Union Academy High School 1897-1969 - Florida Historical Markers on Waymarking.com

Side 1
Union Academy was the fulfillment of the dream of local African American pioneers seeking to advance the moral and cultural welfare of young people through education. By the 1870s, west Bartow's First Providence Missionary Baptist Church hosted the first dedicated school for African American children. The school site was named Brittsville, and by 1887, the City of Bartow funded their school house. Two schools, Mrs. J.A. Wiley's Colored Institute (1887-1890), which also trained teachers, and the first public school, Bartow Colored School (1892-1896), followed in succession with the Brittsville School. The Brittsville School was closed in 1895, uniting representatives of the Baptist, African Methodist Episcopal, and African Methodist Episcopal Zion churches to petition the City of Bartow for a new school. The request was approved, and Bishop Thomas Lomax of the African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church donated property on 5th Avenue for the new building. Coupled with a two-day citywide celebration, Union Academy's corner stone was laid on August 19, 1897. The first day of instruction was September 14, 1897. The school consisted of four classrooms, and boasted an enrollment of 120 students.
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Side 2
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Union Academy was named after an African American school in Gainesville, Florida, founded in 1867 by the Freedman's Bureau. In 1907, under the leadership of Principal Charles E. Murray, the school reached junior high school status. In 1923, the school added a secondary department, bringing it to high school status. The first high school graduate was Lela Burkett, also honored as Polk County's first graduating African American, on June 4, 1928. Union Academy qualified for, and received, a Rosenwald grant. The grant, coupled with local funds, insured that a new modern facility was ready for commencement in 1929, on a site purchased from Jack Longworth. In 1948, Brittsville Elementary was consolidated with Union Academy, and barracks from the recently closed Bartow Army Airfield were used as classrooms. New high school and primary buildings were added in 1955. The 1964 Civil Rights Act mandated desegregation in public schools, and by the fall of 1969, all high school students from Union Academy were transferred to Summerlin Institute. The amalgamation created Bartow High School. Principals of Union Academy: Rev. Andrew N. Richie, Rev. Ben F. Childs, Charles E. Murray, Lawrence C. Jones, W.M. Davies, Samuel P. Robinson, N.M. Christopher, S. Meredith Mosely, James E. Stephens. Mascot- Bengal Tiger

Marker Number: PCHC-026 Date: 2019 County: Polk Marker Type: City Sponsored or placed by: Polk County Historical Commission and Union Academy High School Alumni Association, Bartow, Florida Website: Not listed

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Date Logged Log User Rating   11/11/2019 Markerman62 visited it