Site of Northeast Texas Christian Theological and Industrial College
Palestine, Anderson County, Texas
Marker Inscription
(about one mile north) Led by the Rev. A.J. Hurdle, the Northeast Texas Christian Missionary Convention of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) was formed in Daingerfield in 1900. Established to serve black members of the denomination, its primary purpose was the creation of a college. The Christian College Building Association was formed by a group of women within the organization, and by 1904 enough funds had been raised to purchase forty-nine acres of land near Palestine, Texas. Contractor J.L. Randolph was hired in 1910, and on May 26, 1911, the cornerstone was laid for the main college structure. Opening with seven students in January 1912, the Northeast Texas Christian Theological and Industrial College consisted of several large frame buildings and had a faculty of four. D.T. Cleaver served as the first president and was succeeded by I.Q. Hurdle. In addition to their classroom studies, the students farmed the college lands and raised livestock. After the main college building was destroyed by fire about 1920, the school closed. The remaining buildings were later razed, leaving no visible reminders of the institution that once provided an education to students from several states. (1989)
Erected by Texas Historical Commission
The Story
Founded in 1900 by Black members of the Christian Church (Disciples of Christ) under the Rev. A. J. Hurdle, this convention set out to build a college for its people, and by 1904 a building association of women within the group had raised enough to buy forty-nine acres near Palestine. The Northeast Texas Christian Theological and Industrial College opened with seven students in 1912, its students studying in the classroom and farming the college's own land. When fire destroyed the main building around 1920 the school closed, and its remaining structures were later razed, leaving no visible trace.
Why it matters
The vanished college testifies to Black Texans' determination to build their own institutions of higher learning during the harshest years of Jim Crow.
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Related people
- · Rev. A. J. Hurdle
- · D. T. Cleaver
- · I. Q. Hurdle
- · J. L. Randolph
Themes & tags
Nearby & related markers
William Freeman
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Born into slavery in 1863 to Charlotte Freeman, a plantation maid, William Freeman gained his freedom as a toddler and went on to study at Prairie View, training as both a teacher and a brick mason. He helped rename Palestine's Colored School for Frederick Douglass in 1898 and served as principal of Douglass Elementary from 1901 to 1909, even as he made and laid bricks for many of the town's buildings. His son and grandson followed him as principals of the school for forty-six years.
Frederick Douglass Elementary School
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Opened in 1875 as the 'First Ward School for Coloreds,' this was the only public school ever built in Palestine's Old Town neighborhood, and for nearly a century it educated the community's African-American children. Renamed for Frederick Douglass in 1898 after the great abolitionist's death, it rebuilt in brick after a 1912 fire and became far more than a schoolhouse — hosting teacher associations, Friday assemblies, and county-fair exhibits. Three generations of the Freeman family led it before desegregation closed its doors in 1967.
Alonzo Marion Story
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Born in New Orleans and college-educated, Alonzo Marion Story came to Texas young and devoted his life to teaching mathematics, settling in Palestine in 1912 to instruct students at the town's school for African American children. He served for decades as teacher and principal, staying on through his final years even after losing his eyesight, and continued tutoring from home after retiring. The community named schools in his honor, a testament to a man revered across the era of segregated education.
Timothy Stephen Smith
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Born in 1902 to a father who had escaped slavery, Timothy Stephen Smith earned a degree from Prairie View A&M and taught school for forty-two years. Convinced that Anderson County's voting boundaries diluted Black political strength, he and others sued in 1973; Judge William Wayne Justice agreed, striking down a "racially motivated gerrymander" and forcing a switch to single-member districts. Similar success against the City of Palestine soon followed, opening the way for the county's first Black officeholders.