Fayette County, West Virginia - Colored Schools in Fayette - 1904 ********************************************************************** USGENWEB NOTICE: These electronic pages may NOT be reproduced in any format for profit or presentation by any other organization or persons. Persons or organizations desiring to use this material, must obtain the written consent of the contributor, or the legal representative of the submitter, and contact the listed USGenWeb archivist with proof of this consent. ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** The records for this work have been submitted by Valerie F. Crook, E-mail address: , May, 1999. ********************************************************************** ********************************************************************** HISTORY OF EDUCATION IN WEST VIRGINIA 1904 Colored Schools in Fayette BY H. H. RAILEY It has always been the desire of mankind to seek intelligence. This fact is true of all races, from Adam to this present time. Yet, there was a class of men, or a race of men who were denied the privilege of seeking intelligence through books; what they got came by induction. But as God fought for Israel, so He fought for this people, and won the battle in 1865. After this time, schools were established in central places through- out the Southland for the education of Negro children. But, so great was the thirst for knowledge, that gray-haired, men and women could be seen winding their way to the "little log school house" on the hill. These schools did not come simultaneously, but took years of hard work by Christian-hearted white men and women, who sacrificed home and friends to help raise fallen humanity to a higher plane of Christian civilization. When these people look back over the past and see the fruits of their labor they can not help but say, "God be praised," for, from these schools, came doctors, lawyers, preachers, teachers and mechanics. No State in the Union has been more liberal toward the appropria- tions for the education of the colored youth than the "Little Mountain" State, West Virginia. Space will not allow the discussion of the subject of higher education here, and, too, it will be found elsewhere in this book. But we will take up the work in this county (Fayette). The first colored school established in Fayette county, was at Coal Valley, now Montgomery, 1879. This school was taught by Prof. H. B. Rice, now principal of the High School, Charleston, W. Va. Money was scarce, when this school was established, therefore the facilities for school purposes were poor. Mr. T. H. Norman, who was Instrumental in having the school es- tablished, let the Board of Education have one room of his house to use for school. This room had neither desk nor blackboard and charts and maps were unknown, so far as a colored school was concerned. However, matters went this way for three years, after which the Board succeeded in renting a little log shanty from Mr. Montgomery, and in a manner fitted it up for a school. This lasted only one term of four months, for when the next term came around the school population had out-grown the school house. Then, the church was rented to ac- commodate the pupils, until a school house could be built. Now Montgomery can boast of a tour room frame building with tour competent teachers to foster the work. Mrs. Anna Banks, Mrs. C. H. Payne, Mr. Geo. Cozzens, Mrs. M. A. W. Thompson, Misses Saddle Howel, Julia Norman, L. O. Hopkins, Hattie C. Booze, Annie Parker, Lizzie Meadows, Rebecca I. Bullard, Mattie Payne-Trent, Prof. J. W. Scott, and Misses Lola M. Lavender, Nellie M. Lewis, Ida M. King and H. H. Railey, the last four are the present teachers, have taught the school the last six years. The schools at Quinnimont, Fire Creek, Hawks Nest, Stone Cliff, Nuttallburg, Sewell, Eagle, and Fayettevllle, were established In their order named, under similar conditions to those at Montgomery. D. W. Calloway, A. T. Galloway, Miss L. E. Perry, Mrs. Lizzie Davis, Miss Bertha Morton, Mr. James Washington, Mrs. F. Donnally Railey, Mrs Hattie C. A. Washington, and Mrs. E. M. Dandridge, are among some of the older teachers in the county. Mrs. Dandridge, from point of ser- vice is the oldest teacher in the county. She has taught sucessfully every year for the last twenty years. She has lived to see Fayete county so develop in school facilities until it is second to no county in the State. All of the log houses have been replaced with nice frame build- ings, well equipped with charts, maps, globes and in many places nice libraries. Every hamlet has a nice, comfortable school house. The salary for No. one teachers raised from $20 and $25 per month to $40 and $45, and terms lengthened from three and four months in a year to five and six. The county can also boast of an Industrial School, Seminary and Col- lege at Hill Top, near Red Star. This school is the result of ardent labor of Rev. R. J. Perkins. It is under the management of Prof. Thomas Jefferson, a man well qualified to fill the place. The school really fills a heart felt want in this county, and we hope that Rev. Perkins will live long and do much more for his people in this county. The Eagle school has advanced from one little log shanty to a nice three room frame building, and well equipped for school work. Misses A. L. Norman, M. E. Shelton and Mr. E. C. Page are the present teachers and are doing good work for the county and State. Prof. W. S. Johnson, our county superintendent, is the right man in the right place. He has done all that a man could do to put his schools on good bases.