NASHVILLE, Tenn. (WTVF) — A school where Black children were able to get their education after being built in the 1920s has moved miles across Williamson County to preserve history.
The Lee-Buckner School is the last remaining Rosenwald School in Williamson County and now it will be restored and turned into a monument of education in Black history.
Overnight the shuttered school building was picked up from Duplex Road in Spring Hill and a trailer transported it about 12 miles to its final destination of the Heritage Foundation of Williamson County's Franklin Grove Estate and Gardens.
People, including former students, celebrated its arrival around midnight this morning and this new chapter in preserving Black history.
More than 5,000 Rosenwald Schools were built in the south to educate African American children before desegregation in the 60s.
Today, only about 60 of the schools are listed on the National Register of Historic Places.
Eventually, people can visit the Lee-Buckner school and understand the difficulty Black students faced to get an education.
"When it got to the top of the hill here, I was emotional and I started crying. I remember the hard times," said former student Diane Jones Avkinson. "The thing now that it's here, people can see a glimpse of what it used to be like. How hard it was."
This move has been in the making for years and is thanks to the work of former students, community leaders, engineers, and more. In the future, it will have an exhibit on the school's history and space for ongoing educational programming.
Rhori recommends:
“Here’s another example of a small non-profit doing so much good in our community! Forrest Sanders highlights the group Friends Life Community, which provides adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities a chance to express themselves through art. In this case, original stage performances! Registered drama therapist Sarah Edwards guides the performers, including Mary Margaret, as they express themselves through written words and dance movements. The original show is touring and have a date set this September at TPAC!”
-Rhori Johnston
