I. M. Terrell High School
Fort Worth, Tarrant County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In 1882, the Fort Worth school system opened its first free public school for black students, called "East Ninth Street Colored School." It was moved to the corner of East Twelfth Street and Steadman in a property trade with the Fort Worth and Denver Railroad in 1906, and renamed "North Side Colored School No. 11." Isaiah Milligan Terrell was named principal and served until 1915. A 1909 bond election provided funds for a new building, which opened in May 1910. In honor of its former principal, the school was named "I.M. Terrell High School" in 1921. The school at twelfth and Steadman became a Junior High and Elementary in 1938, when Terrell High School was moved to its present location at 1411 E. 18th Street, site of a former white elementary school. Isaiah Milligan Terrell was born in Grimes County in 1859. Named one of the first four black teachers in Fort Worth in 1882, he served as principal and supervisor of black schools. He was married in 1883 to Marcelite Landry, a respected music teacher. Terrell became President of Prairie View State Normal and Industrial College (now Prairie View A&M University) in 1915, and later became an active leader in Houston's black community. He died in 1931.
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
When Fort Worth opened its first free public school for Black children in 1882, it began a decades-long institution that would grow far beyond its humble East Ninth Street start. Isaiah Milligan Terrell, one of the city's first Black teachers, shaped the school as principal until 1915, when he left to lead what is now Prairie View A&M University. In 1921 the school was named in his honor, and it moved to its long-standing 18th Street home in 1938. It remained the anchor of Black education in Fort Worth through the segregation era.
Why it matters
The school embodies the resilience of Black communities building their own educational institutions under Jim Crow, and honors an educator whose influence reached from Fort Worth's classrooms to a major state university.
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Related people
- · Isaiah Milligan Terrell
- · Marcelite Landry Terrell
Themes & tags
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