richard (February 21, 2010). Neither Carpetbaggers Nor Scalawags: Black Officeholders During the Reconstruction of Alabama, 1867-1878. NewSouth Books. ISBN 9781588381897 – via Google Books.
  8. ↑ "Washington School Boasts Long Underground Tunnel". Montgomery Advertiser. November 6, 1955. p. H3. Retrieved February 20, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  9. ↑ "Booker T. Washington Magnet High School". Exploring Montgomery. Retrieved 2022-03-16.
  10. ↑ Merritt, Quebe (July 5, 2004). "Unveiling Puts Past in Light". Montgomery Advertiser. pp. 1B, 4B. Retrieved February 20, 2022 – via Newspapers.com.
  11. ↑ "Swayne College / Booker T. Washington School Historical Marker". www.hmdb.org.
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