Peabody School
Hillsboro, Hill County, Texas
Marker Inscription
In 1885, a bond was issued for the construction of an African American School, which was built soon afterwards. The school, named for George Peabody, a banker who distributed funds to the southern states following the Civil War, educated students in the African-American neighborhood in Hillsboro known as Freetown. A brick building replaced the original frame structure in 1919, and was used until the school moved to here in 1950. Peabody School's last graduating class was in 1966, with primary level classes held on the campus for several more years until full integration occurred. Although the building burned down in 2005, Peabody School remains a source of pride for Hillsboro residents. (2008)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
In 1885 Hillsboro issued a bond to build a school for African American children in the Black neighborhood known as Freetown, naming it for George Peabody, whose fund famously aided Southern education after the Civil War. A brick building replaced the original frame structure in 1919, and the school moved to this site in 1950. Its last class graduated in 1966 as full integration approached; though the building burned in 2005, Peabody School remains a point of community pride.
Why it matters
The school embodies the long struggle for Black education from Reconstruction through desegregation, and the community pride that outlived the building itself.
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Related people
- · George Peabody
Themes & tags
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