Rosenwald

How a man born into slavery and a Jewish-German business man changed the lives of over 700,000 black children.

This is one of the largest Rosenwald schools I’ve come across in my travels in the Northern Neck town of Reedsville, Virginia.

Quoted from an article in Smithsonian on-line magazine. (*1)

”Between 1917 and 1932, nearly 5,000 rural schoolhouses, modest one-, two-, and three-teacher buildings known as Rosenwald schools, came to exclusively serve more than 700,000 black children over four decades. It was through the shared ideals and a partnership between Booker T. Washington, an educator, intellectual and prominent African American thought leader, and Julius Rosenwald, a German-Jewish immigrant who accumulated his wealth as head of the behemoth retailer, Sears, Roebuck & Company, that Rosenwald Schools would come to comprise more than one in five Black schools operating throughout the South by 1928.”
*1 (SMITHSONIANMAG.COM | March 30, 2021, 9:33 a.m. Written by Michael J. Solender)

When you come across a Rosenwald school you’ll often be able to verify that it’s one by the design. The original designs were drafted by two Tuskegee professors of architecture, Robert R. Taylor and W.A. Hazel. Electricity was a scarce commodity in the rural south in the early 20th century, so their designs included orientating the school to take advantage of the natural sunlight and by having large windows.

In the early part of the 20th century Sears, and remember Rosenwald is President of the company, and Sears had come up with a concept of a “ready made home.” Go to the Sears catalogue and you could order the pre-cut pieces and plans. They applied this concept to the schools to ensure uniformity and to be cost efficient.

Rosenwald, who in the early 20th century was the President of Sears, Roebuck and Company, was best remembered for being a philanthropist who preferred to avoid publicity. His strong belief about using his wealth for the good it could do in society, especially in addressing the disparity in education for African Americans, was matched by his preference to remain as anonymous as possible. This sense of philanthropy continued after his death - the Rosenwald estate dictated that funds continue to support these schools were to continue being distributed after his death for another 25.

“Equally important in building the Rosenwald schools was Booker T. Washington (1856-1915). He was born a slave in Virginia. At age 25, Washington became the first principal of the Tuskegee Normal School for Colored Teachers in Alabama. He built it into the Tuskegee Institute, the largest and most successful college for African Americans, now called Tuskegee University. By the early 1900s, Washington was the most prominent and powerful African American in the country.

All Rosenwald schools were built to specifications for size, ventilation, windows, and other properties.  Tuskegee Institute architects developed the plans. Some schools were built by Tuskegee students. After Washington died, quality control suffered. Rosenwald then created the Rosenwald Fund to oversee school construction.

Self-Help Required

Rosenwald did not simply give money to people to build schools.  He required people in each locality to show how much they wanted the school. They had to raise money or contribute labor. They also had to convince the local white government to contribute money.

Rosenwald actually provided the smallest amount of money: about $4.4 million. State and local governments gave over $18 million. Local people raised about $6 million – $4.7 million from blacks and $1.2 million from whites. (They contributed to Rosewald schools besides what they already paid in taxes for public schools.)

The Great Scope of the Work

By the time of Rosenwald’s death in 1932, about one-third of black students in the South were attending Rosenwald schools. In addition to 4,977 schools, Rosenwald contributed to 217 homes for teachers. He also established 163 machine shops where students learned practical skills.  North Carolina had the most Rosenwald schools: 813.”(*2)

This school in Gloucester County has recently been renovated.

This school is in the Northern Neck area of Virginia.

In Sunbeam, Virginia. Many of the Rosenwald schools did not have his name associated with them, but the Tuskegee design is very apparent.

A Tuskegee school also in the Northern Neck area. Obviously whoever spelled the name on that sign did not attend.

Many of these schools have repurposed as churches and community centers.

This is the Surry County, African - American Heritage Society, Claremont School established in 1913. It was closed in 1957 and now is used as a community center.

Sadly, many of these schools, like this one in Prince George County, Virginia, are in need of restoration.

Another great resource is “You Need a Schoolhouse: Booker T. Washington, Julius Rosenwald, and the Building of Schools for the Segregated South” written by Stephanie Deutsch.

To see many of the schools in Virginia that are “related” to this article, look in the galleries section for Rosenwald and Tuskegee Schools.