From NKAA, Notable Kentucky African Americans Database (main entry)
African American Schools in Calloway County, KY
In 1886 there were eight colored school districts in Calloway County, according to the Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction of the Commonwealth of Kentucky, school year ending June 30, 1886 and June 30, 1887, p. 125. In 1895, there were six colored schools and in 1896, seven colored schools [source: Biennial Report of the Superintendent of Public Instruction, 1895-1897, pp. 267-271]. The schools were in session five months of the year. Two of the schools were held in log buildings, the remainder in frame structures. The average attendance was 169 students taught by seven teachers 1895-96 and 195 students taught by eight teachers 1896-97. The colored schools are also mentioned in Waylan F. Rayburn's thesis History of Education in Calloway County, Kentucky. On p. 49 of his thesis, there is a breakdown by year for 1892-1917, including the value of the school houses and grounds and the furniture and apparatuses.
In 1925, there were three colored schools in the county and one in the city, each school having one teacher [source: Kentucky Public School Directory, 1925-1926, pp. 67 & 69]. The Negro teachers in 1940 were Ruth Keys, Ione Finsley, Madge Green, Elizabeth King, Jessee McGeehee Jr., Sarah Sleet, and Fanny Willis [source: U.S. Federal Census]. In 1941, there were two colored schools in the county, still with one teacher at each school, and in Murray a graded school and high school [source Rayburn, p. 60]. In 1946, the three colored schools are identified as Buffalo Graded School, Murray Graded School, and Douglass High School [source: "Schools in Calloway County (Graded and High Schools)" a one-page unpublished document in the Kentucky Education Collection, Series 1, Box 4, File: Calloway County Education]. During the 1956-57 school term, the Almo High School (for Whites) and the Murray High Schools (for Whites) began to integrate [source: Kentucky Public School Directory, 1956-57, pp. 422-423].
- Colored schools (8)
- Buffalo School
- Murray School
- Douglass School